Chapter 1: What is the olive theory and its origin in TikTok?
What is the Olive Theory from TikTok? Thanks for asking. Fans of 2000's sitcom How I Met Your Mother can no doubt remember how the main character, Ted Mosby, is a hopeless romantic and spends the duration of the series searching for his soulmate.
But only the most hardcore of fans will remember the very first episode of the Hulu series when Ted introduces something called the Olive Theory when talking about relationships. He's chatting to friends Marshall and Lily about a recent date he went on with a girl called Robin, who also ends up being one of the show's main characters. Let's take a listen.
Do you want these? I hate olives. She hates olives! Awesome! The olive theory!
Chapter 2: How does the olive theory relate to relationship dynamics?
The olive theory is based on my friends Marshall and Lily. He hates olives, she loves them. In a weird way, that's what makes them such a great couple. Perfect balance.
Why are people talking about the olive theory all these years later then? It actually started trending on TikTok as of early 2023, leading younger generations to get familiar with How I Met Your Mother and one of its most popular relationship theories. At the time of recording, the Olive Theory hashtag has accrued over 130 million views.
TikTok users started posting mini sketches and video clips with captions explaining the Olive Theory. Here's one such example from Abdel Nahr. Here's your food. Please enjoy. Or don't. I don't care. Ugh, they put olives on my pizza. Oh, you can give them to me. Yeah, whatever. I guess you do love me. I don't know what just happened. Many social media users seem to buy into the olive theory too.
Some commenters wrote things like, I live by the olive theory. Or, my ex hated olives, so do I. My current relationship makes me the happiest I've ever been. He loves olives. Of course, olives are sometimes served on their own, but can also be a pizza or salad ingredient, as well as being served with martinis.
so there are plenty of scenarios in which you could find out whether your partner loves them or not. that olives have to do with romantic compatibility then? That's a good question. Of course, the olive theory suggests that in a perfect relationship, one of the partners will love olives while the other will hate them.
It might seem like a pretty minor preference and basically an irrational theory that the character Ted invented as he's always trying to make love seem logical. According to EliteDaily.com, the olive theory is really another way of saying opposites attract. It's like the olive hater and olive lover are two halves of a whole, and therefore they're a perfect match.
Logan Urie is Director of Relationship Science at dating app Hinge. Elle Australia interviewed her for an article about the olive theory, which was published in July 2023. She said that the olive theory isn't just a funny TikTok trend, it also encourages a deeper exploration of your personal dating parameters. She also recommends what she calls dating like a scientist.
That means coming up with a hypothesis about who you're compatible with when dating, and then being open to being proven right or wrong. Like a scientist doing an experiment, basically. Are you starting to believe yet? Maybe you should order some olives on your next date to try it out. There you have it. Now you know what the olive theory is.
In under three minutes, we answer your questions and help you understand the true meaning behind the trends, concepts and acronyms that are making headlines. Listen along and you will really know for sure.
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