By Chelsea Tirrell, Columnist

Shakespeare was a classic romantic. Wether writing about his love for a woman who was near beautiful or his knowledge of everlasting love, he was the epitome of a chivalrous man. But as time went on and men stopped wearing tights and ruffled tops, chivalry became a thing of the past.

It’s obvious that men no longer write poetry for the women of their dreams, but that doesn’t mean chivalry is completely dead.

Depending on the guy, doors are still being opened and held, flowers are being given, and phone calls are being made. Note the first four words: depending on the guy. It’s true that there are many men out there now-a-days who think they’re too good for women. They’re only concern is getting them in bed.

But it’s not fair to slap the same label on those guys who don’t treat females this way. Instead, we should be commending them for upholding Shakespeare’s philosophy. It’s men like this that make women happier with their love lives.

Then there are the infamous song lyrics that leave people questioning just how romantic men really are. If you take a look at such songs as “Bedrock,” by Young Money, “Bed,” by J. Holiday, and “I Invented Sex,” by Trey Songz, it’s clear why there’s uncertainty looming.

Sex has become something that is highly accepted in our society. It surrounds our everyday lives in so many different ways, and has proven itself to be something that is intimate. Also, we would be naïve to believe that sex didn’t occur back then, or that it wasn’t discussed. Actually, it’s quite possible that there were more love-children back then than there are today.

That being said, song writing today is like sonnet writing then. There has been an evolution, but those who believe chivalry is dead can’t see this. They believe men are to blame for our society’s flaws, when in reality, the women are taking part in it just as much as the men are.

Women all over are expressing their discontent with males by saying they don’t put forth an effort to perform romantic gestures. They claim they only care about one thing, and that it’s been made clear through things like these songs. But who’s putting these songs to the top of the charts? They are. It’s rather contradictory. They’re also overlooking songs written by Death Cab for Cutie and other bands that talk about boys loving girls outside of the bedroom.

There is also the issue of texting. Many believe that texting has replaced person-to-person contact, and gives men an easy out because all they simply have to do is shoot their girl a text and they’re in the clear. While this may be true, texting is another thing that has become so accepted that men don’t think they’re in the wrong. If you think about it, texting actually contributes something positive to chivalry. That is, your guy can send you a text just to say that he loves you when he knows he can’t contact you in any other way. Without this form of technology, we would think that our men weren’t thinking about us when actually, they are.

Although modern society has led to many changes, they’re not necessarily condemnable ones. If you look at them in a positive light rather than a negative one, you’d be able to see that everything that’s new isn’t totally bad. Chivalry isn’t dead–it’s changing.