On the Success of Twilight

chillibreeze writer — Melaine Wilson

My teenage daughter first suggested I read ‘Twilight’. Of course, I would not take her suggestion seriously as I thought myself too mature to enjoy a novel that had teenage girls swooning. However, one night, as I was sitting in front of the television set, browsing through the channels and wondering what to watch, I came upon the movie ‘Twilight’. The part when Edward takes Bella to visit his family was exciting. In spite of being in a house full of vampires, Bella was not afraid. In fact, they were not a danger to her at all as they had amazing self control. Their love for Bella prevented them from attacking her, even though one would not really be able to blame them had they done so, since that was their basic instinct. This touched my heart and I went on to watch the rest of the movie, and enjoyed every bit of it. It is a perfect love story.

The next day, my daughter had the book ready for me. I read every page with utmost curiosity. I can now understand why the story appeals to teenage girls. Bella is shy and doesn't think she is too pretty. Girls all around the world identify with her. Bella doesn’t dress too well and drives an ugly truck. She is an introvert with very few friends. And then, this same Bella is the object of appreciation and love of the most beautiful and perfect boy who happens to be a vampire. If Edward, who is so perfect, can love Bella just the way she is, then there is hope for the average girl out there. That is a welcome relief from the pressure to be popular and perfect. Of course, the characters are too perfect and unreal. But in a world which is full of hardship and disappointment, who would not enjoy retreating into the ‘perfect world’ of ‘Twilight’ for a while?

The reasons behind Twilight’s appeal
‘Twilight’ is a story full of the wonderful human values and principles that most normal people in the world, caught up with pressing time schedules and work pressure, lack today. For one, two people love each other so much that they are willing to overcome any hurdle in their way. Edward and his family have total self control, a trait which is very rare even in young children. Edward is sincere and thoughtful. Bella is the type of friend any girl wants. She is faithful to Edward in spite of knowing his terrible secret. She does not let anything get in the way of her friendship with ‘Jacob’, even after discovering that he is a werewolf. She is accepting and trustworthy. Her values are not skewed by society.

Edward is Bella’s ‘knight in shining armor’. He treats Bella with respect in all situations. He refuses to have sex outside of marriage because he wants everything to be perfect when it comes to her. He drives when they go out, takes care of her every need and is polite and courteous to her father. One instance that comes to my attention is when Edward goes to Bella’s house, politely introduces himself to her father and requests his permission to date Bella. How many young men today would do that?

Why are girls in love with Edward?
Edward is so popular because girls love the way he treats Bella. A girl wants to be treated like a lady. Girls want the gentleman to take charge, make plans for dates and be respectful. Edward isn’t aggressive or uncouth, but refined and classy. He is smart and well read, well mannered and considerate.

‘Twilight’ is a series of four vampire-based fantasy romance novels by American author Stephanie Meyer. It is the life story of Isabella "Bella" Swan, a teenage girl who moves to Forks, Washington, and falls in love with a 104-year-old vampire named Edward Cullen. The series is told primarily from Bella's point of view, with the epilogue of ‘Eclipse’ and Part II of ‘Breaking Dawn’ being told from Jacob Black’s point of view.

The popularity of Twilight
Since the release of the first novel, ‘Twilight’, in 2005, the books have gained immense popularity and commercial success around the world. The series is most popular among young adults. The four books have won multiple awards, most notably the 2008 British Book Award for "Children's Book of the Year" for ‘Breaking Dawn’, while the series as a whole won the 2009 Kids' Choice Award for ‘Favorite Book’.

As of March 2010, the series has sold over 100 million copies worldwide with translations into at least 38 different languages around the globe. The four ‘Twilight’ books have consecutively set records as the biggest selling novels of 2008 on the ‘USA Today’ Best-Selling Books list and have spent over 235 weeks on the ‘New York Times’ Best Seller list for Children's Series Books.

‘Twilight’ was theatrically released on November 21, 2008, grossing over US$392 million worldwide. It was released on DVD on March 21, 2009, and became the most purchased DVD of the year. The soundtrack was released on November 4, 2008. Following the film's success, New Moon and Eclipse, the next two novels in the series, were produced as films the following year.

The film ‘Twilight’ is directed by Catherine Hardwicke. The film stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, and is the first film in The Twilight Saga film series. The filmmakers behind ‘Twilight’ worked to create a film that was as faithful to the novel as they thought possible. Since its release, Twilight has received numerous nominations and awards.

I love the name Stephanie Meyer chose for this book. It is a perfect fit. Truly, it is twilight time when the creatures of the night wake up. It is also metaphorically a zone between good and evil. The story reveals both good and bad vampires. Or maybe it was what Edward had said to Bella. “Before you, Bella, my life was like a moonless night…very dark, but there were stars - points of light and reason. And then you shot across my sky like a meteor. Suddenly everything was on fire; there was brilliancy, there was beauty.”

If you have read the book or watched the movie, you will understand why I wrote what I have. If you haven’t, I hope I have aroused your curiosity so much that you will soon be getting yourself a copy of the book and/or watching the movie.

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Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in October, 2010. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.

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—About our writer:

Melaine Wilson is a B.Sc. (Botany), B.Ed. (English and Natural Science) and M.A. (English). She has been an English teacher for the past seventeen years. Prior to this she was a freelance journalist for a local newspaper. The International Library of Poetry has honoured her with the prestigious Editor's Choice Award.

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