The Twilight Saga tells the story of a young woman named Bella Swan and her love
interest, Edward Cullen. Stephenie Meyer has said that the idea for the Twilight Saga came from
a dream she had. In her dream, Meyer had a vision of an unbelievably perfect male being and an
average teenage girl (cite). The odd pair, obviously in a state of infatuation with each other, was
sitting in a small, round meadow when all of a sudden; the male reveals himself to the young
woman as a vampire (Sykley 262).The dream served as the inspiration for the entire Twilight
Saga. In the series, Meyer tells about Bella’s constant longing for the eternal youth that Edward
possesses. Instead of being frightened by the strange demeanors and striking good looks of the
Cullen family, Bella is intrigued by them and can’t bring herself to let them go. Eventually, the
lovers decide that they cannot stand to part, wish to marry, and spend the rest of their eternal
lives together after Belle is transformed into a vampire. Bella, although not without
complication, gives birth to a vampire-human hybrid, and with the help of her friends defeats an
evil group of vampires called the Volturri and spends the rest of her life in a state of eternal
youth and beauty with Edward and daughter Renesme. On the surface, the Twilight Saga seems
like any other average teen romance story, but through further examination, it is obvious that
Stephenie Meyer has imbedded countless examples of Mormon symbolism in the story.
One of the most predominant examples of Mormon ideology in the Twilight Saga is the
idea of “agency” (Gravett 61-71). This idea can most easily be described as a human’s ability to
make decisions that are morally right and just, sinc...
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from human to vampire. In the series, the couple express and undying, eternal love for each other
(Meyer, Twilight). They know that they will spend their eternity together and that their love will
endure even after Bella leaves behind her human life to become a vampire. In Mormon belief,
marriage is an eternal bond that lasts beyond the afterlife (The Book of Mormon D&C. 132.19).
Stephenie Meyer, the author of the series, has grown up in the Mormon faith. She is quite
familiar with Mormon belief and ideology. These beliefs are prevalent throughout the entire
series. Mormon belief and tradition, despite not entirely obvious at first glance, become
extremely evident upon closer review. Twilight, although not directly expressed as such, is in
fact a story filled with countless representations of Mormon belief about life, love, and morality.
In bite me or don’t: twilight as abstinence porn, Christine Seifert from Westminster college in Utah, analyzes the twilight saga. Describing twilight saga as an abstinence porn saga. Christine agrees with twilight fans about the lost of abstinence and sexual tension in breaking dawn. Christine is a feminist writer from the Bitch magazine she emphasizes most of her critics towards Bella describing her as weak and with no control over her body (348). Seifert believes that Edward is in control of Bella’s protection, humanity and virginity.(348)Christine uses rhetorical strategies during her discussion, persuading the reader about the life of Bella as a teenage mom and how twilight transmits a message of abstinence.
Scott, Donald. "Mormonism and the American Mainstream." Teacher Serve. National Humanities Center, Aug. 2004. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. .
Navajo Tradition, Mormon Life follows the story of Jim Dandy and his family, members of the Navajo Native American tribe, as they adjust to living within the world of their ancestors and the new world of the white Americans. Jim Dandy, through telling his story, is able to show the similarities between the faith of Mormons and Navajo, the value of American education to the Navajo, and the what Mormons learned from the Natives. These recollections are a powerful insight into the life of a Navajo, their relationship with Mormons, and how both cultures have been able to exchange ideas that have enriched both sides.
Vampires have been viewed with fear and fascination for centuries. Of all the vampires in literature, Bram Stoker’s Count Dracula is probably the most prominent vampire. Recently, there has been an upsurge of public interest in socially acceptable vampires, like the Cullens in the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. This essay will contrast Stoker’s Dracula with Carlisle Cullen, one of the newer vampires from the Twilight series. They will be examined in terms of their origins and how they dealt with immortality.
In the famous novel and movie series, Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, an average teenage girl, Bella Swan, is forced to move from Arizona (where she lived with her mother) to Washington to start an almost new life with her father. She attends a small-town high school with mostly average people, besides one family, the Cullens. As Bella and Edward Cullen get closer, she uncovers a deep secret about him and his family. Their relationship faces many hard challenges and conflicts as the story develops. Both the novel and movie share very similar storylines, however, differ in many ways. From themes to author’s craft, or to relationships, these important parts of the story highlight the significant differences and similarities of Twilight.
these wolves were sent to do this job. However, he forces himself to stay away from the Cullens, vampires, because of his love and loyalty to Bella. This love turns sour when Edward Cullen is forced to turn his wife, Bella, into a vampire. Jacob hates Edward for what he has done to Bella and in a spur-of-the-moment decision makes up his mind that Edward should be killed. He is so furious he does not even bother to learn the reasons Edward has done this act. Jacob goes to the Cullens' house, where his whole life is about to change. "The gravity of the earth no longer tied me to the place where I stood. It was the baby that held me here now. Renesmee" (Breaking Dawn,shmoop.com). As soon as he sets eyes on the precious, half-vampire, he knows Renesmee is his soul mate
In Chapter 1, Krakauer gives a synopsis of the modern Mormon Church. Information in this chapter also gives facts of the history of this church. One point that Krakauer makes in this section is that the Mormons do not believe Lafferty is a member of their congregation they do not condone his actions. However the fundamentalists, as well as the Mormons come from similar roots and believe in the same kind of principles. The main area of confrontation between the Mormons and the Fundamentalists is that the Fundamentalists believe that men are meant to marry more than one woman at a
Writer Natalie Wilson approaches the topic of race as what appears to be “unexamined” to many in the movie Twilight. In her article “Civilized Vampires Versus Savage Werewolves: Race and Ethnicity in the Twilight Series”, she points out many interesting details that support her opinion that Twilight depicts some sort of racial differences and biases amongst the characters. The movie is based on the storyline of diverse relationships between Bella Swan and a group of werewolves and vampires, including Jacob Black and Edward Cullen. The difference between the depiction of Edward and Jacob are very contrasting as Jacob is associated with savagery while Edward on the other hand is described as wealthy, talented, and smart. Jacob and his tribe are Native American and those who pertain to the Cullen family are white; some consider this
W. Paul Reeve, A. E. (2010). Mormonism: A Historical Encyclopedia: A Historical Encyclopedia. New York: Routledge.
Handley, William R. “Distinctions without Differences: Zane Grey and the Mormon Question”. Arizona Quarterly: A Journal of American Literature, Culture, and Theory, vol. 57, number 1, spring 2001. pp. 1-33. Web. PDF file. 8. December 2014.
The vampire is always searching, sometimes knowingly or subconsciously, for a companion to share their eternally lonely existence with. Anne Rice’s vampires in the novel, Interview with the Vampire, embody this struggle to share an intimate bond to fill the vast emptiness and guilt that follows with being an immortal creature. In her article, “Blood Relations: The Gothic Perversion of the Nuclear Family in Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire,” Candace Benefiel addresses the issue of Rice’s vampires representing an untraditional metaphor for the acceptable family model. Rice’s Interview with the Vampire embodies the societal taboos of incest through her portrayal of the complex familial relationships between her main characters.
youth, is determined to gain the love of Madeline, who is also searching for love by mystical
According to Foster, the essentials for a vampire story are: an older figure representing corrupt and old-fashioned values; a young, virgin female; stripping the young girl of her youth, energy, and life's virtue; a continuance of the life force of the old male; the death or destruction of the young woman. The best example that I can think of when it comes to a good vampire story is Twilight. In Twilight, Edward is the older figure that represents corrupt values. Bella is the young, and innocent female. In the movie, Edward, being a vampire cannot die and he enrolls as a high school student. Eventually, Bella and Edward meet and being falling in love with each other; this is when Bella is stripped of her youth. Edward tells Bella about the
The Twilight series is a bestselling series written by Stephanie Meyer that has captivated millions of teenage girls. Twilight diverges from the vampire lore quite a bit and contains very little information about any other supernatural beings. Most vampire stories stress that vampires are night dwellers; that they cannot remain “alive” when the sun rises. Nevertheless, Twilight ignores that known ...
By the title I can make connection between Twilight and Dracula because it reminds me of my ultimate favorite book of all times twilight by Stephanie Meyer which also has vampire that appears in the sunset. Its romantic young adult book and talks about the separation the loneliness and the search of love. Main point is I see in all poems whether in Whitman, Stoker, or even Meyer we see the overall ballet is over come weakness to be out in the light to gain straight and to have your loved ones near to your