Let The Argument Begin:
Twilight is BAD !!!
I know that I’m opening up a can of worms, but so be it.
Twilight is not good. Not at all.
I’m not talking about the movie. I mean the book. But, I really don’t know how the movie could be any better.
Before Twilight fans get all crazy, let me also put out disclaimers up front:
- Yes, I know it is a fictional novel.
- Yes, I know that teens don’t actually believe that vampires are real.
- No, I don’t think that this novel will cause teens to become involved in the occult (though I think that this will reinforce that tendency in teens who are already interested in the occult).
- Nevertheless, just because something is fiction doesn’t mean that it can’t be criticized.
With that out of the way, let me tell you why I think that Twilight is not good.
- First of all, the writing is HORRIBLE. Page upon page of endless drivel about how Bella longs for Edward. Page upon page of introspection. The book is 498 pages long; but it only gets interesting at about page 348.
- Okay, I know that some will disagree with me. Some will say that they’re captivatedby the endless descriptions of how Bella loves Edward. It’s a matter of opinion — to some extent. FWIW, my daughter also thought it was boring. She’s not interested in reading the rest of the series.
- Secondly, the supposed “love” relationship DECIDEDLY UNHEALTHY. And, I don’t just mean that because Edward is, well, a vampire. If he were simply a normal guy, this would be a very unhealthy relationship for Bella to be in. I really don’t get why teen girls (and their moms) are so eager to have Bella end up with Edward. Let’s look at the ways he’s bad for her:
- Edward spies on Bella. All.The.Time. While she’s sleeping, he sits next to her in her room — and she doesn’t even know it.
- Edward would like to read Bella’s mind, but he can’t. Bummer. So, he does the next best thing. He reads the minds of her friends. He’s got to know All.The.Time. what Bella’s saying and planning. He intrudes, not only on her privacy, but on that of her friends.
- In short, Edward is a control-freak.
- Thirdly – and most importantly – the two are not compatible; they are not made for each other. In our lives, sometimes our fantasies and the realities don’t match. Bella may fantasize that Edward is the “perfect man”, but such dreaming doesn’t make it so.
- Edward knows that he is bad for Bella. He tells her constantly that he’s no good for her; that she should leave him alone; that he should leave her alone. But instead of sacrificing himself and his desires for what’s best for Bella, instead he draws her in. The only one who sacrifices anything is this relationship is Bella.
- (And I haven’t even gotten into the whole “vampire” thing.)
Considering what I just wrote, I don’t understand how anyone could see this story as a “love story”. It isn’t. Edward certainly isn’t a model for the kind of man that I want my 12-year-old daughter to fall in love with. Bella is willing to do anything — anything — to be with Edward forever. I know the story is fiction; but the underlying message speaks powerfully to teenage girls. Bella is willing to give up her soul, to become a vampire, to be with Edward.
Vampires might not be real; but there are real people who might ask our daughters to do things that will cost them their souls. I don’t want them seducing my daughter. I don’t want my daughter thinking that this is what love is.
The guy I want my daughter to fall in love with should be someone who doesn’t cause her to live a lie. It should be someone whose love will make her a better person; and who could be a better person through her love.
And, don’t give me that whole “Twilight is about chastity” baloney.
Coming soon, I’ll let the Dumb Ox explain why it isn’t about chastity.
Meanwhile, if you’d like even more reasons why Twilight is BAD, click on the following links:
- Spes Unica– a great blog that wonderfully dissects and exposes the MAJOR problems with Twilight.
- The Sci Fi Catholic – funny, insightful, funny. Tons of other stuff besides Twilight.
- Decent Films – the best movie review site the web. This link takes you to Steven D. Greydanus’ sublime essay on Twilight.
Finally … PLEASE go read this laugh out loud send-up of Twilight. It is a “screenplay” from Eric D. Snider that was rejected. I can include just an excerpt, but I promise that if you don’t like Twilight, you’ll laugh till you have tears in your eyes.
Well, have at it in the combox.
Ville Platte Catholic Youth Group 
I think that YOU are ridiculous, sir. If you don’t like the story that Stephenie Meyer has written, simply don’t read it. You are bringing other people down in order to make yourself feel better about your own pathetic life. So what if you didn’t like the book; I know millions of other people that think differently. I agree that the love Bella has for Edward is unhealthy, but some would agree that love itself can be unhealthy. This story is more reality (minus the mythical creatures) than you would like to realize, and I’m sorry that you have such a dim outlook on love.
Miss (or is it Mrs.?) Day,
Thank you very much for sharing your opinion about my review of Twilight. As I said in the review, I know that my opinion is in the minority of publicized opinions on the topic; so, I’m not surprised that you disagree with me.
I would like to take this opportunity to interact with your comment a little bit. First of all, you suggest that if I don’t like the story, then I shouldn’t have read it. Now, that poses a conundrum: How on earth could I know whether or not I like the story unless I read it? Obviously, I must read it in order to form an opinion. I could say the same thing to you: If you don’t like the review that I have written, simply don’t read it.
Furthermore, it seems that I can infer that because I don’t like the story, I shouldn’t have offered a critique of it (for fear of bringing other people down). Now, I’m not really sure that I understand exactly who I’m bringing down; is it Mrs. Meyers? Surely, not. With the amount of money Mrs. Meyers has made on the series, I seriously doubt that my slight review could cause her to be brought down.
Maybe I’m bringing you down? Again, I don’t think that’s right, either. Your reply to my review doesn’t show any signs of someone who is saddened; angry, maybe; but not saddened.
I’m glad to see that we agree that Bella is pursuing a love that is unhealthy for her. I would say that it is Bella (and by extension, those who want her and Edward to fall in love) who has a “dim outlook on love.”
I’m not sure, however, who could possibly agree that love is itself unhealthy. Love – when properly ordered – is not only healthy; it is what we are made for. We were made by God, who is pure love, to be loved by Him and to love him. It is true that when we pursue love that is not properly ordered, then our experiences of this “broken” love can be disappointing and, yes, unhealthy. But this is not the fault of love itself; it is the fault of our disordered desires.
Love is beautiful. I have been happily married going on nearly 20 years. My wife and I have a wonderful daughter. The love in our family brings us much joy. I do not have a “dim outlook on love”. Indeed, I have a very high outlook on the power of love. I do, however, have a dim outlook on the pseudo-love that many people mistake for real love.
Unfortunately, this series markets this pseudo-love directly to the very age group – teens and young adults – who don’t have the experience to understand the sacrifices and joys that constitiute real love. By holding up pseudo-love as a model, this series does a disservice to all of us.
I’m sure you won’t agree with my rebuttal; but, please feel free to respond, if you’d like.
May God bless you. And may His love fill our hearts and call us to Him.
Mr. Jagneaux,
You happen to be right, I do not totally agree with your side on this issue. I apologize for saying that your life is pathetic, it seems that this is definitely not the case. I actually came across your post while I was looking for a topic to write a persuasive argument paper for my college english course. I apologize if I, in any way, caused you to dislike me as a person. As you can probably tell, I am a very big fan of the Twilight Saga’s books and movie(s). I have read all of the books, and have seen the movie and look forward to the next movie in the sequel. I also believe that love is whatever you want it to be. At times it can be unhealthy, as you see it is presented in Twilight, but either way, it is beautiful, whichever way you decide to look at it.
Your response to this topic did make me a little angry. I do have a question though. Do your opinions of the Twilight saga have purely religious reasons? Or do seriously disagree with the books so much?
As I said before, I am sorry for making assumptions of your life. May God bless your life, your daughter, and your lovely wife.
Miss Day,
Thank you for your apology. Please be assured that your comments did not cause me to dislike you. I have learned the hard way that comment boxes are very difficult places to form good opinions about people. We all owe each other even more charity when we interact in them because it is so easy to misconstrue a person’s tone or intention.
As for what forms my opinion of the book (and series):
My Christian beliefs have helped to form my conscience; as religions do for all people. (The opinions of atheists are even formed by their non-belief in God.) So, in that respect: Yes, my opinion of Twilight is religiously-based. However, as with all things human, it’s more complicated than that.
A little background: I teach American History at a public high school. As you might imagine, the Twilight series is extremely popular, especially among the girls. I heard the girls talking about the books, and how much they loved Edward and thought that his relationship with Bella was perfect. You see, I am responding to real-world reactions to the story. When I worry about how this relationship colors the view that young women have of the “ideal” relationship, I don’t do so out of some academic fear. Real teenage girls are really impressed with Edward and Bella’s love.
As I noted in the critique, the vampire aspect really doesn’t bother me, per se. Instead of vampire, make Edward a drug-dealer; or gang member. And then try to justify his obsessive behavior over Bella. Edward clearly tells Bella that he’s not good for her, that it is unsafe for them to be together. This goes against the very definition of love. If Edward truly loved Bella, he would not even give her the chance to put herself in that position. Indeed, at the beginning of the story, he tried doing just that (Bravo!).
As my faith tells me, love is not about how I feel; instead, love is always about The Other. As Christ is the example, it is about offering ourselves for the sake of others, of what is best for them. Human nature being what it is, we don’t always achieve this end, as we often selfishly seek our own desires. But we should never hold out as a model a warped expression of true love. The last novel simply underscores exactly how warped this love is, when Bella trades something of immeasurable value (her soul) for something … considerably less.
Because I see the real influence that popular entertainment has on real teens and young adults, I worry about the role models (even fictional ones) that they choose. It is bad enough that too many of them don’t have a good model of love at home; so many come from broken homes, or from homes that never knew a father. It really makes me sad.
I’ve rambled quite a bit; and I don’t even know if I’ve answered any of your questions. So, I’ll stop here (for now?).
As we approach Easter, I pray for you and me – and our families – that we may know the joy of the love of the Risen Christ.
Good luck on your paper. I have a feeling that you’ll do fine on it.
Love can be a very powerful emotion that leaves you in little control of your actions.
How does one stop themselves from feeling a certain way once this emotion takes over? How does one make themselves love again the person they said vows to love forever in front of God once, through complete accident, someone else captured their heart?
Is it wrong? Does God really want us to spend our lives with someone, while having your entire heart and soul belong to another? Isn’t that living a lie?
Dana,
Although you’re generally playful in your comments, I seem to sense that this is a sincerely personal subject for you. Before I give my understanding of the issue, please let me say two things:
1) This is something that I would encourage you to talk to a priest about. Sometimes people don’t give priests enough credit, but many (if not most) have tremendous insight into such questions. Priests are people, too. They might not have been married, but they know something about love; and the difficulties in remaining faithful to vows when emotions sometimes tell them different things.
2) Sometimes in my responses, I seem … dogmatic. I know that I don’t have the best bedside manner (if you will); and I try to soften my responses, but I often don’t soften enough. It’s not because I’m unsympathetic. I just seem to try to cut to the chase, so to speak. If my answer seems a little hard-edged, please forgive me; it’s not what I intend.
Having said that, here are my thoughts about your questions.
A. In our culture, we seem to overemphasize the emotional aspect of love. Love is emotional – thank God! But, we’re more than just a bundle of emotions. Importantly, humans also have rational souls and a free will – thank God! Consequently, love is also a rational decision of the will. Our emotions are fleeting, and subject to change. Our decision to love needs to reside in the act of the will. We decide to act lovingly, or not.
B. If we’ve made a vow before God in marriage to love someone, that vow is to be taken seriously. A marriage vow is MUCH more than a promise; it is a covenant made between man, woman, AND God. Breaking the vow is not simply a matter of being unfaithful to a promise, or a person – it is also being unfaithful to God.
C. Unfortunately, our culture today – generally speaking – does not understand or support this idea of a marriage vow. Too often – because of poor catechisis, a plague of divorce, and a general attitude of non-commitment – people view marriage as a potentially permanent relationship: Maybe we’ll last, maybe not. If we don’t, we’ll just get a divorce. I don’t say that people consciously think this; but it lurks in the subconscious, coloring all that we do. This is a problem. And, it’s the reason that the Church has been insisting on good marriage preparation recently.
D. When two people make a marriage vow, they are expected to understand all that it entails – the good, the bad, the high, the lows — the permanency. Don’t just take my word for it. Take the word of Jesus Christ himself: Mark 10:7-12 – ”
E. Fortunately, the Church recognizes that — despite the best intentions — sometimes people try to enter a marriage without fully understanding the sacredness of the vows. If there is an impediment at the time the vows are made, then the Church says that in fact no marriage has been entered into at all. In these cases, the marriage is said to be annulled; and the people are free to seek other marriage relationships. This is even though everyone – including the bride and groom – was under the impression that a marriage had taken place.
Let me give an example: Let’s say that I’m making a cake. The recipie calls for a certain amount of sugar, but I mistakenly put in salt instead. I’ve got what looks like cake batter, and I put it in the oven. Thirty minutes later, I take it out. Everything still looks fine, so I put on the icing. Everything looks even better than before. After supper, I cut the cake – so far so good. However, as soon as I taste it, I’ll know that it’s not cake. It looks like a cake; I thought I made a cake; but it’s just not edible. It’s not a cake.
Marriage can be the same way. Sometimes it takes only a couple of months to know if the “cake” is good, or if the recipe was messed up. Other times, however, it takes longer to realize it.
I notice that I’ve started rambling (as I often do). So, I’ll wrap it up here. I don’t know how helpful this has been (probably not at all). But, let me leave you with this final thought: Our hearts and souls should belong to God. While we’re here on earth, we get to enjoy a foretaste of the tremendous Love that awaits us. Our love on this earth – our marriages – are a reflection of that ultimate Love that God has for us. We are called to imitate the faithfulness of that Love. That is why marriage is a sacrament: It is a physical sign that shows the inward spiritual reality of God’s Love and Life in us.
Once again, please forgive me if this doesn’t make sense. If it’s complete nonsense, let me know. I won’t take offense, but I’ll know to keep my mouth shut in the future.
God bless you.
It makes plenty of sense. Thanks for the reply, and I won’t be bothering you again.
Dana,
I surely hope that I didn’t give you the sense that you were bothering me. If it seemed that way, it’s due to my poor ability of expression.
If you want to continue to visit and to comment, you’re more than welcome here.
You didn’t make me feel like a bother. You were very helpful. Thanks for the information, I appreciate it. Enjoy your Easter!
I completely agree that the “love” between Bella and Edward is so messed up. Ugggh! It kills me. I don’t have the time or energy to get too into it. But let me just say this. I think that I can even add to the criticism, from a female perspective. Guys tend to look a things with a lot of abstraction – which is great, that’s a huge part of getting at the truth of things. But…hmm, let’s see…what do I bring? Maybe a look deeper into why this movie (I haven’t even read the book – I only saw the movie because a friend wanted me to go and paid for me. Who knew it was 11 bucks to see a movie nowadays!!!) is super detrimental to girls’ ideas of love and desires for love.
I am a 27 years old female. I feel like high school was so long ago, but, I can still remember most of the feelings of being a high school girl. Females, in general, long for relationship/communion with others and especially the man who is their love interest, they long to be seen in such a light that a man is willing to pursue her. She longs to be pursued. She longs to be (and yes this reveals that I have read a certain book 😉 utterly captivating to a man. Now Edward, he’s totally obsessed with Bella – which is every young girls wildest, unhealthiest dream: she’s all he wants and thinks about, and that’s all she wants – to be the object of all his desire.
Totally unhealthy, I know – but no girl can deny these desires (disordered though they may be), especially in the immaturity of their youth and, oftentimes, even young adulthood.
For one thing, this just feeds into a girl’s crazy, disordered and immature desire to be someone’s obsession or infatuation rather than a subject of someone’s true and pure and selfless love. For another thing! Boys don’t love girls like that…like their wildest, unhealthiest dreams. Not usually anyway. Females love one way and males love another way, and Edward’s infatuation seems to be the teenage girl’s dream come true. I know boys get infatuated with girls, but he is the whole package of this wildest, unhealthiest dream. He’s handsome, he’s a “hero” (super strength and fast, etc., etc.), he’s obsessed with her, he feels protective of her, and he’s completely off-limits. Oh how that adds to the passion. This is all about passion – and it’s retarded.
I walked out of the movie totally upset that this was out there for young girls to see…and knowing that it was so huge was so depressing. When I walked out of the theater, the first words out of my mouth were, “This movie totally distorts love. How depressing.”
Now, the reason I felt this so strongly – that this is such a bad thing for girls to see and have form them – was because, I was aware that it even stirred up those wildest, unhealthiest dreams in ME. I felt the pangs of crazy longing from teenagedom past attempting to envelope my heart like an amoeba tries to envelope food with those slow moving, finger-like projections of protoplasm.
It’s just no good. And then, yeah, like you pointed out. The girl is willing to give up her eternal soul to be with him. Sooooooo unhealthy. Not to mention, it’s disgustingly depressing to me, personally, that God isn’t even mentioned in that equation! They don’t even, for a second, throw light on what it would mean for her that she gives up her soul. I know it’s fictional, but still, it just adds to the climate in the culture that God isn’t part of the equation at all. So depressing.
Anyway, I rambled on way longer than I expected. The End.
Bethany,
Thank you very much for leaving your comments. Please don’t feel that you’ve “rambled on”; you make some very good points.
I really liked that you added some perspective from a woman’s point-of-view.
Take care, and get ready for the next “Twilight” movie, sure to be even bigger than the first.
TO Amanda Day
BTW-im a 14yo girl who has read all the books cept the end of the last one cos i just gave up
sorry but what the hell are yoou on?
the millions of people who would disagree are the little tweens/teens i am ashamed to call my classmates. twilight is completly messed up and u say that not liking it has a dim outlook on love???? no, edward is just creepy. who the hell wants someone watching them when they sleep!!!??? how is this any way realistic??? oh sure im gonna go find some anti-social boy, fall in “love” with him and then… o wait nothing else happens in the damn book. whoops i forgot to mention getting married to him at 18 and falling pregnant shortly after with some spawn which is attemping to kill me. nice life im gonna have eh?
Jessica,
Thanks for stopping and leaving a comment. I see that we share a common opinion of the Twilight books. I agree with the points that you make in your comment. Please feel free to stop here and comment as you like.
I would like to offer you a couple of pieces of advice:
1) You should try to develop better grammar, mechanics, and spelling. It becomes much easier for people to understand your point when it is clearly written. Not only that, but people will take you more seriously; and they will consider your argument, rather than just brush it off.
2) Also, I recently had to learn that sometimes my replies aren’t too charitable. So, I would suggest that you try to be a little more charitable in your responses. For example, you write, “Sorry, but what the hell are you on?” That’s somewhat sarcastic. I recently was sarcastic, too; and I realize that maybe I shouldn’t have been. After all, we’re practically complete strangers. So, at the beginning of our relationship, at least, we should try to interact with less sarcasm. As I say, I’m trying to learn this, too.
May God bless us both. Have a good summer.
Twilight can be summarized as such:
Bella: I moved to a small dreary town to live with my divorced dad. I don’t have any interests, hobbies or personality. I can’t walk and chew gum at the same time. Who’s that hot, pale guy?
Edward: I’m bad for you. We can’t be friends.
Bella: You don’t eat. You are super strong. You are super fast. You are hot-looking, but you are cold. You are a vampire.
Edward: I’m bad for you. We can’t be friends. Do you know I spy on you at night?
Bella: I live only for you. I have no self-worth.
Edward: I’m bad for you. I don’t care though.
Bella: Turn me into a vampire.
Edward: Not in this book. Stephanie Meyer is a bad writer, but a smart businesswoman.
The End.
Shiela,
That’s very funny. Thanks for posting it.
LOL…I wasted all last week reading the book, because my nieces wanted me too. They loaned me the movie and 15 minutes into it my husband said, “This is one of those “B” movies, isn’t it?” And hour later he deemed it an “E” movie and by the time it was over it was an “N” movie. It’s so bad, it won’t even be considered as “campy”.
Shelia,
I know how you feel about the movie. I couldn’t believe how terrible the movie is.
However, it is better than the book, if only because it skips the boring parts (about 3/4 of the novel).
At home, we gave the movie an “NG” rating – No Good.
God bless you and your family.
P.S. – I am sorry for misspelling your name earlier.
Nicholas,
That’s okay, everyone spells my name incorrectly. 🙂 My middle name is Faith, which I LOVE, and everyone gets it right!!!
God bless ya’ll too.
Ok, some people read for enjoyment, believe it or not. It’s a good book; so what if it’s talking about longing for someone she can’t have: have you EVER seen a chick flick? Yeah, where in the end they get together.. EXACTLY THE SAME, just a whole lot longer and it has more interesting characters.
Sorry, but Twilight IS a good book AND movie, whatever you say..
accually….Twilight is a terrible book and also is a terrible movie but….I couldn’t put it down sad I know. Regardless of the fact that Twilight is all the things you say it is I loved it and for some reason seem to be the only guy who loved it. However I don’t think its fair that people go make fun of a book over the internet…SERIOUSLY, its a book you should get over it…
Sorry for the terrible grammar btw
Matthew,
Thanks for stopping by and leaving your thoughts.
Don’t worry: You’re not the only guy who loved it. I know quite a few teen-aged guys who loved the whole series.
As for offering a critical view (“making fun”) of a book on the internet: Stephanie Meyers published a series of books that have received very good – adoring, even – reviews. If those reviews cannot be balanced with some disapproving reviews, then what’s the point of free speech? I didn’t resort to personal attacks of Mrs. Meyers. I offered my viewpoint about Book 1 of the series. And, as a consequence, I’ve been reprimanded here on my own blog for those points of view. Fair enough.
As for “getting over it”: If you’ll check the date of my original post on the book, it is JANUARY 19, 2009. The only reason I continue to talk about the book is because people continue to leave comments here on the blog. That’s fine with me. I’m happy to respond to people who didn’t like the original post. But, let’s recognize that the obsession with the book is not on my part; it’s on the part of those who visit here to offer a criticism of me and my opinion. I’m over the book – been over it for a long time.
yes I agree and I was never accually refering to you when I said get over it. Also like to point out its the twilight fans who continue to abuse the thoughts of those who hate the book that are continueing arguments such as this one. Thank you for responding to my comment
LOL. My reading standard was set pretty high when I was in 2nd grade. I found a copy of Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird at home and voraciously read every word. I love Scout, Jem and especially Atticus Finch. Later, I read Olive Ann Burns Cold Sassy Tree. Her characterization of Will Tweedy is a lesson in writing. Boring Bella and Edward cannot compare with the finely drawn characters I’ve mentioned. Twilight is shallow reading, but that’s just my opinion. 🙂
Shelia,
I am in full agreement about To Kill a Mockingbird. But, unlike you, I was first introduced to the story through the excellent film. I highly recommend both. Gregory Peck’s portrayal of Atticus is superb – the steely resolve *not* to fight back when he is spat upon! If only I could be that strong.
i would have liked twilight if people weren’t overreacting to a BOOK. seriously though, biting each other on the necks when it comes to real fighting. And people are calling robert edward. You like “edward” and not robert, GET REAL. And edward was a stalker in the movie, yea i was FORCED to watch it at school. the people were laughing at stuff that was not funny. Now they’re coming up with new moon, it’s going to be annoying all over again, the name twilight just makes me so anrgy! i’m with you anti-twilight supporters, and anyone that tries to start a fight over me not liking what they like whatev….
Reminds me of that time i said i dont like chris brown…
SERIOUSLY!!
Your comment,
“Instead of vampire, make Edward a drug-dealer; or gang member. And then try to justify his obsessive behavior over Bella. ”
The way Edward is being and acting can be justified because he is a 100 year old vampire. He’s not a teenage boy. His character has so much depth and mystery. His character is supposed to be so in love and protective of Bella. For instance, are you protective of your own daughter? You don’t want her doing certain things because you know whats better for her…y? Right? Sometimes you demand her not to go out with someone or forbid her to do certain things. Why? Because you have experienced it all because you are older and wiser….That’s how Edward Cullen (the character) is. You might try to say, “But I don’t do that to another adult, my significant other!” Well, lets not forget Edward Cullen (the character) is 100 years old (or more!). Let’s not forget that… By the end of the day he wants whats best for Bella. Some are saying it is abusive/obsessive behavior the two are portraying, but it’s fiction. It’s not real. It’s just fun to live in a dream of someone who is so so so deeply in love with someone else yet comes across so many obstacles to be with that person. Love is pain, don’t you know that? LOL….ok, I’m kidding, pain is not healthy but it does stirr up an excitement love life and we all need that sometime! If it’s a smooth sail, you will sometime wonder where the excitement went in my opinion…
Ahh, this has been a most amusing thread. Today new moon comes out and all the girls are really freaking out over it. I am a 14 year old boy who read all three lord of the rings in 3 grade. Steven king is awesome, thats just some reading i do. The book as though i never read the book (don’t plan too) or saw the movie, i guees you could say i cant form an opinion. Honestly, a 14 year old boy surrounded by this, i know enough to form an opinion. I do really think people overreact to the book, my mother read it, (she reads a book every 2-3 days) and told me that its it just 350 pages of nothing. One problem is the mythology its self is wrong, werewolves cant change whenever, vampires dont sparkle in sunlight, what the heck. All i see is a movie/book that is only succesfull because of a good looking actors and a mediocre book that uneducated immature girls that dont know what good literature is read. I live in phoenix and know Stephanie Myers son and know one of the cast members in new moon. Also asia leone, me being 14 and (i think im very mature at points for my age) “If it’s a smooth sail, you will sometime wonder where the excitement went in my opinion…” I disagree with that, i just dont, as i stated i don’t know what true love is and i am an atheist ( don’t know how marriage is gonna work). Well, just wanted something i could send to hyper reacting girls to show why twilight is bad, thank you very much for the thread. Have a nice time.
Soldier on Vitas-sai. Stephen King with his Dark Tower and Tolkiens LOTR are great.
Stephenie Meyer’s Twillight is terrible… Haven’t read the books.. not planning to. Saw the film twice. So actually you can say I can’t form an opinion either, but as much as I do know, I’ll share.
The idea actually reminds my work when I was trying to write a book at the age of 12. I mean how can you be actually drawn to this saga anyways.. My aunt is so in love with it that when she’s not watching the films (that she does a couple of times a week) she’s reading the books over and over again. A friend of mine (who shares most of my views about books) said he couldnt read the book to the end cause it was just horrible.
And then there is the mythological question…. Sparkling Vampires… Are you for real? Guess you have never heard about Dracula? Yes, I admit, Tolkien changed the understanding of the word: “elves” for anyone anywhere. But that was an exlent move. But vampires are supposed to be bad-bad-bad. Sleeping in coffins, trinking innocent blood. Not running around (sparkling) seducing girls and then climb trees.
Better not start about the werewolves.
i don’t like the love story…i just like the action… the fights between the wolves and the vampires is alright, but not the best……BTW, bella shoud’ve end up with jacob instead, because in my opinion, edward would be the worst boyfried..
I only read the first couple comments, so I’m not sure if there’s one like mine.
I’m not religious at all. I just really dislike The Twilight Saga for all of the reasons that Nicholas (it doesn’t actually say your name anywhere I can see in the article, but maybe I’m blind) stated and a few more nitpicky ones.
I initially read Twilight because someone recommended it to me. I continued to read Twilight because Edward reminded me of a man I was once in love with. A man who ruined my life because he was EXACTLY like Edward. Every little thing. It was a bit creepy to read the books. Obviously this man wasn’t a vampire (or a stalker/spy), but all the little mannerisms were the same.
Anyways, I really have no idea where I was going with that. But I just wanted to say that I stumbled upon this site while looking for things to make my argument for Twilight being a bad influence for young girls stronger. I support this article fully!
Way to go!
PS. It’s Stephenie MEYER not Meyers. Maybe that’ll strengthen your argument.
Thank you, Dani.
I am currently working on an English paper for college, as luck would have it I’m doing an argumentation piece about “Twilight”, and I happened upon your forum. Might I just say that I agree whole-heartedly with your essay.
To me “Twilight” was nothing more than a get-rich-quick scheme, oh, and it’s good for a laugh or too. I never really read the books, (more liked skimmed them..) but I have watched the movies and think them to be quite hilarious. I mean, COME ON Bella! How uneducated do you have to be to see that:
1.) ED’S NOT HOT.
2.) He’s a vampire..well…you did at least see that one coming, but….HE’S A VAMPIRE! you’re supposed to go shrieking away from him!
3.) I’m sorry, Mrs. Meyer but Vampires DO NOT.SPARKLE.
4.) Nor are they vegetarian.
I’m just gonna end the listing there or I’ll have doubled the length of this forum…haha. As you might have guessed, I’m not a “Twilight” fan…not at all. Though, I’ll give Mrs. Meyer her due, she was trying to get rich and in the process gave us all a different way to look at vampires, now as *WIMPS*. LOL.
Thank you for making this forum!
Vampires as wimps. That’s a good one.
Thanks for your kind words. And good luck on the essay.
Welcome, the essay is going well, a lot of people liked it!
Since there’s no such thing as a real vampire, only very strange people pretending to be vampires, I can forgive the new vampire “embellishments” Ms. Meyer has given to these mythic creatures. What I can’t forgive is the stalking, manipulation, Bella’s stupidity, and the totally disfunctional “love” relationship between Bella and Edward. Not to mention the writing is awful. My granddaughter is 9 and I hope she never wants to read this crap. My aspirations for her are much higher than anything portrayed in this series.
…and another thing. Bella and Edward never have fun together. Most of the time spent between them is miserable and they never look happy together. Both of them have blah personalities. Why in the world would anyone want to have either one of them as a boyfriend or girlfriend? I want someone happy and upbeat, full of the joy of life.
Sheila,
That’s a great point. There is NO JOY in their relationship.
(Okay, technically there’s none in the first book; I haven’t read the other books to know about the rest of the series. However, I can’t understand why anyone wants to read the rest of the series.)
Your are right but reading it to page 348 is a great achivement. ihave only read 5 pages but never want to go further because it is so bad written. I almost puke.
Ps: English is not my first language so don’t pick on me
Nick,
Your English is fine. At least your sentences are interesting to read. 🙂
I used to like twilight and obessesed about it like every other girl my age (I’m 13) but I read (as incredibly dorky though it may seem) Lord of the rings, and compared the two books. Twilight was no longer fun to read because if you think about it, Edward is a stalker. (Actually, you don’t need to think about it) And the romance is fake.
Ok, so I like Twilight, I’ll admit it. It’s not the greatest series in the world, but it’s just . . . interesting. I like the twist on mythology (instead of traditional vampires, there are vampires who sparkle in the sunlight. I just happen to think that it’s a fascinating aspect rather than reading about the same old stories about vampire who die in the sunlight). Also, it’s an easy read, so that’s another reason I liked it. While I wouldn’t really call Edward and Bella’s relationship healthy, I do think Edward was being a little controlling/obssessive at times. But he did it to protect her from the evils that were pursuing her. Besides, everyone has flaws. No relationship is perfect, and these are some of the flaws that Edward has. And it’s not like Jacob is perfect for her either. All he cared about was to have Bella for himself; he totally disregarded her feelings, but Edward wanted what was best for her, so he was even willing to let her go and let her love Jacob instead of him. So Edward has some good things about him. Oh, and he’s old-fashioned. Now who wouldn’t want an old-fashioned guy with values (yes,Edward has at least 2 values: to protect Bella’s soul by not letting her become a vampire, and wanting to get married first before sex). I’ll briefly go back on some of the other points you made.
1. “Edward spies on Bella” — Again, he wants to make sure she’s safe. And he’s a vampire attracted to her scent (blood), of course he’s going to watch her all the time. lol. Also, I think it’s sort of nice that he watches her when she sleeps. He can’t sleep, so he thinks it’s fascinating when she does. And it’s not like he watches her sleep to make sure she didn’t invite any guys over to slep with her.
2. “The two are not compatible” — who says that two people dating each other have to be the same? We all have our likes/dislikes and different personality (I know, Bella kind of lacks one. lol), but even some people find themselves attracted to people who are different than them.
3. only Bella sacrifices everything — yeah, she does, but it’s her own choice. She knew the consequences of her choice, but she chose Edward despite them. Every choice and relationship has consequences. We have to outweigh the good from the bad when choosing things. Oh, and Edward does sacrifice a little bit, too. Like I said before, he wanted the best for Bella and wanted nothing more than to keep her safe, so he was willing to give her up, even for Jacob, though he hated him.
Ok, I’ll stop defending Twilight. I’m sure you heard enough. haha. So there are good and bad points in it. I understand. I also understand that you are entitled to your own opinion, and I respect that. You made some great points, though I don’t completely agree with all of them. I’m writing a book on-and -off for about 6 years now — I can’t wait to hear what you have to say about it, if it ever gets published. Beware: there’s a big age gap between the two main characters (:o YIKES! lol), though it’s crucial to the plot. Hmm, what you’ll say . . . haha
Veronica,
Alleluia! He is risen!
Thanks for stopping by the blog. I don’t maintain it anymore, except when I get an e-mail letting me know that someone has left a comment (like you). I appreciate your comments very much. You “defend” Twilight in an enthusiastic, but non-defensive way. Sometimes, people defend the story as though they were the ones who’d actually written it!
Good luck on writing your own novel. When you get around to completing it, please leave a comment on this site so that people will know.
God bless you.
I find Twilight, not just badly written, but harmful and offensive. There are people who brush it off (“It’s just fiction!”) and I understand that, but there are also people who love these books to the point of obsession, and I find that highly worrying. Most of Twilight’s messages are just plain wrong; it glorifies domestic abuse, emotional manipulation, suicide, and self-harm. It uses things like suicide and rape as plot devices without acknowledging the very real, life-shattering effects that these can have. Besides, it’s sexist (look at any and all female characters, how they are portrayed, what is/is not acceptable for them – especially look at Leah, who suffered incredible emotional pain and yet is portrayed unsympathetically because she’s a “harpy”), racist (vampire covens in the “South” – aka Mexico and South America – are less “civilized”; becoming a vampire immediately turns you “white” and beautiful), and has very strict ideas of what is “feminine” and what is “masculine” – female characters *must* have stereotypically feminine traits (which are often negative as well). (Bella especially – she must be emotionally dependent, faint easily, cry a lot, whine a lot, etc.) Male characters *must* be incredibly, over-the-top, stereotypically masculine (always protecting the females, etc.)
I have more on this, but I have to go right now. I’ll be back . . . 😀