Habiba Elbaramawi

Professor Myers

English 1201

16 January 2018

Research Proposal

I chose to talk about how attraction towards people that may first appear unreasonable

choices is deliberate—not at all coincidental—and fueled by the subconscious for several

reasons. Mainly, it was a hunger for knowledge, as I’d found myself in a similar position in the

past and thought knowledge may be a shield against repeating such an experience again. This is

also an experience I’ll be vaguely recounting parts of as an example of an explanation I’m

providing. In the case of this topic, I wouldn’t just be divulging into relationships deemed

impossible by an age difference or a contrast in social standing. I would also be acknowledging

how people may find themselves often falling for people with personalities completely opposite

of them, a trait that they previously associated only with a relationship designed for failure. I

would also be explaining how the impossibility of the relationship plays an essential part in

making it desirable.

This interests me for many reasons, firstly, like mentioned before, I like my heart and

mind agreeing, and the fact that they didn’t previously unsettles me greatly. I’d like to erase the

possibility of an incident like that ever taking part in my future again. Other reasons contributing

to my interest is my initial interest in neurotransmitters, which this topic practically revolves

around. I look forward to exploring the scientific explanation for love’s existence and answering
the question of whether or not our choosing people that are wrong for us is a coincidence or a

subconscious deliberate sign that we haven’t yet thought to consider.

My feelings on this topic are controversial to say the least. The possibility that we may

deliberately find perfect life partners in people that are emotionally (if not socially as well)

wrong for us is a possibility of a thrilling revelation and a frightening reality. I think about this

quite a lot for a person who hasn’t done much research on the idea yet. I think we do have

neurotransmitters that transmit attraction and love and I think something in particular has to

trigger it. My research will wither confirm or deny this theory. Most of my beliefs on this topic

are negative if I’m honest, so much I actually doubt the concept I’m discussing; I think people’s

subconsious choosing people that are wrong for them is an object of coincidence. However, I

also doubt it being a coincidence, which is the main reason for the research. I’ve read books on

love and how our minds come to recognize it as such, so I know that chemicals play an essential

part in the process. Neurotransmitters like testosterone (estrogen for the female), dopamine,

serotonin, vasopressin and oxytocin relay feelings to our minds. For example, high levels of

dopamine, a pleasure hormone, plays a part in how happy you may feel with a certain person.

Tests have proven that people in love in the presence of the loved one have the same level of

dopamine that taking cocaine may foster.

I need to learn a lot about this topic still. For instance, I need to know more about other

neurotransmitters that may lead up to the eventual feelings of love. I need to understand what

triggers all these neurotransmitters and whether that trigger differ based on person or whether it’s

a unanimous trigger. One thing I’m hoping to learn more about is this theory I recently started

reading about. It says that there are two types of people in the world, called Emotional and

Physical. This theory, by John Kappas, also states that a Physical cannot truly be happy unless
he/she is in a relationship with an Emotional. I also look forward to finding out whether it relates

to the concept of attraction to flaw. Two of my major sources (others will be used as well but

these are the core of my research) are The Human Magnet Syndrome: Why We Love People

Who Hurt us by Ross Rosenberg and Relationship Strategies by John G. Kappas.