In my opinion, having researched the topic of how dysfunctional of a storyline AND the VAMPIRES (and JEEZ, JACOB!) within The Twilight Saga are - especially Breaking Dawn; there is NOTHING that reveals these facts more clearly than the movie Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 1, itself. Yeah, I finally watched it.
Here's my movie review - It ends with a couple questions for Stephenie:
1) Why (specifically) do the Vampires within the Twilight Saga need to drink blood? It appears that you created a story about BLOODLESS Vampires... An Oxymoron.
They are changed from Humans to Vampires via VENOM, and afterwards their bodies are solid and not blood-based. One wonders if their bodies are so solid, how can they even swallow blood to begin with? How does the blood sink into their tissues? What do they need it for? Just because you say that's what they are? Your Vampires do not appear to need blood at all - for anything.
2) Where the HECK are Edward's pretty SPARKLES that you made such a big, damn HAIRY deal about him just HAVING to HAVE because of your precious dream?! WASN'T that supposed to be the REASON we were all supposed to pass all the dysfunction you wrote into your storyline off?! Edward JUST HAD to SPARKLE, but for SOME strange reason - you weren't concerned AT ALL about him HAVING to be a VAMPIRE!
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Original Date of this Post: 4/18/12
I'm going to get a Vampire Lore preface/disclaimer out of the way here before I continue reading Twilight Chapter 4: Invitations - because I'm going to need to vent this before I CAN continue. Maybe you'll learn something about VAMPIRES that you're not all that interested in learning about, ha!
It starts out with Bella telling us about her first dream about Edward. Further into the story, we know that Edward sneaks into Bella's room at night to watch her sleep. SOME Vampire Lore extremists say that Edward shouldn't be able to get into Bella's room until if/when he was invited (although I'm not sure about all previous Vampires genres embracing this cardinal rule).
I can tell you that when I first started falling for Twilight, *I* did NOT have ONE problem with things like the Vampires sparkling; or Edward being able to get into her room without being invited; or them being able to live off the blood of animals instead of Human blood, etc. - ALL these things are specific to Vampire Lore that Stephenie dismissed, and there is a specific REASON for all of these things to BE a part of Vampire Lore.
BUT, when I first began to fall in love with Twilight; I ASSUMED that Stephenie Meyer had gone out of her way to CREATE essentially "her version" of Vampires - which is Ok, IF you ACTUALLY GO OUT OF YOUR WAY TO DO THAT!
My friend Steve has taken this issue head on with me on everyone's behalf - literally, we got into a SHOUTING match over it in the middle of the store, LoL! (Good thing we're grown-ups and good friends.)
HIS POINT: In the movie when Edward is showing Bella his sparkles on the mountain, he explains basically that "people have the myths wrong" or whatever... NOT good enough when things go THIS FAR outside of the lines JUST because the author was LAZY and wanted to STAY in her fantasy! (And honestly, I don't even remember him saying that anywhere - but maybe I've just forgotten it.)
IF she had REALLY went out of her way to create this special breed of Vampires - THEN everything would be Ok. But, she didn't! Apparently, the discipline of literary research wasn't one of SMeyer's strong suits... THAT's why I'm UP here.
It's kind of hard to put the genie back in the bottle, but I'm trying to read this without thinking about how screwed up the Vampires are - because I'm still looking for the sliver that saves this saga. I know I have a long way to go; and I'm sorry, but I'm not going to get there without venting every once in awhile along the way...
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Vampires not being able to enter Human homes is something about Humans/Vampires that Stephenie apparently didn't realize; or if she did, she ignored it. And, I've often wondered over the past several months - just how Stephenie ever got out of having to delve into hardly any of the mythological or theological aspects surrounding Vampires - especially considering that she has Edward making such a big deal about him believing that he has no soul and he will destroy Bella's if he turns her. SHOULDN'T both Edward's and Bella's beliefs surrounding those things have been discussed in a little - or alot - more depth?
I have the coolest conversation in my head with Edward and an alternative Bella talking about "what happens to souls when we die" (she's trying to convince him that it's Ok to turn the other Bella). It's not "too out there" for young people or too religiously-specific - and yet, it works and it's a beautiful conversation.
IF Stephenie had at least done the research on WHAT kinds of things were specific about Vampires that she needed to be aware of; and THEN changed them to suit her story needs by COVERING/explaining whatever niche about them she had just changed - Twilight could and probably would have been an AMAZING STORY.
IF she had done research... She would have discovered all kinds of really cool things about Vampires that could have been used to ALOT more considerable advantage in her story than she realizes. Vampires are an EXCELLENT contradictory-type character that make our Human sensibilities stick out more BECAUSE we are so different - and they used to be like us, so they KNOW US WELL! Stephenie REALLY missed out on alot of possibilities. Those of you who are familiar with Vampires KNOW that.
This is a very generic summary of what a Vampire is...
They are anti-Humans, no-longer Humans with NO SOUL and they are DEAD - not frozen. We Humans are ALIVE, with warm blood flowing through our veins FULL of LIFE, and they FEED as much off of our "essence/soul" as they do our nutrients - because THEIR SOULS are gone. It's temporary, and it's the only way they can "really feel" within the silent prison of the empty HOLE the soul leaves within them (or replaced by a demon, depending on YOUR version of a Vampire) when they are changed. THIS is WHY Stephenie's Vampires can't be "vegetarians" - they can't even CHOOSE to be!
IF her Vampires were to choose an all-animal diet - the INTERNAL conflicts & cravings of their instincts would drive them insane! It wouldn't be EASIER for the Cullen's to resist feeding off Humans, it would make it harder for them - AND they would all be extra-cranky and really not caring at some point WHO or HOW MANY people they killed, because they would be going insane with LUST - lust of "needing to feel", not just actual lust.
In "Interview with the Vampire", Louis TRIED to live off animals (rats for some reason, seems to be a popular alternative for Vampires who are feeling really guilty about what monsters they are); but he couldn't do it! In Buffy, both Angel & Spike ended up living mainly off of pigs blood from the butcher shop. But they both were at one point struggling with their conscious' after they had reacquired their souls and were dealing with serious cases of regrets over what monsters they were and all the death and destruction they had caused the world. Spike was also dealing with a government chip in his head for awhile that wouldn't let him eat anything alive - animal or otherwise. AND they both managed to get in some Human blood on occasion - PLUS, they could always take a trip to "Louis' Place" (I may have that name a bit wrong) or "Lorne's Place" - demon bars where they could get any kind of blood they wanted from around the world. I would imagine some sort of magic was imposed on those containers to preserve the essences of the souls of the donors.
Still... I suppose, if the Cullen's HAD to be vegetarians, she could/should have made them more reclusive, at least. AND while we're at it, they DAMN well wouldn't be attending a HIGH SCHOOL unless they were HUNTING... Young, Human, VIRGIN blood is a Vampire's SECOND favorite kind probably only after babies! The more "innocent" the blood, the SWEETER both in smell & taste it is to them! OMG, don't get me STARTED on just HOW MUCH Vampires LOVE VIRGIN BLOOD. I would imagine that it is one of the reasons why the Vampire Slayers in the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" & "Angel" series' HAD to be a YOUNG (13ish was ideal) teenage girl. Because she was so innocent, it also became her STRENGTH that was turned against them.
THIS is ONE of the MAIN REASONS why so many of us are so upset about Stephenie using Vampires like this. She's taken one of the most sexually-potent things about Vampires, then created this "seemingly-innocent" fairytale surrounding that. Intentional or NOT - this story is SO WRONG in SO many ways! Buffy was an intelligent way to use virgins within a Vampire story - Twilight seems to be pretty perverted about it. And again, I'm probably starting to sound like a stuck record... IF this story had been written for ADULTS, my perspective on all this would be different...
The differences in our souls is ALSO why Edward isn't supposed to be able to "just walk into" Bella's bedroom, much less her house. The intricate dynamics of the Human souls who live in the house (whatever those are) KEEP Vampires from being able to enter without the consent of a Human who lives there.
The point here is... We Humans are more than the sum of our parts because we also have a soul - Vampires are not, they're DEAD and that's "all they are". BUT they have all kinds of extra-special supernatural abilities to make up for it PLUS an eternal life! They have things WE would love to have; and we have SOME things THEY would love to have back - like, being able to have a baby, LOL!
Also, the 'Vampires don't sleep' thing is REALLY stupid when it comes down to it. I know alot of fairly recent Vampire stories have Vampires being able to be awake during the day, BUT they still make them unable to go out into the sunlight. REALLY... Vampires should AT LEAST sleep (I LIKE how True Blood seems to stick to this for the most part) simply because they ORIGINALLY started out as literally "being dead" during the day.
THAT's WHY they had to sleep in a coffin or mausoleum and/or in the ground. They USED to become INANIMATE during the day BECAUSE they are supposed to be DEAD. They WAKE UP when the night comes on... They are SUPPOSED to be CREATURES of the NIGHT - JUST the NIGHT!
Stephenie COULD have found the most perfectly logical solutions for alot of the oddities she insisted on tacking into her storyline - within her own characters. It's almost like she wrote the entire story of Twilight with just Edward & Bella; and then wrapped the story and the rest of the characters around them as if they were all decorations instead of actually being integral to the storyline.
I'm just now starting the 4th chapter of Twilight. I know I'm beyond repair at this point as far as my opinions about this saga goes - but I'm even more disappointed than I thought I would be. I'm starting to feel pretty depressed about it, actually. Really? THIS is what you've all been making such a big hairy deal about for the past three years?! Chapters 13 & 14 had better be mind-boggling!
Carlisle is a DOCTOR with ACCESS to BLOOD - she could have figured out a way for him to "get" hot & cold running Human blood in the house (maybe not literally, ha!). They manage to use money to buy all their other shady dealings they have to manage - like their continuously evolving identities. They could have bought Human blood for their needs.
But even then, there is the issue of this blood being "dead" blood... I'm not sure how we could get completely around it, but I supposed if this story is as good as its supposed to get; we can stretch our imaginations a bit - but couldn't Carlisle maybe have figured it out? True Blood figured out how to make a synthetic substitute for what Vampires need. There are ways...
But HONESTLY, Stephenie could have bitten the bullet and made Edward the way he was supposed to be - an ACTUAL VAMPIRE - THAT's where the conflict in her story was that she DISMISSED. She could have still made him so that he still had a bit of a conscience and wasn't a killer - Vampires don't NEED to kill their Human prey. Of course, it would have taken both thought and research to work that out. She wouldn't have even had to WORRY about thinking up all that nonsense surrounding "venom".
One of the few maddening things about reading "Midnight Sun", even though it is a MUCH better written draft; is that Stephenie has Edward's mouth filling up with venom as a REACTION to Bella as if he is salivating over her, or something. HOW would Edward be able to KISS her if he is THIS poisonous to her?!
Stephenie's Vampires are COMPLETELY different - she doesn't even research HOW HUMANS ARE CHANGED INTO VAMPIRES! She should have done her research like a good literary college graduate. With Vampires, EVERYTHING is about the BLOOD... It is their life-source and it is a NECESSITY for changing a Human into a Vampire.
THIS POINT ALSO ties in with the "Virgin Seduction" concern above - IF Stephenie had DONE the RESEARCH surrounding Vampires; she would have SEEN how inappropriate this story was. When a Vampire changes a Human into a Vampire; they basically "share their essence" with that Human - in a sense, they create an "offspring". Back in my roleplaying days, if you were playing a character who was a Vampire and you changed a Human; that "newborn" would be referred to as that particular Vampire's "childe". BECAUSE there is such a deep, metaphysical bond between them - physically, spiritually, etc.
"True Blood" did a really WONDERFUL job of demonstrating that bond between Eric and his "Maker" ("Sire" is often another name that is used) as he was getting ready to die. (OMG, was anyone else crying?!) It was both amazing acting and an amazing well-told scene from all kinds of perspectives - writing, directing, even the lighting, ha! (Here's a shortened scene with an insert that someone edited up on YouTube that does a really good job of portraying this. Also, here is that whole scene as it was shown called, "Do You Believe in God?" Careful, it also shows how Vampires die in the Sun.) THIS was a REALLY beautiful scene... JEEZ, quadruple kudos to the CAST & CREW of TRUE BLOOD for being SO DAMN GOOD AT THIS STUFF!
The point is... NO! NOT right! It's WAY TOO SOON for you to be taking THIS SEXUALLY POTENT of a story down THIS path with this young girl, Stephenie. You DAMN WELL SHOULD have been listening to your professional editors instead of strong-arming your stupid story on us all like this.
As you can see, Stephenie took the most fundamental things about Vampires that IDENTIFIES them as Vampires (EXCEPT for the really seductive, "desire" aspects) - and simply disregards them. The Cullen's are NOT Vampires - BUT, she could have made them something different or at least NAMED them something different. It actually would have worked pretty well for her to have made the Cullens half-Vampire & Half-Human, themselves - THAT's what they all ACT like!
And can I add just one more SILLY thing about Vampires in here... ALOT of Vampires can read minds and/or see the future, and almost ALL of them are empathic and can "enthrall" you. Sorry Edward, Jasper, and ALICE (one of my personal favorite characters of Stephenie's) you're not THAT special...
Ok, I think I'm done... Thanks for hanging out through another silly rant of mine. :)
Vampire Lore fanatics, feel free to correct and/or elaborate on my Vampire Lore perspective (keeping in mind that I was trying to keep it very generic, ha!)...
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