critique essay on twilight

Twilight: Cultural Phenomenon or Sexist Manifesto? Alexandra Francois As America becomes increasingly saturated by an economic recession and an abundance of foreign crises, both teenagers and adults have turned to the literary world as a means of escape. This escape has been found in Stephenie Meyer’s nationally acclaimed Twilight series, as well as the much anticipated Twilight film released by Summit Entertainment in November of 2008. However, with Meyer’s work praised as a cultural phenomenon, many individuals have denounced the series as “representing sexist views in almost every way” (Rice). The novels have generated a heated controversy in the literary world regarding whether the Twilight series is a brilliant representation of teenage angst and adolescence, or a sexist manifesto demeaning the female gender as inferior, weak, and dangerously vulnerable. The plot of the first Twilight novel unfolded after author, Stephenie Meyer, experienced a dream involving an immortal, one hundred year old vampire. His appearance eternally remained that of a seventeen-year image of male perfection. The vampire fell in love with an ordinary, teenage mortal girl with damsel in distress attributes. However, the phrase “happily ever after” became lost in the struggle for survival and acceptance within the contrary realms of the human and supernatural worlds. Meyer’s dream soon evolved into a plotline for a series of novels. The teenage vampire became known as the heartbreaking and beautiful Edward Cullen, while her heroine developed into the simple, yet complicated, Bella Swan. In Meyer’s works, the Cullen Family remains a group of unique “vegetarian” vampires, who rely on the blood of animals instead of humans in order to satisfy their hunger. The introductory novel of the Twilight series focuses on the discovery of the Cullens’ secret, the passionate first love between Bella.
A field guide to the many, many intellectual movements that have laid claim to Twilight Summit Entertainment TO THE NAKED EYE, IT MAY APPEAR THAT: The Twilight saga is a story about love. And vampires. And family. And abstinence. And racism. And the founding of the Mormon faith. And orphans, in a really weird way. BUT ACCORDING TO SOME EXPERTS WHO THOUGHT REALLY HARD ABOUT THIS: Twilight is a story about all of these things. And more things. Since the series' debut in 2005, multitudes of thinkers and scholars have claimed to know the real, profound meaning behind Stephenie Meyer's famous vampire-romance novel series. This tends to happen sometimes when books ignite widespread consumption and discussion: Just run a quick Google search on The Great Gatsby is a story about if you need further proof. But the degree to which Twilight has been analyzed, re-analyzed, reframed, and close-read makes it something of a lit-crit Choose Your Own Adventure story. So because Breaking Dawn—Part 2, the final film in the mega-selling Twilight movie franchise, comes to theaters this weekend, it might be wise to decide just what strain of liberal arts-y interpretation you subscribe to. Take your pick: Twilight and its sequels are one big story about. The power (and powerlessness) of women. It's arguably the most notorious complaint about Twilight: That meek, indecisive teenager Bella Swan may be something of a sketchy role model for its largely teenage, largely female fan base. For instance, in 2010, David Cox of the Guardian expressed some concern in a story called (amazingly) Twilight: the franchise that ate feminism. In a climactic argument, [Bella's two suitors Jacob and Edward] debate what's best for her, he wrote. As they decide her future she sleeps between them, the epitome of submissive passivity. Bella's fate isn't only dispiriting; it's also deceptive. On the whole.
Stephenie Meyer has several strikes against her as far as receiving serious critical attention from established academic critics. She is writing young adult fiction that blends horror fiction with romance; all of these genres are traditionally critically neglected. Many of the articles that do examine Meyer and her work focus on a few repeated topics: her place in publishing (cast as the next J.K. Rowling), the fanatical devotion of her fans (who dress up for events), the seeming contradiction of a Mormon writing a book that revolves so intensely around desire and predation, and, finally, Twilight's relationship to its genre context. For example, James Blasingame's highly positive review discusses how Twilight relates to other vampire fiction, but also to other thrillers, drawing parallels between the vampire hunting Bella and serial killer novels such as Silence of the Lambs. Blasingame also praises the novel as fantastic, a judgment fellow Mormon writer of the fantastic Orson Scott Card would largely echo. Card makes the fine point that Edward Cullen has all the qualities of Pride and Prejudice's Mr. Darcy (and, one might add, some of the emotional character). Instead of the money, though, Edward has extended life and superhuman strength. The review published in the School Library Journal makes strong points about how these other factors (the tension, the supernatural qualities, the threat Edward carries) add new energy to the teen romance novel, giving first kisses particular meaning. It also points out the novel's high level of realism, which creates a tension in itself with the book's eerie qualities. Publishers Weekly praises Twilight for the how well Edward works as a metaphor; he may be a literal vampire, but he stands in for every threatening but attractive male. The review did point out that the plot is weak and the final section rushed. However, Lev.
- I received a copy from LibraryThing Early Review in exchange for a fair and honest review -Twilight. Whether you love the series or love to hate it, no one is exempt from having heard of the phenomena, making this book perfect for anyone. This collection of essays are an attempt at an academic and intellectual critique of the series, looking at Twilight, the phenomenon surrounding it, and the cultural and popular effects and implications of the saga (page two), in a way that the authors hope - I received a copy from LibraryThing Early Review in exchange for a fair and honest review -Twilight. Whether you love the series or love to hate it, no one is exempt from having heard of the phenomena, making this book perfect for anyone. This collection of essays are an attempt at an academic and intellectual critique of the series, looking at Twilight, the phenomenon surrounding it, and the cultural and popular effects and implications of the saga (page two), in a way that the authors hope is entertaining but enlightening, thought-provoking but user-friendly. (also page two)Divided into three main sections, this book covers all sorts of topics including, but not limited to:fandom, the effect of tourism on the town of Forks, franchising and the utilization of fans by filmmakers, The Hero's Journey and the psychological underpinnings of the saga, feminism, the transformation of vampires from villains to prince charmings, race and economic class, how fairy tales and literary tropes such as the Byronic hero inform the saga (page 6), patriarchy, how the series taps into our culturally constructed notions of age, gender, love, romance, and sexuality (page 6), age and age relations, comparisons to Wuthering Heights and works by Austen, post-feminist backlash, rape myths and violence towards women, the hetero-normative world view, biblical themes and the saga as a re-writing of Adam.