"Twilight" My first vampire. Help me Ilana! Anybody? Set me straight!

[snowflakeinann…]

Unbreakable, you raise some interesting points; however, this "what if " twist is hardly new.  Anne Rice did it years ago - she points out the same scenarios that you raise here.  Louis, in Interview, survives for a time on rats if you recall.

I would hardly call Bella and Edward soulmates.  In the last book Meyer suggests that Bella realizes that a.) she is still in love with Jacob Black and that 2.) that she would have been equally happy with him.  If someone is your soul mate, they aren't interchangeable with another person.  They are your twin flame, the only person that you could ever be happy with. 

As for Bella holding off for three years to get married so she can have sex - well, if you recall, she was ready to have sex and it was Edward who forces her to wait, presumably because  he is from the early part of the century.  Teenage boys today don't usually act that way.  Further, as the mother of two young daughters, I wouldn't want them making a choice on a life partner based on their desire to have sex with a person.  This to me only further demonstrates the sickness of the relationship.

Finally, I would say that many of us, as younger people, had thoughts about the people we were with then.  I know that I thought my first real boyfriend was my true love, then I grew up and I realized that what I felt for him wasn't even a drop in the bucket of real love.  Making a choice requires maturity and Bella simply doesn't have that.

I fail to see anything that Bella gave up for the choices she made.  She didn't lose her family because she, miraculously, was able to control her newborn urges.  She didnt' give up Jacob - not really - because now he is "imprinted" with her daughter... and don't even get me started on that whole idea.

I guess we will have to agree to disagree.  There are so many writers out there that are truly amazing - I fail to see the fascination with Meyer.

[faceless372]

Hey there Snow, as we know - LIFE is not a bed of roses. If Twilight had been written with characters that make "morally correct" choices, it wouldn't have been such a bestseller now would it? :-)

Anyway, THAT is the main reason why people read books or go to movies - its a means of 'escapism'. Teenagers will still do what they want to do regardless. At least through the Twilight Saga, the young ones are given another perspective of how the hero and heroin tackles the topic of sex and love. It doesn't matter whether the 'right choice' was made by Edward who's the Vampire and not by Bella the human. In fact, Meyer stresses the point that since Edward IS a Vampire he is therefore VERY old (107) & wiser than Bella (17-19).

Read the books if you like them (why the heck did you read ALL 4 if you didn't even like the 1st one??!!!).

Watch the movie(s) if you like them.

In a nutshell - 'tis just my opinion ... Au Revoir~

[snowflakeinann…]

Hello Faceless - your escapism point is a good one.  I don't think either Edward or Bella made the "right" choice.  But perhaps you are correct in that it isn't about that but about the journey.  After all, I know that I learned more in my life from my mistakes than from the good decisions I made.

To your final point - I don't believe that those who haven't read a book should express an opinion.  How can you have an opinion if you didn't experience it yourself?  Look at all the Harry Potter haters who have never even picked up the book.  I suppose, for me, it was sort of like watching a train wreck - it HAD to get better.  I loved New Moon, I thought right up until Breaking Dawn that the series had promise.  The last book was the real killer for me, for all the reasons that I have previously stated.

Did you enjoy the series?  Did you think there was any downside to it?

[Peppermill]

 "After all, I know that I learned more in my life from my mistakes than from the good decisions I made."

Snowflake -- I know many of us often feel that way, but I hope you occasionally feel the opposite is true as well, i.e., that you are learning much from your good decisions as well!

Pepper

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snowflakeinannapolis wrote:

Hello Faceless - your escapism point is a good one.  I don't think either Edward or Bella made the "right" choice.  But perhaps you are correct in that it isn't about that but about the journey.  After all, I know that I learned more in my life from my mistakes than from the good decisions I made.

To your final point - I don't believe that those who haven't read a book should express an opinion.  How can you have an opinion if you didn't experience it yourself?  Look at all the Harry Potter haters who have never even picked up the book.  I suppose, for me, it was sort of like watching a train wreck - it HAD to get better.  I loved New Moon, I thought right up until Breaking Dawn that the series had promise.  The last book was the real killer for me, for all the reasons that I have previously stated.

Did you enjoy the series?  Did you think there was any downside to it?

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Message Edited by Peppermill on 04-24-2009 11:38 AM

[faceless372]

Hey thr Snow, I actually read the book, saw the movie (>20times) and have just finished reading New Moon and Eclipse. I was drawn into Twilight (the book) initially but was disappointed with the 'chaotic' ending of it. Btw - i agree with you 110% abt ppl giving opinion(s) / investing strong feeling (i.e. HATE) towards something without even READING the book 1st. These ppl should just go and s#!@~ themselves! I love Harry Potter ... ;-)

After the movie (i think Hardwicked had done what she could to cram the book into the 2hr movie time limit and she did quite a good job), i started reading forums and blogs abt Twilight Saga and i started appreciating the whole thingy (hence the numerous times of watching the movie!) heheheh ...

I loved the way Meyer started New Moon but hated the Jacob-Bella part (middle section). But,  she was back in my good grace by the end of the book. 

In Eclipse, Meyer gave more explanation about the other characters (should have been interesting if i had not read the Twilightsaga.Wikia and know all the characters' history already) but this book had a lot of emotional turmoil for almost all of the characters and there was even 1 point when i really disliked Bella. Totally emphatised with Edward (of course!) heheh ...

After reading your take on the Twilight Saga Snow, i'm quite apprehensive as to whether i should read Breaking Dawn or not. I don't want to end-up dislikng the whole thingy ... :-(

"Life is what we make of it ..."

Au Revoir~

[Unbreakable3]

First of all, Stephenie Meyer's adult novel, The Host was just as good if not better than the Twilight series. Secondly, Bella is far more mature than most of her seventeen year old counterparts, cooking, cleaning, working, getting good grades, etc. How much more maturity do you expect in a seventeen year old?

She discovered in the third book that she loved Jacob, too. It was never a choice between him and Edward, she knew she was destined to be with Edward but it did not lessen the hurt for the future she could have had with Jacob if Edward had stayed away. Who in life has not had more than one love? I love many people. I have loved many people. But the person I am with is my true love, it does not lessen the ache of what could have been with anyone else I really cared about.
And as for the pre marital sex, Edward was the one to stop them. He was supposed to be one hundred plus years old so he had a much better grasp on his morality and I think it showed girls that why they shouldn't give in to the impulsive side of themselves. Every argument he presented for why they should wait could be informative and influential to the hordes of teenage girls reading the series. 

I liked the series alot. Vampires had not quite been done this way before and her other novel is even better. I read Harry Potter, too and think the lessons that the series teaches about love and the power of it are invaluable, as well.  I don't think the lack of sex detracts from it nor do I think the addition of it detracts from Twilight saga, especially given that Harry Potter is an out and out fantasy and Bella is supposed to represent a 17 year old female today.

[Unbreakable3]

One more thing. Bella gave up seeing her mother and has to confront the idea that she will be moving on when it gets to be too long without any of the vampires ageing. By gaining eternity she loses every one of her human family and friends, even if it doesn't happen at the end of the last novel. She was also less encumbered by having masses of friends and a large family than the average seventeen year old. When you have less to lose then you are a little more willing to find a way to give it up.