Opening Lines

An opening line or gambit is a verbal or nonverbal tactic employed by an individual to initiate interaction with a stranger whom the individual finds attractive. In the entertainment media, the leading man is often portrayed as a savvy hunter who bags a doe-eyed female by taking an unerring shot with a captivating line. In the 2005 film Hitch, Will Smith portrayed the title character, who offered coaching on opening gambits and relationship initiation to male clients. His emphasis was on both confidence and clever meetings. Hitch claimed, “No matter what, no matter when, no matter who … any man has a chance to sweep any woman off her feet; he just needs the right broom.” This entry discusses different categories of opening lines and the role of opening lines in the sequence of courtship stages.

The Internet provides numerous Web sites that propose to offer the right broom, in the form of “pickup lines.” Many of the pickup lines are intended to be humorous, based on the hope that the display of wit will both convey desirable mating attributes to the opposite sex, and break the ice. The site http://linesthataregood.com for example, offers more than 1,200 possibilities. Many of the opening lines are based on light-hearted compliments to the other person's general beauty and attractiveness:

It is only a short step from complimenting the person's general attractiveness to a comical focus on their body and sexual attractiveness:

From mentioning the person's sexual desirability, it is but one more step to a humorous sexual proposition:

Rather than focus on the other person's attractiveness, some pickup lines focus on the self's purported desirability, or lack thereof:

Researchers have classified pickup lines into three categories. Cute/flippant lines are compliments, sexual innuendos, and playful challenges, like those listed earlier. Innocuous pickup lines are bland conversational statements such as “Hi” or “What do you think of the band?” Finally, direct opening lines involve a simple, self-deprecating statement, such as “I'm a little embarrassed about this, but I'd really like to meet you.” Field tests were conducted on the various categories of opening lines using nearly 300 young adults. Moderately physically attractive males approached females in crowded bars without observing the preliminary nonverbal steps described previously. The direct and innocuous lines were equally effective, and resulted in the successful initiation of a conversation approximately 50 percent of the time. Cute/flippant lines, by contrast, produced female rejection about 80 percent of the time that the males tried them. Follow-up studies suggested that males who tried cute/flippant lines were seen as less intelligent and less responsible than were males who tried other approaches. Studies conducted in Great Britain produced results similar to those in the United States, finding that those opening lines that involved jokes, empty compliments, and sexual references received poor ratings. By contrast, when the male revealed his helpfulness, generosity, athleticism, culture, and wealth, he was rated more highly, at least in a hypothetical vignette.

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