She said:
'In defense of Love I have only Faith and Necessity to offer;
however, I note that without Romantic Love I fear the species dies.'

'Well' he said 'Romantic Love is a recent and western notion you see
and has existed only in the last 200 years and mostly in the west-invented I think by the Victorians and the Romantic Poets.'

'So tell me then my friend' he said 'what is Romantic Love good for? Is it not best to assure that a couple has good families involved since after all is it
not true that what is happening here is not a tryst but two families coming
together?
And too, no couple can make it alone on Love's Grist...

Arranged marriages has been the norm in history and is the best if the test is
longevity.'Romantic Love, too often," he said "ends in Unromantic divorce, miserable kids and True Love's Adversities."

'Are you saying then" she said "we jettison Romantic Love and its pursuits? '
 'In that case let me state, then combine, what I take  to be True Love's true defenses.
Love its true , is the bonding start, but behind that is unlimited Faith in the
the Other unrelenting.
Otherwise we would all marry only near clones of ourselves
and destroy, in life and family, all variety.

'Even cave people insisted that marriages take place outside the tribe with others not only to avoid incest but, too, to diversity the gene pool which
undiversified would result in the death of the species  due to genetic stultification.'

'So Romeo and Juliet came to a bad end but their idea was correct. Opposites attract for good reason. It is built into the genes.

So in defense of Romantic Love there can be no higher defense than this.
What does marriage arrangements offer in retort- a dull family contract
endless tryists, and consorts where old men marry young girls who emotionally bolt and emotionally re-marry some younger buck.
Or if of similar age, they stay together for the sake of family.
Humm, too often this home feels like prison camp.
No carry me away to Love's excess even if under distress it may crumble
but lacking love in marriage is no bliss and looks more like accommodation
lacking True Love's Sweetness."
"Ah, he said we both have our view on Love and no-love estrangement:
perhaps we two could make some arrangement and see if True Love blooms?
She smiled 'Well, they say True Love begins with humor.
Sure, let's talk some more.'
He said;
'Beautiful.'