This is an editorial piece by Stefanía G. Please read the entire piece before commenting.
I like Twilight. There, I said it. When I first picked up Twilight, on a whim, I was completely sucked in (no pun intended). Never had I so closely identified with a female protagonist since I met Elizabeth Bennet when I was 10. But even I, the butt of every Twilight related joke amongst my friends, can find more than one reason to hate the series and all the hype it has engendered.
The two main groups that seem to adore all things Twilight are interesting because of the generational gap that exists between them. The common link, and what I believe draws them to the series, is their affinity for exaggerated romanticism. Young girls’ hearts stir thinking of their future Edward, who will probably never exist in reality given that Edward is fictional and that they cannot see even his flaws.
The older generation (or generations really, since even our grandmothers are not immune) is equally drawn to what I call “emotional porn.” Twilight can provide a break from the monotony of real life and turn otherwise well adjusted women into romantic junkies who get their highs from the fire of young love, of which they have long passed.
These two groups make it embarrassing for us people whom I will obnoxiously and self-righteously call “real fans.” Real fans are the readers & movie goers that I consider to have a healthy grasp on reality. For me this means that I can appreciate Edward (or Jacob) because of how much he reminds me of my husband instead of expecting it to be the other way around.
Remember that generational gap I mentioned earlier? This group consists almost entirely of that generation (also: men, but that’s a different story). Haters tend to be women of 18-30 who are, at least outwardly, disenchanted with romance. These anti-fans are either single or are in (or have a history of) lackluster relationships.
The most common reason I am given for hating Twilight is that real love “is never like that [Twilight].” While it is true that not all romance is dependent on sexual tension, chemistry, etc. and that not all romance is “real love,” I think the problem is that these people have never experienced a genuine love that also has the aforementioned thrills.
Whatever their reasons may be, they make it hard for us “real fans” to come out of our coffin shaped closet for fear of all the snark we will encounter!
Oh Stephenie Meyer, I’m afraid I can’t be in your camp on this one. Just when it seemed that our protagonists were coming out of the honeymoon stage of first love, were having to deal with doubt and mistrust, were having to work through real life issues slowly, Meyer lets us down with an unbelievably tidy ending. If you’re not sure what I am referring to, I am talking about Bella “realizing” that her visions of Edward were proof that deep down, she knew Edward still loved her, despite all the evidence to the contrary, and despite her remarkable depression at his leaving.
I am willing to believe a lot in a novel, and I can even identify somewhat with Bella’s hurt and depression – given that her relationship was terminated at the height of its emotional climax and during adolescence when all emotions are exaggerated – but when someone tries to sell the idea that a broken hearted girl will see visions of her ex-lover because, against all reason, her soul knows he still loves her, I stop believing.
On top of being not even remotely realistic (which, granted, could be said about most things in this fantasy series), it was not even an interesting resolution to the plot arc! Thank goodness for the New Moon movie as it does not bring this travesty of plot writing to the screen. I think I’m going to throw my New Moon book away and just watch the movie if I ever want to read it again.
Did they get paid for that job? Really? The reason that Twilight reads like amateur fan-fic is because that’s what it is. Meyer never claimed to be a novelist (except for the fact that she did write a novel, which counts, even if it’s not very good). She simply liked the characters and predicament that a dream produced and decided to explore it. I would say she even did a remarkable job!
I am willing to be forgiving of Twilight because the characters are fascinating and because I blame Stephenie’s editor for publishing a really good draft of a novel. I think that if Stephenie Meyer had re-written her book (perhaps with the help of a thesaurus) even all the haters would have nothing to say except that they don’t like vampire novels.
So there you have it. Many people have written their opinions about Twilight, but I would like to think that my contribution to the media vomit is perhaps better than most, if only slightly and because I know how to use punctuation and spell check. Though, if you have bothered to read this, then chances are you fit into one of the two Twilight extremes and will leave a comment using too many exclamation marks. Or perhaps, like me, you just wanted to read the thoughts of a fellow “real fan.”
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I have to agree. Some people go a bit too far with the whole ‘i want Edward cullen’ thing. I’m 13 and I do love the books but I don’t really see it as ‘not real love’ it’s meant to be fiction so I know soemthing like that would never happen (then again it would be nice). I
didn’t actually see the movie until october 09 as I thought there was too much hype around the whole thing but I got made to watch it and I loved it. I read the books and I am looking forward to eclipse. I think as long as you don’t overly judge the book (or get overly into it and become obsessed) it is a perfectly good book and the only reason there is haters is because so many people are sayin how much they want a ‘perfect boyfriend like Edward or Jacob’ it would be nice to have seine like that but there are so many other great guys out there too!
I think you have a good insight to a lot of the things that most people ignore due to their love of the series. I think most ‘real fans’ like what Stephenie Meyer has done in spite of all that. Good editorial!
Emmaa, you are very bright for a 13 year old!
Okay Good points but
you HAVE to understand Twi-hards CAN’T NOT LOVE TWILIGHT!
It’s like once you read it there’s nothing you can do.
You MUST love all things Twilight
You can’t imagine it unless you’ve got it and once you do you just HAVE to love Twilight!
So don’t blame Twi-hards for being too Twilighty unless you’ve expirenced it.
Good Points…
I don’t see how the “haters” are valid a reason to hate twilight. That makes no sense.
I’d actually like to meet a “Twi-hard” because out of everyone I know, I think I am the one who likes it the most, though I am in college and half the people wouldn’t admit it.
I like twilight,but I wouldn’t want to date or fall in love with any of the guys. Don’t get me wrong some of them are good looking. If I had a chance to be friends with them even just online I would. Big deal if they make money or not whoopi, it’s only cameras and people showing worldwide. Don’t understand why people make a fuss over movie stars they are still human just like us ordinary people. yeah it would be nice to have money like them but why bother we all die aventually and end up leaving it all behind. People go crazy over big things that actually is smaller than what they think. I am a twilight fan myself,but I don’t go all bolistic over it or over the actors. People actually give actors reasons not to want to socialize with ordinary people they afraid to how crazy people get about them.They are only human also.Me, I don’t care about money or fame really I just care that I am still alive and have my health.
I completely disagree with you! I am a twimom and I like the story as well as the romance and the first love aspect of the story, a fan is a fan and to say you are a real fan because you don’t “think” you fit into either category is ridiculous! a fan is a fan wheither you are old or young and believe it or not us twimoms although you may think we are obsessed and can do nothing else but obsess about twilight are very well adjusted, busy people with families to take care of and lives to lead and we do so while enjoying our fav book or movie! It doesn’t mean that we are well past our prime for romance or that we don’t too see our husbands qualities in Edward. There are some fanatics I will give you that but don’t lump every mom who just happens to enjoy the books and movies into one group. Completely ridiculous!
Steph’s(meyer) a mom so I guess that would make her a twi-mom right. This book started out as an adult book her next books were to go on with adult content but her publishing company put it out as a teen reader so she revamped (no pun intended :)) it and went on with those guidlines. for me it is just an excape from my everyday stresses and life. I can dive into this book series and go somewhere else where laundry and bills dont exsist. Sure Making out with edward would be AWESOME (and so would making out with rob) but I am well aware of the real world. Stephanie said she didnot go into bella’s looks alot because it helped the reader to place herself into bella’s role. IS IT SOOOOO WRON TO LOVE TWILIGHT?? oh yeah I agree with the haters comment it doesnt make sense
Okay dude you have a point but just leave us Twi-Hards alone. we have our dreams just like everyone else, ours just revolve around the Twilight Saga.
Brianna Quirk, 13
Australia
I am a Twihard and proud of it. Being a Twihard just means that you really like the series and show that devotion with more than just reading the books. I am also a Christian, and dream of having a Godly man to marry rather than an undead hunk like Edward or Jasper. Twihards can still have a firm grasp on reality. By the way, haters don’t count as a reason to hate the series. I know a hater and his hatred of the series just makes me like it that much more.
The only area I would truly disagree with you on is Stephenie’s writing ability. The books read so well. So well that I keep reading them over again. Never have I read a novel from another author that I felt the desire to re-read. True, if I saw the word “chagrin” one more time I was going to crawl out of my skin, but other than that, I thought the books were extremely well written.
I agree with you all. It does not matter if you considder yourself a twi-hard or not. If you love this series you are a real fan! Stephenie Meyer is an amazing writer and wrote twilight for herself and was generous enough to share the AMAZING story with us. Were she not a great writer people would not read and re-read these books. I am a happily married twi-hard and I am not afraid to admit to the haters that I love the Twilight Saga, and that it makes me absolutly giddy everytime I think about it. You should not let others influence your personal opinions about something that you enjoy.
i say that if you love the books and movies then you are a fan. full stop. There is no such thing as a fan or a Real fan, if your a fan, then your a fan thats it.
Most girls love the twilight series ’cause they can relate to most of the things in twilight (except the vampirey bits lol) i mean more like the things bella has to go through and that really grabs at the reader. Personally, i absolutely ADORE the books i re read them so many times and never fail to get bored. Stephenie Meyer is the best writer i have ever known. Im not a fan of books myself, but Twilight, New Moon etc, really caught my attention and i just love them. i completely respect your opinions and have taken them on board, but i dont completely agree with you.
i’m a 13 year old teenager and is obsessed by the books, only because they are written perfectly, Most girls my age only like twilight cus they want ‘Their Edward’ i know for a fact no man could be like him haha maybe have qualities but not like him atall. im not stupid and dont expect my boyfreind to be like edward at all.
Personally i think twilight is amazing. i see no reason not to like it.
Shanice , 13
England, leicester
Three words: Utterly shallow series.
I’m not a hater. In all actuality, I read the series and I was even hooked with the first book, but after that, I suddenly found myself thinking:
“What a shitload of sappy bull this is.”
You know, this is why people are disillusioned about, may I use your term, “real love”. We are fed by these boy-meets-girl-who-falls-in-love-with-each-other-despite-the-motherfuckers-that-forbade-them–to-do-so media that we forget that “real love” in the real world is more potent that any other kind of love these books can ever describe. Yes, I am not disenchanted about romance. YOU ARE. You just can’t admit it to your sappy selves.
It’s perfectly fine to adore these books, but I do hope that people do not forget that these ARE BOOKS, Edward and Bella ARE FICTIONAL CHARACTERS, and their “love” CANNOT AND SHOULD NOT BE COMPARED to the love in the real world. Because that’s bull.
Now we get to the real question: What is love?
HATERS!?
Okay, this is not an Utterly shallow series! it is not a shitload of sappy and i am in LOVE with Edward Cullen so why are you on this site if you don’tike Twilight!!! And i agree with you Shanice, there is nothing you can do about liking Twilight after you have read it!
Brianna Quirk, 13
Australia
oh well..
i must say that i agree with Brianna Quirk..
i first read Twilight Saga and i am hooked with them!
i love them, the story, the characters.. .
but i still know that an Edward’s character is almost impossible to be found nowadays..
Twilight is a way for me to get into world of my own, where i can just enjoy reading and doesn’t think of anything else, for a while..
I have only gotten hooked upon the Twilight Saga because my mother reccommended it to me. She noticed that I had taken a liking to vampires and said “Here, Kay, read this” and tossed me Twilight. At first, I turned my nose to it and then I read the first few pages a few months later.. then stopped because I found the first few chapters incredibly boring. Then I sucked it up, [heehee] and read the whole darn thing. I thought it was amazing.
Still, a lot of my friends loathe Twilight and the whole Vampire thing.. but I don’t falter to my friends opinions
I don’t totally agree with you on all points i do think there are fans out there that are obssesed and twilight bleeds into their everyday lives and others who just like to read a good book to unwind then go on about their lives some people don’t know how to disengage but hey that’s thier lives i say if a book can get young people back into reading then its all good to me I’m 27 and I enjoyed the books I agree they read young but thats because they were written for young adults and for someone like yourself who is use to reading the classic from a young age it will read as a not well written novel but i think with any book ypu read you have to go into it knowing the audience it was written for i went into it knowing it would read young so i could actually enjoy it i’ve read them several times and always enjoy it i don’t think the characters are perfect and completly see their flaws i dont think it sets up an unrealistic outlook on love if your actually paying attention to how the characters behave their nowhere near perfect and if fans who read it cant see the flaws then hey that’s their issue to deal with i dont think it deludes people they do it to themselves my mom is 62yrs old and reads romance novels all the time and i know she has a firm grasp on what real love is like and if moms and daughters can come together over a book then good getting young people to read is what makes me a fan more than the content and i own a blanket with edward on it sp i guess i fall somewhere in the middle i’m a twilight junkie who can easily disengae.
Hmm i dont think i entirely agree with you there. first, a fan is a fan. it doesent matter if your are completly obsessed with it, or if you simply enjoyed it, your still a fan. theres no difference between a ‘real fan’ and just a normal one. i mean wtf?
second, Stephanie is an amazing author, but only in the twilight saga. the host? didnt make much sence to me. she described everything perfectly and really grasped at Bellas feelings. that, however stops there.It IS possible to have love like that, but i think its extremly rare unfortuantly. im 14 years old so as soon as someone finds out i LOVE the twilight saga, they always think im just reading it because i want my own Edward or Jacob when i DONT. i dont really understand why people want their own Edward and why they love him. (hes a fictional character guys! :P) He may be in love with Bella, but hes over controlling(he banned her from seeing her best friend? i would of punched him if he decided i couldnt see anybody!) hes over dramatic (hed kill himself if Bella wasent alive. how would he know that she was even dead? without alice being there of course)and frankly not That good looking. i read the books over and over again because their just really good books. with the exeption of New moon. that was quite unrealistic (without mentioning the vampires)
and third, New moon the movie was worse than the book! Eclipse book AND movie all the way! 😛
Bexx =]
Everyone just needs to calm down and take a deep breath…. First of all EVERYONE is reading to much into everything Twilight…. Im a 25 year old mother of 3 and like most i too am a fan not by any means a twi mom… Ive read the books a few times and already have my tickets for eclipse next week…. How ever when I read Any book I try to find myself in it and I believe that most fans can do just that, find some piece of yourself in the twilight saga… And as for this “false love” as its been called does truly exist ask anyone who has been in love… Ive been with my husband for 10 years this fall and like edward I too would want to die if my husband were to die….however wanting to and doing it are 2 different things…. like bella my husband is my everything my life, the air I breath, the sun that lites my world…. My EVERYTHING…. So for those of you who dont believe in this magical special love that bella and edward share exist well maybe not in your world you just settled for normal every day love instead of falling into true love…. So young girls out there dont give up hope on one day finding your true love and feeling the magic your reading and dreaming about…..
Megan
Valparaiso, IN
totally agree with everything you said. obsessive fans, not just twi-hards weird me out.
everyone is entitled to an opinion, but really I think this opinion even though you are a fan is very narrow minded.
I am a fan, sometimes I’m a little occupied with it more so than the average joe but that’s because at the moment I don’t have a whole lot going on in my life so it’s not hard to get involved with something.
I’m a single mum,it’s hard and i spend alot of time with a young child and no adult conversation, also i’d let things slide in my life while putting my daughter first and my reading had become bad.
Picking up these books helped me and have become important to me and because of this I’ve been swept away a bit. I’m not a twihard because all i own is the books and the films, I don’t have a t-shirt , bag, any form of any other promotional stuff etc, i’m not in love with any of them or feel the need to scream at the sight of the cast.
I do have a ticket for the midnight preview in the uk on the 3rd july though, but this is purely because up until 2 months ago it was supposed to be released on the 30th june here and then they changed it to the 9th of july and i don’t want to fall victim like last time to spoilers, this is not because I’m obsessed, there are better places id like to be at 3am than waiting in the cold tired for a taxi home.
I’m not a twimom either getting my highs from the fire of young love, of which they have long passed because I’m only in my 20’s plenty of fire left to come for me thanks and wouldn’t label myself a real fan either. I like it, maybe beginning to love it but i’m not arse over tit for it.
I also think your newmoon opinion maybe because you’ve never felt pain like Bella has. I’ve been single for 4 years, I went through a break up where someone who was my world and made me happy left me and told me I wasn’t good enough and I spent many weeks like Bella in actual pain. For the first 2 years I had a voice inside me telling me it wasn’t possible for him to smile at me the way he did, for us to be so happy together and laugh so much for him to click in one day and say that, it told me to not give up, I felt all that for a reason because it was real. Since then it’s faded, it took a while, fair enough it wasn’t my boyfriends voice or image, But it is possible when your emotions are that strong and your pride that destroyed to experience things and do anything to get through it. I think it’s very realistic.
my point is some of us you just can’t pigeon hole and at the end of the day even though it may be for different reasons we are all untied in one thing, we like it.
I never really knew what was going on at first when the twilight finally came out to the theaters- i had never heard of twilight, but my niece had- and somehow i just came up with the opinion that it was just “dark and twisty” like most horror movies- but its not, like what emma said”i know its fiction,but to have something like would be nice” I know that twilight is fictional, but i am Twi-hard, i have seen all the movies so far, and i am re-reading the book series for the second time. its nice to go to a fantasy land by just picking up one of the books or watching one of the movies! 🙂 “team edward” :)))
I got into Twilight in 2008, by the time it started becoming a big deal and the last book came out. I read them all in less than a week, if that, and I was, for a short time, obsessed. I loved the books—they were, at first, addicting. I was, what? Twelve? I was in LOVE with Edward, I think.
But as months passed, and I didn’t read it again, I liked the werewolves more and I came to see it as “whatever”. When I finally got around to picking the books up again (and dusting them off), I couldn’t even read it. My exact thoughts were something along the lines of, “HOW was I able to stomach this??”
Yeah, I completely agree about the editor; there’s Twilight fan-fics that sound more like a novel than the actual book. In fact, that might be a part of why I was so shocked with the quality of the books. I realized, though, that the quality didn’t diminish, but my appreciation of it did. I’d moved past that.
So here I am, fourteen, getting into the Twilight story—not for Bella, but for the actual world itself and the werewolves, maybe even vampires—and I’m perfectly sane.
Or maybe not perfectly, but still. I don’t particularly understand the extremes some people go to. I mean, I could pretend to understand it fully, but, at the end of the day, I’ll still be shocked as to what lengths some Twi-hards go to.
yeah, i do agree on this one. edward, is fictional. i’m one of those girls who are fantasizing edward but hell no! its only exist in our wild imagination and yeah, there are parts too that a love in the book is not like that. shall we say, exaggerate? yeah. but behind this reasons, i still love the twilight saga and stephenie meyer :))
spread my hugs and kisses from PHILIPPINES !♥
twilight rocks it may be fictional and all but it still rocks
I still have to say, i’m a Twihard, but not all Twihards are insane about a lovelife like that. We are twihards because we enjoy the tension and suspense between the two main characters, and they’re impossible relationship. We like to fantasise, yes of course, as this book of romance is vvery interesting, and some of us twihards just want to put themselves in Bella’s shoes, experience the impossible world of their relationship, which makes us like twilight more than the rest if we enjoy every suspenseful restriction and hesitation edward makes. Not necessarily we are insane about such impossible stuff. We just enjoy very much this mythological story , very interesting story, of vampire romance. Most of us twihards, we’re young and maybe don’t have a feel of having a relationship yet, and this book gives us the great first time feel, especially cos there’s an impossible realtionship that works out, and we get to feel how it feels like to be evrlastingly loved. If you don’t like TwiHards, and you can’t make a point out of this, then it just shows you’re not flexible to put yourselves in our shoes, but i respect your decision whether you choose to understand and not hate twilight and twihards.
Oh ya.. I consider myself a Twihard because, i love the way the story inspires me , not in romance but in romantic literature. idk whether i’m more of twihard or real fan? but i have nno reason to hate Twilight, everyone respects other’s opinions.
Those, to me, that love twilight, it is because they undersyand the fantasy that never happens in real life, but still enjoy it, those that hate twilight cannot come to the fact that Stephanie could come out with a story that consist of mythological fictional things, because [i understand] that you believe reality, and that fictional stuff is just a stupid dream. those that understand that these things will nvr happen in reality but still can imagine in their minds a dreamland of their own where they can picture something like that in their dreamlives, make them love twilight.
and i’m just 13, you know that something like this love story will never happen, but you can still dream. i agree twihards shld not go overly obsessed with the whole vampirism eternal love thhing, the whole edward cullen perfect boy thing. i’m a twihard [i guess? i like the literatre and the plot of story] and i’m 13 but i do not take it to reality that eterbnal love thing exists [unless your boy rlly loves you that much] come on real fans dun hate twihards and twihards dun hate haters (: if a 13 year old can do that y can’t you?
I just have to say that while I like Twilight, the book does repeat itself a lot. In fact, as you’ve said, if Stephenie Meyer had used a thesaurus, she most likely would have shorter books. The only thing (or person, should I say) that I dislike about Twilight is Bella. I could go on about her but honestly, I don’t think a lot of people like her (at least no one likes her that I have met).
OME twilight is da best
i ave 2 admit tho i never liked the saga until i read the books twice and watched all da films and now i am totally obsessed wid all fings twilight :)i am a twi-hard and im proud 2 say it.
how can u nt love it its amazing even if it is fictional.
even tho u ave sum gud points twilight is da best,
i wu djus kill 2 b in bellas shoes all day 🙂
GO TWILIGHT
TEAM EDWARD ALL DA WAY
I’m a mom. A Twi-mom, though? I’m not sure what that’s supposed to mean or why it’s a valid reason to hate Twilight. I checked the book out just to see what all the fuss was about, and I hated it. I thought it was poorly written and totally ridiculous. After I finished it and read the preview of New Moon, I had to read that, too. I liked it more than the first. I couldn’t wait to read Eclipse and I thought it was the best of the series. After reading Breaking Dawn, I went through Twilight withdrawals. I was truly saddened that it was the end. How and why I became a “Twi-mom” I don’t know. Something about it just sucked me in. I don’t look at Edward and see a guy I wish my significant other would be. I just love the stories and the movies, period, even though there are many things (and characters) that I loathe. Why must there be a psychology behind it? I take the good, I take the bad, mix them up and I LOVE IT!
OK, people. Honestly, thats not even real reasons to go hating twilight. Just because you are jealous doesn’t mean you have to write an article about it. If you people don’t like twilight, then don’t get involved instead of posting an article on a TWILIGHT FAN SITE, of all sites.
I’m not trying to sound angry or anything, but I happen to like twilight. If you don’t like it, cry me a river because, omigosh, look at the URL, ur on TWILIGHTBLOG.NET.
I’m curious. What’s the purpose of posting this article? I realize it says right up top that it’s an editorial but it’s also insulting to the audience of this blog, you know, Twilight fans. Then it goes on to insult other bloggers and media outlets as idiots that don’t know how to spell or punctuate. Hey, Stefania, my journalism degree is from Medill. Where’d you get yours? They should rescind it.
You have some valid points in this review, or whatever you want to call it. I’ve read the books, they are good. I’ve seen the movies, not as good as the books (except the fact that you can look at Robert Pattinson for two hours). Sorry, but i think it’s kind of lame that you attack the people that are going to comment under your review. Most of the people that will comment are going to be 13 year old girls, and making fun of their excessive use of exclamation marks was kind of bitchy. You claim to use spell check, and proper punctuation..but you might want to re-read your review. I found countless things wrong with it..like commas where they need to be, and etc. If people didn’t comment then that would mean that no one read this crap. You are entitled to your opinion just like everyone else, but really? Lets be cool, and attack the children! Way to go :p
I’m a Twi-mom and I loved and still love the series! I fell in love with both Bella and Edward during the first book, and after reading the series and re-watching the movies over and over, I still can’t get enough. My husband thinks I’m obsessed, and yes I can’t argue with him. However, it’s the fantasy of it all that’s fascinating…to me. It’s like you said, it’s exaggerated romance between an ordinary girl and one hot Vampire. Who wouldn’t want to be with a gorgeous vampire?! ME ME, PICK ME!! LOL! I thought the books were easy and quick reads, which to me are the best to loose yourself with the story. I’m definitley a Rob Pattinson fan and Team Edward, but it’s really the fantacy of Edward that got me onto the Rob Pattinson fan club. I’m not sure if it were anyone else that played the character, if I would be that “obssessed” with it all. I think it was merely luck to find that perfect person to play the character. I’m so excited about Breaking Dawn, and can not wait to see it.
I have never read any of the books or seen any of the movies in the Twilight Saga. I have heard really great things about this story but I have also heard very bad things. What intrigues me most about Twilight is what I have heard about it being anti-feminist. I would definitely say that I am a woman whose values align very closely with many things that represent feminism. It has been discussed that Twilight portrays an abusive and obsessive relationship that is glorified to young girls in a very fragile time in their lives. On the other hand, I have heard that Twilight is a contemporary romance novel filled with action and adventure. Never having seen any of the movies or read any of the books, I have made the decision to watch the first movie as unbiased as possible, disregarding all my preconceived notions and form an opinion of my own. Wish me luck!
Rosie
After seeing the movie this is what I have to say,I just watched the movie Twilight for the first time and although it was a pretty entertaining movie, I couldn’t help but critique it throughout the entire thing. I can definitely see how young girls identify with Bella in the beginning of the movie. She is quiet and reserved, yet she has an attitude that makes you believe that she does not care what people think about her which is empowering. However, as soon as Edward enters the plot, I could barely stomach the movie. Edward and Bella’s relationship bothered me from the very beginning. When Edward first sees Bella he just stares at her. I think that it is supposed to be seen as flattering but to me it just seemed creepy and rude. Throughout the movie Edward acts in blatantly obsessive and stalker-like ways. He is constantly showing up wherever she is including, her room, in the town, and at school. He says things like, “I like watching you sleep” and “I can’t ever lose control of you” and “you are my life now.” Before even knowing anything about Bella he tells her that he feels very protective over her. The love at first sight theme of this movie is so exaggerated that it seemed ridiculous to me. As soon as Bella and Edward start spending time together she immediately isolates herself from her family and her friends. All of her time gets dedicated to Edward in a time span that didn’t seem to be longer than a week. The first time Bella and Edward kiss they start kissing passionately, then he violently pushes Bella off and screams, “stop it!” This in itself is abusive behavior in a relationship. He is leading her on to believe that he is madly in love with her but as soon as anything physical happens he pushes her away. In the end of the movie Edward sucks poisonous venom out of Bella’s arm in order to save her life. He says, “I thought I wasn’t going to be able to stop.” I viewed this scene of the movie as a metaphor for sex and being able to control yourself to stop when you are living a life of abstinence. Bella’s expresses in the ending scene of the movie that she wants to die so she can be with Edward forever. She is willing to give up her family, her friends and her life to be with a boy that she hardly knows. Is this really how relationships should be portrayed to millions of young girls? That they should give up everything they have to be with a boy that they barely met and don’t know anything about? That it is okay for a boy to tell you he loves you and then push you away? That obsessive behavior like stalking is okay for a man to do in order to feel in control? I must admit that it was impossible for me to completely disregard my prior bias to this movie while critiquing it, but I am glad I watched it because I can now claim my own opinion and say that this story shows definite gender roles of male domination, dating violence and unhealthy habits within a young relationship. Rosie
I am 13, and I also really like the Twilight series. Even though I really like it, I wouldn’t say I am a “Twi-Hard”. I also feel sorry for Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, because of their fans hounding them and paparazzi following their every move. Leave them alone! They must just want to walk down the street normally without a bodyguard! I would actually like to meet a “Twi-Hard”, to see how obsessed they actually are. It would be interesting!! X
The whole story is just dysfunctional, come on.
I can’t explain it, but it’s explained pretty clearly
here
read Wuthering Heights already. oh wait. that isn’t a “quick and easy read.” darn. ok. i guess the candied version will do.
continue to live in a misogynist and unimaginative world that has been co-opted by publishing and movie organizations in order to make money off of us.
wake up! these people are taking full advantage of the fact that women in this country are treated as second class citizens. we are yearning for something for which we can neither imagine nor name. so let’s call it romance. let’s call it edward.
this is a serious issue. if you are a real woman (i.e. a real feminist) you will see that this kind of “emotional porn” is purely anaesthetizing us into forgetting that we have agency. we have a voice. we do. use it. please.
Twilight sucks anyways. Your wasting ur time reading about 2 dimensional Depressing people.READ HARRY POTTER FOR A CHANGE!
Edward Cullen gets slayed in harry potter. Vampires don’t sparkle.MOST IMPORTANTLY RELATIONSHIPS IN HARRY POTTER ARE MORE REALISTIC AND HAVE NO THOUGHTS OF SUICIDE!
Let’s set the record straight…. TWILIGHT SUCKS! It’s a simple fact that everyone should be smart enough to figure out. Harry Potter is where the gold is. It’s got proper relationships, proper action, and DOBBY! Harry Potter is a series people will keep on their bookshelf for generations. Twilight is a series that stood on my bookshelf for about wo seconds before being returned to my mother. It was so boring that even just sitting and doing nothing would have been better. Did you hear that Hermione and Ron won in a relationship compared to edward and bella. Yeah that’s because they actually are a good couple. WHEN RON LEFT HERMIONE, SHE CONTINUED WITH HER SEARCH FOR HORCRUXES EVENTUALLY DESTROYING VOLDEMORT AND SAVING THE WORLD. WHEN EDWARD LEFT BELLA, SHE JUMPED OFF A CLIFF! See, just another example of Harry Potter’s domination. It’s got a THEME PARK and 8 movies! Not to mention POTTERMORE, who’s early sign ups went faster than you can say… TWILIGHT COULD NEVER HAVE THIS MANY FANS! So anyway… Twilight stinks Harry rules. BURN TWILIGHT!
@ Anonymous
WHEN RON LEFT HERMIONE, SHE CONTINUED WITH HER SEARCH FOR HORCRUXES EVENTUALLY DESTROYING VOLDEMORT AND SAVING THE WORLD. WHEN EDWARD LEFT BELLA, SHE JUMPED OFF A CLIFF!
NICE ONE!
The recent anonymouses that talked about how Harry Potter was much better than Twilight: YES. I COMPLETELY AGREE WITH EVERYTHING YOU ALL SAID.
Most hype I’ve herd is people complaining that Edward isn’t a vampire because he sparkles, or Jacob isn’t a werewolf..that hes a shape-shifter..people put to much thought into how the characters should be because of how someone else made up characteristics for the (vampire) or (werewolf) If Stephanie wanted Edward to sparkle, so be it..all the books/movies are FICTION ..believe if u want,and enjoy the story.. if not, y are u complaining????? its clear that the story isn’t for you..find something else that catches you interest…. And Harry potter better then twilight/ twilight better then harry potter, again..not everyone likes the same movies..
I have to agree with these points 100%! Twi hards make it almost impossible for someone who isn’t a completely obsessed fan girl (under the age of 16, as is the case 90% of the time) to like the series at all! You say “Yeah, I liked Twilight.” ,and everyone automatically assumes your bedroom walls are covered in posters of Robert and Taylor. Or that you scream like a tweenybopper at the movie everytime Taylor’s shirt comes off. Which is not the case.There are plenty of us who enjoy the books and the movies (with the exception of how terribly made the first movie is) and ARE NOT CRAZY OBSESSED WITH IT. I do not on Twilight posters or t-shirts with the boy’s faces on them. I do not live/eat/breathe Twilight. It is not the greatest series ever written. I think more people who aren’t Twi hards need to speak up and say “I enjoy Twilight, but I still have a life!”