Defending the Twilight Saga

For some reason I feel the need to defend the Twilight Saga.  The first installment of the last movie, Breaking Dawn - Part 1, just came out and I've noticed quite a bit of disgust for it on Facebook.  Full disclosure - I love the books.  And I enjoy the movies.  In fact, I just got back from seeing the movie for the first time (I do plan to see it again, too!).  No, they're not the best movies ever.  They're definitely not going to win any awards for acting or cinematography.  That's not what they're about or striving for.  But the books are great.  I've read them all many, many times.

Now, I know not everybody is going to enjoy this story.  Take out the supernatural stuff and it's essentially a love story.  Yes, the characters are young and in this day and age, it's uncommon to fall in love and determine you want to spend the rest of your life with someone at eighteen years old.  And with how liberated women are now, it's also a bit uncommon for a woman to "throw her life away" for a man.  That's what I've seen going around on the internet.  That Bella is not a good role model for young women because she throws everything away for her boyfriend.  That her life revolves around her boyfriend.  I can understand how some people see it like that and of course that's not for everybody.  But hello - it's a book.  


That's what is great about our world, we don't have to agree with somebody else's life choices - because it's their choice.  The couple that is having their 20th child?  I think they're crazy.  I would never want to have twenty kids.  But it's okay, because nobody is telling me that I have to.  Celebrities that spend millions on a wedding and then divorce 72 days later?  Shallow, self-absorbed people with no respect for the sanctity of marriage - maybe.  But it's their life, not mine.

Putting aside the fact that this is a book and therefore fantasy, lets think of the other things the character does that might be more like appropriate role model behavior.  Bella and Edward wait to have sex until they're married.  Though it's not something I did, that's commendable for young people.  Right?  And when Bella finds out that she's pregnant and the child will likely kill her, she decides that she loves this child more than her own life and will therefore not terminate the pregnancy.  I would think that most mothers feel similar immeasurable love for their unborn child.  That's pretty huge.  And why is loving somebody completely and immensely a bad thing?  I think it's pretty awesome to love someone as much as these two love each other.  I strive to find even a small portion of that for myself.  All of those things are good role model behavior, I think.


Yes, these life choices are not for everybody.  And that's okay.  If you don't like them, don't see the movies or read the books.  But please respect other people's choice if they do.