Twilight Book Review

Twilight was a major blockbuster in the late 2000s. The story of a teenage girl falling in love with a vampire which was very appealing to teenagers especially. However, considering all the vitriol the book and the whole series got, we can agree that it has many faults we can explore.

First, I would like to address the vampire in the room, literally: Bella and Edward’s relationship. Edward acts so peculiarly when he tells her to stay away from him, yet he always starts a conversation. This should of course be a reason for Bella to dislike Edward, however she does otherwise. Bella and Edward fall in love apparently at the click of a button when he picks her up for school. Their immediate change in behavior stood out to me. The night before this happened, he saved her from some inebriated men (we will get to this part later) and they went to a restaurant afterwards. Bella is still unaware of Edward’s identity at this point, and he reveals that he can read every mind in the room they were sitting in except hers. To which Bella responds, “Is there something wrong with me?”. It conveys her insecurities as an adolescent and the fact that she doesn’t understand her own value, immediately taking the blame, which isn’t a good example to follow. What she is fundamentally saying is “You are unable to read my mind, is your incapacity my fault?”.

Moreover, the perceptions of the vampire’s family towards Bella are

controversial. When the Cullens (the vampire family) and Bella are in the car as she is hunted by James, they don’t even let her talk. Yes, it might be because they have more experience, but it doesn’t mean Bella can’t have a good plan regarding her own safety. She shows this when she finally manages to tell them what she has in mind. Emmet, Edward’s brother, seems very surprised that her plan is so good. In this case, Edward wanted to keep her safe, however he didn’t consider any doubts she had, which were very plausible, about his plan. They treated her like a doll that needed to be kept intact and have no opinions. Yet Bella STILL is charmed by Edward and wants to be in a relationship with him, even after this endeavor. As you can see, there are many holes in the plotline, character defects and a flawed romantic relationship between a human and vampire which is impossible.

And lastly, it is a terrible example of a relationship to little girls, since it romanticizes codependency. At the beginning of the book, Edward follows Bella to Port Angeles. He saves her from some intoxicated men. In this instance, it was fortunate that Edward saved her, but what is very unsettling, is the fact that he followed her in the first place. It is definitely a sign of codependency when Edward stalks Bella to Port Angeles and refrains from contacting her at all. He is fundamentally just watching her every step just in case she needs him. This is very bizarre but if you imagine this happening in real life, it would be a very discomposing occurrence. What is even more scandalous, is that he offers help on his account, when it could have been the case, she did not even need help. It deprives her of choice and the chance to decide.

Overall, think this is definitely not a good book for people to be inspired by considering the romantic relationship. The pair have a mostly perfect relationship because it doesn’t align with real life. When he followed her, it showed the codependency and obsession they have. In real life, this usually leads to divorce. However here, this doesn’t happen. Unfortunately, although the intentions were good, it might set people up for future failure in a relationship and emotional pain. All the plot holes are acceptable and tolerable; however the message and example of this relationship isn’t. Twilight had much more vitriol than I have portrayed in this article, but these were just my opinion and the flaws I noticed. In general, the book still has a few good components, if you know where to look and you don’t take it seriously enough (as advice), such as its emphasis on acceptance and true love.