The fifth phase of the order of the simulacra: A personal reflection on the simulations of today and romance

A personal reflection and a philosophical undertaking that delves into the nature of how romance in our world today tends to become omnipresent and all too prominent as a result of social constructs and also, due to Baudrillard\u27s simulacra sustaining it... The researcher discussed the historical roots of romance and correlated it with the romantic patterns that are still evident to this very day. Due to the significant similarities, the researcher posed the philosophical problem how can individuals be emancipated from the simulacra of romance (evidently holding no truth value as it is a mere creation of individuals) when most people view it as the \u27ideal\u27 and even struggle to pattern their lives with it? Are individuals destined to live in the hyperreal world of the simulacra? The researcher used a personal approach to a critical analysis by means of her own experiences, applying Marcel\u27s primary and secondary reflections to her own encounters with the simulacra of romance, along with her ponderings on the words \u27corny\u27, \u27mushy\u27, \u27cheesy\u27, and \u27baduy\u27 to resolve the philosophical research. Countering Baudrillard\u27s assertion that people are left with no choice but to be stagnated in the fourth phase of the order of the simulacra (a hyperreal world with only simulations to hold on to, possessing no truth value) living in passive ecstasy, the researcher affirms a fifth phase of the order of the simulacra that arises as a result of individuals being saturated by the brooding presence of the simulacra of romance in their lives. The \u27saturation\u27 with the simulacra of romance is illustrated and demonstrated by people reacting unenthusiastically towards it, using the words \u27corny\u27, \u27mushy\u27, \u27cheesy\u27, and \u27baduy\u27 to describe a reenactment of the simulacra of romance in everyday life. Thus, the recognition of romance as a mere reenactment or copy implies that some individuals today are starting to overcome the simulacra of romance and are beginning to see it for a \u27fake\u27. Consequently, liberating individuals from the bounds that the simulacra of romance has placed upon them and asserting their existence through living their intimate lives without reference to the once infallible and elevated simulacra of romance..