This will be the last Stephenie Meyer post in awhile, methinks. (I’m not going to the movie, not only because our dearest Jami B. did a fantastic job of reviewing it, but also because I don’t feel like wasting ten dollars and two hours.)
I finally read Breaking Dawn. It took me awhile to get to it. First I had to read the other three books in the Twilight saga. And …
I hated them. I mean, I enjoyed them, but I didn’t think much of them. By the time I cracked open book the third, I had decided I was going to have to burn some fake vampires in effigy if I read the word “marble” one more time. Bella Swan was getting on my nerves.
But then … well, everything changes in book the fourth. And contrary to most people’s views, I think it was the most feminist, most interesting, best written part of the whole saga. Seriously, I did. Look inside for my reasoning; slight spoiler alert.
When you think Bella Swan, you think weak. You think of a whiny little girl who needs to be saved. First by vamps, then werewolves, then vamps again. She struck me, until Breaking Dawn, as a somewhat thoughtless young girl who didn’t fully understand what she would be doing by becoming a vampire.
And while I want to believe in true love, I had a hard time believing that true love strikes at seventeen. If getting married is such a big (bad) ordeal, then … umm … wouldn’t losing your life be even worse? Just my opinion.
So I thought that Bella had good sense when she wanted a few last “human” experiences before she became a baddie. And then I thought she had even better sense when she realized she was pregnant and decided she wanted that human experience, too. (Yes, I realize the whole vampire child controversy could be seen as a big anti-abortion thing, but for me it was more like, “No. I am pregnant, and this is my only chance to be pregnant with my husband’s child, and I am going through with it.”)
Anyway, after Bella finally converts, her willpower is incredible. She never tries to kill a human, never tries to eat her own baby, and is able to train her vampy super-powers with surprising speed. In fact, it makes you wonder where this sensible, smart Bella came from, because she sure wasn’t like that when she was human. This Bella is able to save quite a number of lives — indeed, for once she is the hero, instead of her marble-chested mate or her furry little friend.
Speaking of furry friends, I enjoyed reading about life from Jacob Black’s perspective. (Although … did he have sisters in the first three books? I swear this was the first I’d heard of them.) And it was fantastic to see how some of the werewolves and vampires were able to put their instinctual hatred aside, and even to become friends. (This was, of course, going to happen all along. And we all knew it. But I didn’t care, because Meyer pulled it off well enough.)
There were a lot of objections to the imprinting thing when the novel first came out. But, as is explained before Jacob imprints, it’s a natural impulse and is absolutely non-sexual until, you know, the imprintee becomes sexually mature. This didn’t bother me the way it bothered others.
The marriage thing? Well, I guess it would have bothered me, were it not for the fact that becoming a vampire is a much bigger deal than having a wedding. Having a baby? Well, if I was at the end of my teens and had been accepted to an Ivy League school … and I had to choose between going to school now (when I could, presumably, attend any time in the next millennium) or having a baby (which I would not be able to do within a few months), I’d probably choose the kid. Nobody’s saying Bella can never get a college education, you know. Or that she can never leave Edward. Last I heard, divorce was a legal option for anyone. Even vampires.
I haven’t done a thorough enough analysis of the book or read enough critical essays about the racism charge to make any judgments, but nothing leapt off the page at me.
What I’m saying is this: Twilight is not really worth your time. The whole series is overwrought and melodramatic. But … you know. It’s still kind of fun. And if you already made it as far as Eclipse, I think you should keep going. Take Breaking Dawn on the airplane with you when you go home for the holidays, and don’t worry about whether it’s going to make your brain rot.
This is a very interesting post. I don’t have any valuable things to contribute, but it’s interesting on reading all the points of view on the Breaking Dawn…controversy.
I`m so glad somebody finally agrees with me about breaking dawn being the best of the books….I personally loved it!
I completely agree about Breaking Dawn. As I was reading it, I was so excited to not be hating it. But I guess I’m not surprised that so many people hated it for being different than the earlier books, that’s exactly what I liked about it.
I haven’t read the last book, so I can’t comment much on it. But if you’re wondering about the racism, this post seemed pretty reasonable to me: http://alisavaldesrodriguez.blogspot.com/2008_08_01_archive.html#3554407638079814097
I was, however, pleasantly surprised to see plenty of Asians and blacks in the movie.
If you want a vampire book with a girl who doesn’t sit idly by as the ‘hero’ saves the day, try Robin McKinley’s Sunshine. It is most excellent, imho.
Nina, I remember reading Alisa Valdes Rodriguez’s post at the time, and being outraged. As in, I thought this Stephenie Meyer character was clearly a Big Bad. I think I even posted a link to the article in my “No, I haven’t read the Twilight series, but you can talk about it if you want to” entry.
But … after reading Breaking Dawn myself, I found the evidence to be pretty thin. Jacob Black’s character is clearly one of the heroes of the series, a good guy with the rotten luck of being Bella’s second choice. Indeed, he’s such a good guy that through some mystical and ancient power, he and his relatives are the only ones who can hunt and kill actual evil vamps. They’re protectors of society, which is about as noble as it gets.
Which is why I’m not yet convinced of the racism argument. Because after reading the series myself I found very little evidence of racism. What I’d like is a real character breakdown, not based on names but on actual details of the books, with more insight on the accusations of racism. For now I remain unconvinced.
I enjoyed Stephenie Meyer’s serie but I have to admit that I am quite suprised to see that someone finds it feminist where I found it pretty conservative and sexist. Just consider the fact that Bella, at 18, get married to go and live in her husband’s family to be “protected” by them. And the only purpose of her life then is to have a child. At 18. No more studies, no more LIFE if it isn’t for her husband and her child. And no talking about sexual pleasure while she is human: her husband spoiled their first night by being rude and not even letting Bella enjoy the pleasure… (not saying too too much…).
It disturbed me a lot, even if I took a lot of pleasure to read it.
Thank you for this interesting and helpful post! My favorite book in the Twilight series is Breaking Dawn.
I loved reading things from Jacob’s point of view and learning more about him and the other werewolves in the process. (I *heart* werewolves. I still can’t understand the “allure” of vampires. They’re the walking dead for crying out loud!) I loved that Bella had a child and I loved how passionate she was about her child. And I loved that Bella ultimately saved the day.
Fantastic Critique! I’m always happy to see people really delve deep into the isms that pop up in YA Literature…Thank you! (And…come on over to MacLeanSpace! I nominated you for the I <3 Your Blog Award! xoxo!)
Cachou, I don’t think it’s exactly feminist. Just the most feminist of the four books. Bella Swan, at eighteen, is clearly Not Thinking Things Through. But her determination to become a vampire is to me a much, much bigger deal than her decision to get married or even have a child.
But in certain ways my reading was different from yours. For instance, I thought Edward’s reaction that first night was natural — if you had hurt your SO, wouldn’t you freak out? If your physical strength and natural urges were more than you could control?
Then there is the fact that in some ways, Bella becomes a vamp to protect herself, her father — and yes, her boyfriend and his family.
As for having a child, I think I addressed that part in comments earlier.
Again, she isn’t giving up the chance of a college education. She has eternity to do those things. Yes, it was foolhardy of her to want to become a vampire from almost day one, but in this last novel she does consider what she’ll be missing once it happens. And she is smart enough to find a way to keep in touch with her parents.
If anything, I’m surprised Bella’s character showed such intelligence and reason, because she has not been known for that up to this point. But in Breaking Dawn her actions are careful and measured.
Would I become a vamp? No. But if I was going to be a vamp, and I knew that was what I wanted with all my heart, would I marry the man who was going to turn me? Yeah, probably. If, just before I turned, I found out I was pregnant, would I carry the fetus to term? Hell, yes. This was Bella’s one and only chance to have a child: vampires cannot have kids.
And then, in a few years, would I go to college? Of course I would. And have a career? Definitely. I don’t think Bella eliminated any of those options by marrying and having a baby.
Okay. Rant over. But I really do think that reading all four books in a row helped me to understand what I took to be a turn for the better on Bella’s part. Then again, if I were her I wouldn’t have stuck with the Cullens to begin with. Then again, I don’t believe in finding True Love at eighteen.
Sarah, thank you so much. Sorry I haven’t been in touch — I’m still recovering, and loathing the fact that I don’t have the requisite energy to review a novel a day, or even a novel a week. But I’ll e-mail you, or FB message you, and we’ll definitely get together soon. ♥
Well, it’s too bad you didn’t like the first three, but each to her own! I personally thought it was a bit annoying how Bella kept going on about “human weaknesses” after she got bitten. Grrr… stupid vampire! *I’m not weak!* Sometimes… : )
i agree in every aspect of wat u have written!!
infact to be totaly honest i think that the third book eclipse anoyed the crap out of me!! Bella is so anoyiny in the book so MOANY AND MOODY so selfish(atleast she could admitt it) and flat out ANOYING.. Edward was kinda OVERPROTECTIVE..but all girls want that guy a guy who is beautifull, who wants to keep u safe who wants to be with u out off all people posible.. and i hated the betrail the LOVE i mean u dont say u love one person and then tell another u love them to!! BELLA KISSED JACOB!! she asked him to!! i hated that part infact i wanted to shut the book and stop reading!! i am so glad that in the end jacob inprinted on bellas baby.. i love all the books once u start reading u cant stop!!its like my drug=]=] and im adicted i wish there was no ending and it would go on forever=]
I really don’t like Breaking Dawn. I find that the characters, Bella especially in the Twilight series never really evolve. There isn’t much character development or growth and I feel that the cliches only continued to reveal themselves as the series went along. I hate how Bella is always an exception. Everything is always perfect for her regardless of any other contributing factors. Breaking Dawn is just so…odd. The only decent part I feel, is the chapters where Jacob is narrating.