Love is a force to be reckoned with. Take Romeo and Juliet for example, their love led them to their deaths. In the 21st century, Kanye West’s proclaimed love for Kim Kardashian drove him to post numerous Instagram posts about his love for Kardashian and his hatred for Pete Davidson, Kardashian’s new boyfriend. 

Married in 2014, West and Kardashian had four children together: North, Psalm, Saint and Chicago. Seven years later, the couple’s picture-perfect facade began to fade. In February 2021, Kardashian filed for divorce from West. West, however, made it perfectly clear that he opposed the divorce. In later months, both Kardashian and West were seen with new people. The dust appeared to be settled until West’s Instagram outburst.

To the outside world, West’s posts were comedic. People enjoyed seeing random photos strewn together with paragraph-long captions typed out in all caps. Some fan favorites include screenshots of texts from Kim, photos with Kim, and a photoshopped version of a “Captain America: Civil War” poster, where all the superheroes’ faces are replaced with various celebrities either on “Team West” or “Team Davidson.”

Junior Shaivi Sanchorwala, an avid Kanye fan, found the Instagram rampage humorous, but also sympathized with West. 

“I think he just got out of a long term relationship, so that can take a toll on anyone,” Sanchorwala said. 

Pain can cause people to commit acts they normally woul not commit on a clean mind. Pain and longing can become a front, easily blurring the lines between love and infatuation, especially in today’s society. Those desperate to hold on to the past often will try anything to hold on. For West, this meant publicly trying to prove his unvarely love for Kardashian. Although, when taking a deeper look, West’s “love” distorts itself into an obsession. 

Senior Ryan Hwangbo notices that West’s public acts of “love” towards Kardashian are not necessarily from the heart, but rather from a place of obsession.

“I guess he feels a sense of entitlement, and seeing someone taking it away from him is hard” Hwangbo said. 

It is nice to feel wanted, but what society fails to realize is, eventually, the cute small obsession can turn into full-blown stalkerish obsession. There is a significant difference between wanting someone back versus threatening the person’s current partner.

Hwangbo believes the normalization of obsession is present in modern relationships, but that Kanye took it to another level. 

“I think it’s too much of a game [to him],” Hwangbo said. “It’s a winner takes all, and that dominates him.” 

Unfortunately, this “game” is not fun for all parties involved and if further escalated could lead to harm. Obviously, Kanye and Kim need to have a serious conversation to figure all of this out. During this instagram rampage, people were able to see a side of West they may not have known about. However, Kanye fans are not abandoning him any time soon.  

“Kanye is pretty different, but I don’t think he is crazy,” Sanchorwala said.

Featured Art by Reed Jadzinsky