Harry Potter Bumped By a Vampire
by Candice Watters on 08/11/2007 at 2:53 PM
No longer the No. 1 fiction best-seller at Barnes and Nobel, Harry Potter has been bumped by Stephanie Meyer's Eclipse, a young-adult novel about a "gentlemanly vampire and the girl who loves him," reported Friday's Wall Street Journal.
In a day when the top complaint among young single women is a near-famine of gentlemen to love, it's distressing to see one finally show up, only to be a vampire. But again, one would be hard pressed to call a creature that thrives on the blood of his victims a man, let alone gentleman capable of love.
Such is the degradation of our language.
The article continues,
A 33-year-old mother of three who lives in the Phoenix suburbs, Ms. Meyer says she'd never thought of writing a book until she had a dream about a teenage girl and a handsome vampire.
"It sounds so cheesy, but that dream is Chapter 13 in my first novel," says Ms. Meyer. "I saw two characters talking about the fact that they were in love. He was telling her that his problem was that he wanted to kill her because she smelled so tasty."
This isn't much better than rap music that makes misogynists look like kindergarten teachers. Just hating women isn't enough anymore. To hate and hurt. That's the trend. What's puzzling is why a woman -- a wife and mother no less -- would write this for girls.
Sadly, it's selling. Readers bought 150,000 copies its first day on bookstore shelves.
Thanks to books like this, in a culture like ours, girls grow into young women who are confused about what comprises a good man and how to go about making a good match. They're left vulnerable to predatory guys who are more than happy to take advantage of them and call it love.
But calling death, hate or destruction love will never make it so. We know better.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1. Anonymous said the following at 4:41 PM on Aug 11
Maybe we're not confused. Maybe we think that the love that takes advantage is the only love we can find, the only love we're worthy of. There's not exactly a line of eligible guys at our doors. And we don't want to be alone forever.
2. Amber said the following at 7:33 PM on Aug 11
I don't know....I've read these books and plan to read the one that you're commenting on and I have to say that I don't feel that way at all about love when I read them b/c I have better sense than to get my definition of love from a fiction/fantasy book. However, I'm not sure that your judgement about the book would be completely the same if you've read them. The characters in the novel and the story line are probably not what you think. Yet, I can understand your concern about the younger girls who are reading the books and are maybe getting the wrong ideas about real love.
3. Adrienne said the following at 9:58 PM on Aug 11
I'm curious -- has anyone on here actually read this book?
While there's nothing wrong with looking at an issue from the outside, you really CAN'T "judge a book by its cover," as they say. Before we start condemning or generalizing, it might be a good idea to know what we're talking about! : )
4. Peter Wells said the following at 10:35 PM on Aug 11
I'm confused as to how you find a vampire novel misogynistic. Generally vampires in such novels are portrayed as sophisticated and intelligent gentlemen from a bygone era. The problem is that even though they're such 'perfect' individuals, they have a fundamental flaw because they're actually murderers.
I think this kind of vampire is actually a cultural metaphor for that perfect guy who doesn't actually exist, who has flaws regardless of how great he might appear. I mean, I relate to that kind of character as a guy -- I suppose I come across as a nice guy, but I have deep flaws of my own.
It's not that the vampire hates the girl, its that he loves her and yet has to fight his compulsion to hurt her. Isn't that comparable with a guy loving a girl and yet dealing with an addiction, be it alcohol, or drugs, or porn?
I confess that I haven't read the book, and I probably won't get around to doing so, but it sounds like you haven't read it either, Candice, and that you're just sounding off on an literal concept in the novel and failing to get the entire message, a lot like how many conservative Christians condemned Harry Potter for encouraging witchcraft.
And honestly, I think a book with this vampire metaphor would inform more women to the complexities of relationships and what makes them unhealthy than leave them vulnerable to abuse. People tend to learn from metaphoric experience, rather than emulate.
5. BDB said the following at 10:39 PM on Aug 11
Whoa...for a second there I thought you were giving away the ending for the new Harry Potter book.
6. Alex C. said the following at 11:54 PM on Aug 11
It sounds to me like your jumping to conclusions based just on the concept and a quote. Do you know anything else, or have you read any of the book? I don't think it's fair to just assume right away that this story *must* be bad and destructive because of it's idea. What are the circumstances of the characters, what happens in the story, how do they relate to eachother, what's the underlying theme, etc. etc. I don't think you can make a real judgement of the material without knowing these things.
7. Melody said the following at 12:00 AM on Aug 12
Have you read the book?
I haven't read the book. Is it supposed to be a bit comical? Sounds like it from what the author said. I mean, come on, a Vampire who falls in love? I don't think I can agree with your assessment of it's message without reading a bit of it. There have always been books about men who want to hate a women but instead fall in love with her.
And "young adult" is what? teenagers now? Because I see no need to have a young adult -fiction- category. What? is it dumbed down? sillier? modeled after US magazine? If it's more light hearted why categorize it by age.
meh
My book suggestion- read something by Douglas Coupland. Girlfriend in a Coma is my favourite. Super social commentary in a well written funny novel. (since this is a Christian site I should warn that there's some 'bad language' in it. But then again, so does the world)
8. Melody said the following at 12:02 AM on Aug 12
Ps. Love that scripture. The one in Romans 13 about love is great too:
8Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. 9The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet,"[a] and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself."[b] 10Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law
9. Sam Spade said the following at 2:38 AM on Aug 12
I'm afraid this is all too much ado about nothing. It is just another spawn of one commercially-minded author. Does this piece of news rank as noteworthy just because the book topped Harry Potter? Then I think we give both this book and Harry Potter too much weight and credence in our daily consideration.
The objectionable part surely is rather mild given the gamut of run-of-the-mill trash one sees on the shelves of your local Borders. Besides, at least (going by the part quoted) the vampire is acting true to his nature. He was initially (primarily?) attracted to the woman as a predator to his prey. What's wrong with that?
10. EKB said the following at 10:52 AM on Aug 12
What is even more disturbing than the plot is that this is a best-seller. Why are so many young women attracted to such repulsive ideas? Something is very wrong in our society.
11. Chris said the following at 10:55 AM on Aug 12
Um, isn't this just reaching a little bit? I haven't read the novel, so I can't comment on the quality of it or the nature of the love relationship, but I highly doubt books such as this are confusing girls, except, of course, for those girls in our culture who like to date vampires.
All joking aside, if anything, it sets up an interesting premise whereby the author can look at the conflict between our base instincts and higher emotions such as love. Or it could just be another cheesy young adult love story. But either way, I doubt it'll confuse young women.
12. Meg said the following at 12:07 PM on Aug 12
I want to say this as gently as possible; you should be careful when talking about books. Though I understand that there are objections to vampire fiction in general, the vampire in this case does NOT drink human blood. He belongs to a family abstains from human blood. A quick glance at the amazon summaries explain this. Though people may still have problems with books that glorify traditionally dark creatures such as vampires and werewolves, the vampire in this story does not seem to want to hurt or take advantage of the girl.
13. Jen said the following at 1:35 PM on Aug 12
I find this oddly ironic considering the many ways young teenagers are taken advantage of in relationships.
The one night stands, bruised hearts, lifetime of joyful faithfulness given up for short term pleasure - our culture sets us up for heartbreak.
We give away our hearts, our virginity, our dreams, our peace - and find out that our lover is a vampire.
Sobering.
14. frannie said the following at 1:36 PM on Aug 12
Wow. I must say that I find this blog post cantankerous in the extreme. Womens' fatal attraction to vampires is quite an established literary trope. One very good contemporary retelling would be Robin McKinley's novel, Sunshine. (The Bible begin with one woman's fatal attraction to the words of a snake! At least a vampire is somehow same-species!)
Maybe you could look at the issue and ask yourself what such a tale reveals about the hearts of women: their need to be desired, the way that danger fascinates as well as repels them, their hope for the "salvation" of the men they love.
15. Jim said the following at 8:02 PM on Aug 12
Yes, it's so terribly sad that a wonderful novel for young adults is actually selling. *rolls eyes*
Really, have you done your homework? Edward was forced into becoming a vampire against his will and in Eclipse, hardly thirsts for Bella's blood and nor does he devour humans. Had you actually read the book, however, you may have discovered that Edward is the type of guy many girls Bella's age should identify with; he is indeed perfectly gentlemanly, and values Bella above himself.
But of course you wouldn't know that, and instead hastily compare a series that is actually getting teenagers to read to hateful rap lyrics when, in reality, the comparison is non-existent.
16. Laura said the following at 3:17 AM on Aug 13
Ok, so how does Lev. 19:26 sound? Or perhaps Deut. 18:10-14? Or 2 Kings 21:6? Or you could look at Rev. 19:21.......there's a whole host of scriptures. Have fun reading.
17. J.T. said the following at 7:22 AM on Aug 13
A gentlemanly vampire and the girl who loves him? These author types never cease to perplex me. I do thank you for the real definition of love.
18. Hannah C. said the following at 10:42 AM on Aug 13
Have you read the book?
I'm currently reading the second book in that series. And I've found it to be very much as Jim explained, about three posts above me. I don't see the need to add anything to his comments, as he's pretty much covered it.
It's extremely dangerous to criticize a book without reading it, which it seems to me is exactly what you're doing. I would suggest you read at least one of the books in the series before saying anything else.
As a side note, I think it's quite hilarious that this book is out-selling Harry Potter 7. It's nowhere near as popular, except in select circles.
19. Bo said the following at 12:59 PM on Aug 13
I was really shocked at all the posts defending this book. Sam said, "I'm afraid this is all too much ado about nothing." That sums it up for me and scares me the most--we have become so numb to darkness and ugliness! I have not read the book, but I don't need to read it to know that it is not going to be edifying nor uplifting nor encouraging in my walk with the Lord.
I was briefly in an abusive relationship, and the scariest part of it was that the guy didn't think he was doing anything wrong--and the longer I was with him, the more I became convinced of that, too. We need to protect ourselves from cultural influences that can potentially warp our ways of thinking, especially our ways of thinking about love.
Candice, thank you for this post and for bringing to our attention how easily we can be enticed by an intriguing story line.
20. JO said the following at 1:26 PM on Aug 13
I read Jane Eyre for the first time when I was 14. The plot involved a dark, brooding man who tries to marry a woman he falls in love with despite the fact that he is already married to an insane woman he keeps locked in his attic. I loved it! It still is my favorite novel--a true classic. I, myself, am about to be married, and I can honestly say that the tormented relationship between Jane and Mr. Rochester (namely the fact that she returns to the man she loves even though she thinks he is still married) did not affect my concept of a pure, Godly relationship. I doubt this book and its themes will hurt anyone, either. Honestly, I agree with the other posts. This article is "much ado about nothing." Write about how the relationship between a young woman's mother and father affects her outlook on marriage and family--I think that kind of article might actually mean something to someone.
21. k. said the following at 3:23 PM on Aug 13
Honestly, these books don't have much attraction for me; vampires aren't my thing, and I find the idea of humanitarian vampires to be both laughable and yawn-inducing. However, the "gentlemanly" aspect of this particular vampire comes into play because his family has sworn off humans (replacing them with animals), and because the characters have to fight their instincts to have a relationship. If you think about it, the books bring commentary on teen sex to a new level: it might kill you! Talk about raising the stakes...
I strongly recommend reading the books before blasting them. I'm not trying to defend the books as great art or even good reading material, but I can't get too overwrought about a book that also features a late-night, vampire-only baseball game during a thunderstorm.
I wholly agree, btw, that books, music and videos demeaning and objectifying women are unacceptable; but I don't think this particular series falls into that category.
22. Jethro said the following at 5:02 PM on Aug 13
Ditto to everyone who has said Candice is just jumping to conclusions here. On top of that, if someone wants to read books like this, it's their decision. More power to em I say.
23. Natasha said the following at 5:41 PM on Aug 13
k.
Please tell me that wasn't an on-purpose pun. Raising the 'stakes'?
;)
Seriously though, this seems to just be another of the good girls attracted to 'bad' guys ideas. Not particularly original. And the whole vampire theme is certainly not unusual in teen/youth fiction nowadays. I could probably name at least 5 series' that involve vampires & many of them have vampire 'antiheroes'. I'd have to agree with the 'much ado about nothing' comments made previously.
Anyways,
Just my thoughts.
Natasha
24. Steve said the following at 6:40 PM on Aug 13
Just curious, among all the commenters who see no problems with this vampire story line--how many of you would be equally defensive of a novel about a fundamentalist pastor who is in love with a visitor to his church but insists that she handle poisonous snakes like every other member of his church sect?
25. Carie said the following at 9:32 PM on Aug 13
I have yet to read this book of the Twilight series, but I have read the first both Twilight and New Moon. They may seem to be dark from the outside, but once you read them you dive into a world of love. The two main characters of the book are a girl and her "boyfriend," who happens to be a vampire. The general plot of these books centers around the love they have and how Edward, the vampire, has such a hard time loving Bella, the girl, because the smell of her blood is attractive to him. He does not drink human blood, nor does anyone in his family. They live peacefully with humans, even so much as helping them, as Edward's father is a doctor at the local hospital. The evil in these books spawn from the vampires who do drink human blood. Also, in one of the books, Edward's father, Carlisle discusses with Bella his belief in God. I'm not sure which book this is in as it has been almost a year since I've read the series, but I am 100% sure that he does. Please, I ask you to read the books to truly understand them.
26. Carrie H said the following at 9:56 PM on Aug 13
I HAVE read "Eclipse", and the other two books in Meyer's series, and I also disagree with the idea that the books support misogynistic ideas. The character of Edward (the vampire) must learn to master his natural desire for Bella (the young woman). Though he is endowed with great physical strength and irresistable charm, he refuses to use these to take advantage of Bella. The misogynists of our culture are the men who don't hesitate to use any advantage they possess, be it physical or otherwise, in order to obtain what they want from a woman.
Edward forces himself to see Bella as an intelligent, independent person, rather than the simple object of his desire. It is notable that, in Meyer's books, the Edward character always refers to females as "ladies", "women", or "girls". The character doesn't use slang or profane terms for women, a marked difference from the rap artists that pollute our airwaves.
Also, these books certainly do not glorify violence against women. In fact, the Edward character prevents a sexual assault and twice refers to rapists (and would-be rapists) as "fiends" and "monsters".
This is not a book about a strong being taking advantage of a weaker one. Edward makes several attempts to convince Bella to leave him in favor of another who will not share his (Edward's) particular desire for Bella. This certainly does not conform to the notions of possession and objectification that characterize the attitudes of far too many men in our culture.
27. Hannah C. said the following at 10:34 PM on Aug 13
Continuing from Carrie's comment: The book in question, in which one character discusses faith in God with Bella, is the second book, Twilight. Unfortunately Carlisle's faith is more "there has to be something more to life" than specifically Christian. Actually, the central conflict between Edward and Bella comes from the fact that Edward believes he's lost his soul since he's a vampire, and he refuses to make Bella a vampire [which is what she wishes, so that she can stay with him] because he would rather lose her than have her lose her soul.
Anyway. The books are not about an abusive relationship! The relationship between Edward and Bella is actually a good one, I think, and certainly much better than the one between Jane and Rochester in Jane Eyre, which was referenced in another comment. No one has to read these books if they don't want to, of course - but if your complaint is with the love between the two main characters...well, there are several classics you should be against because of the abusive/messed up relationships.
28. xeres said the following at 10:40 PM on Aug 13
Touche, Steve ;P. While I understand what they feeling about the book, Candice has a point regarding how many writers and other movies often glorify poor role models of whate is in every possible. Also, it seems that everyone has somehow forgetten about Suzanne's postRomantic Comedies No Laughting Matter, which with the same issue regarding of poor role modelsof love and relationships being glorified like as if it is the ultmate thing.*shook her head*
29. Virginia said the following at 11:34 PM on Aug 13
I've read the books.
All of them.
I'm not what you would call a "young girl," but a "young woman" in my 20's. I started reading these books in college, and after finishing the first two, I passed them along to my other female friends, who loved them just as much as I do. Six of my friends from school waited impatiently for the release of the new book and we all bought it the first day, and have been discussing the foibles and strengths of our favorite characters ever since.
I find the books fascinating and true to life... and I am actually bothered more by the female, Bella, than Edward, the vampire (who is NOT a "bad guy," he is actually the "good guy").
Let me explain. Bella takes advantage (sometimes knowingly) of the committment and love that Edward gives her... often proclaiming that she wants Edward to love her but feels unworthy. If you read the books, you will find how true Bella really is: she IS NOT worthy of the love Edward gives her. Edward acts in a way I would want a future beau to act... He WANTS to marry Bella, but because of all of Bella's "bad experiences" with marriage, she denies his one request. What guy in this age would rather wait until marriage to have sex? Bella doesn't value marriage in the same way Edward does, which I find fascinating. Also, Bella not only has a vampire for a friend, but also a werewolf (which complicates things immensely). Bella's actions in regards to her vampire 'boyfriend' and her werewolf 'boy friend' are often confused and make me upset (she messes up something that is SO GOOD), and I wish that Bella could take the advice that Candice and John give on this website... advice such as "Don't lead guys on," or "You can't have it both ways; you can't constantly hang around a male 'friend' without getting attached." While reading I sometimes feel like smacking Bella over the head with something hard because of all the stupid relationship predicaments she gets herself into. Yet, at the same time, I can also see how the books apply to real life and real situations. I sometimes wish my girlfriends would see the mistakes Bella makes, and change their attitudes towards relationships accordingly, instead of falling into the same traps.
I have caught myself thinking the same thoughts about some of my friends' actions as some of Bella's... overall, I see this series as a helpful reflection of REAL LIFE RELATIONSHIP SCREW-UPS and SUCCESSES. Bella doesn't always mess things up, but you'll have to read the books to find out. Just today one of my girlfriends from college said "I wish I had a devoted vampire boyfriend... or even a werewolf. Whichever, I am not picky."
I think her comment reiterates the hopelessness some females feel about the lack of male initiative and leadership in relationships... and the yearning that every single woman has: to find a man that loves her, JUST her.
30. BDB said the following at 1:22 AM on Aug 14
Steve wrote:
>>but insists that she handle poisonous snakes like every other member of his church sect? <<
Well, that depends...has she watched "The Crocodile Hunter" enough to do it safely?
Right now I'm reading Anne Rice's Memnoch the Devil, which apparently the one she was writing as she struggled with God. There's quite a bit of Christian thelogy in the book. The ultimate result was that Anne Rice converted. So, I do think that this genre can be used by God in some cases, depending upon the author and how good and evil are portrayed. I haven't read these books, but they don't sound much worse than Lord of the Rings. As long as the reader keeps in mind that it's fiction...
31. Jethro said the following at 4:43 AM on Aug 14
Steve,
Same deal. People can write whatever they like, people can choose to read whatever they like. Simple, no?
32. JO said the following at 6:17 AM on Aug 14
"how many of you would be equally defensive of a novel about a fundamentalist pastor who is in love with a visitor to his church but insists that she handle poisonous snakes like every other member of his church sect?"
^Write this and get it published. I'll READ it and THEN give you an opinion.
33. P&P said the following at 11:24 AM on Aug 14
I haven't read the books, but I have read about the books. The author is a devout Mormon with a degree in lit from Brigham Young University in addition to being a wife and mother. I'm sure that the books are fairly wholesome despite one of the characters is a vampire.
In fact, the idea that he doesn't want to touch her despite his attraction could be a metaphor to showing sexual restraint.
Just a thought.
34. Ellie said the following at 1:01 PM on Aug 14
Candice doesn't need to read the book to recognize it's odd for the heroine's love interest to be a vampire. Vampires are traditionally evil and predatory characters. Even if the vampire in Eclipse doesn't drink human blood, why should he drink blood at all? Does it heighten his desirablity as a boyfriend?
Casting traditionally evil characters as good is a trend in children's literature Michael O'Brien addresses in an excellent online article, "Harry Potter and the Paganization of Children's Culture."
"With the advent of occult revival (which entered the West primarily through certain British authors involved in esoteric religion) more and more material appeared that attempted to shift the line between good and evil. The characters of the 'white witch,' the pet dragon, and the wise wizard became familiar figures."
The gentlemanly vampire belongs to this list. You can make friends wtih him, and you won't get hurt.
35. S. George Thomas said the following at 2:16 PM on Aug 14
Wondering what all the hype was about, I decided to pick up the three boooks in this series that Stephanie Meyer has written. I have to admit that I was hooked and devoured all three books in a single weekend. Now I agree that there are countless books, movies and TV shows out there that convey horribly warped messages to young girls; however, Stephanie Meyer's books actually surprised me because of the morals presented in her books. Over the span of three books, her two teenage protagonists are both still virgins and are waiting for marriage. The vampire characters who are portrayed as "good" resist their inclination to drink human blood by killing only wild aninals. Throughout all of the books, there is an ongoing discussion about good and evil that adheres closer to the Judeo-Christian worldview than a humanistic one. (Possibly because the author describes herself as a 33-year-old Mormon mother of three who doesn't watch R-rated movies or read horror novels and who has never watched a movie about vampires.)
Now, while I wouldn't wholeheartedly endorse or recommend these books for a teenager, I would say that I thought they contain messages that are far better than the vast majority of popular teen fiction being published nowadays (such as the Gossip Girl series). And while I don't blindly subscribe to the belief that you have to experience something in order to make a judgment on it (i.e., "If you've never taken drugs then how can you say it's bad?"), after reading the books, I would encourage parents, educators and youth ministry workers to read the books for themselves so that they can rationally discuss the books with teens before making blanket statements or decisions. Just like the Harry Potter novels or Dan Borwn's Da Vinci Code, Stephanie Meyer's books seem to be getting wildly popular, and young people are probably going to be reading them and talking about them. Christians can either completely ignore them or they can use these books to talk to young people about being discerning and guide them towards books that are more beneficial.
36. k. said the following at 3:22 PM on Aug 14
I'm picking up this book tonight...want to see what all the fuss is about!
37. Jethro said the following at 3:43 PM on Aug 14
It seems to me that the only opinion here we should be giving any particular weight to is that of S George Thomas, who has actually read the books. The hilarious thing is that, sans vampire, it sounds like the sort of book Boundless would normally be begging people to buy. Goes to show the problem with judging a book by its cover. Literally.
38. Jim said the following at 4:32 PM on Aug 14
I find it ironic that the people who take issue with the novels generally haven't actually read any books from the series. Edward is actually a protagonist in the novel who, in Eclipse, refuses to have premarital sex with Bella, although she pleads with him otherwise. How anyone could possibly have a problem with Edward, or his equally good family of vampires, is beyond me.
Furthermore, as someone who submits posts regarding modern society, Ms. Watters has a responsibility to ensure that what she reports is accurate and doesn't mislead people into demonizing a series of books, of all things. In other words, a little research was in order. Judging from the multitude of misinformation posted above me, she failed to uphold this responsibility.
39. Matt said the following at 5:18 PM on Aug 14
I'm suprised that no one has brought up the television show Angel. Likewise, Angel doesn't drink human blood (he drinks pigs blood) and tries to "help the helpless".
Roberto (from Breakpoint who contributes articles from time to time) referred to Angel as a Flower in the Wasteland in an article a few years back. Sadly, I can't seem to find that article anywhere. Just because they are creatures like vampires or witches in a book doesn't mean that it is a bad book. (LOTR, Wizard of Oz, etc. come to mind).
40. James said the following at 11:02 PM on Aug 14
I think it would be interesting to read these books and see where this author's mormonism worldview shows itself.
Every writer reveals his/her worldview in their writing. It's part of the writer and their creative spirit. This is why we can see the Christian worldview in Lord of the Rings even though Tolkein didn't mean for it to be symbolic or alagorical of the gospels (unlike C.S. Lewis who had that intent in mind with the Narnia books). Tolkein's worldview came through.
With regards to devout mormon writers, you don't have to look hard if you know what you're looking for. I'm a big fan of Orson Scott Card's Ender novels and Shadow novels. And, even as a fan, I can CLEARLY see the mormon influence throughout. You even see it clearer in his other books such as "The Worthing Saga", and "Tales of Alvin Maker."
I'd like to see what this particular author whose work we're discussing does in regards to expressing her mormonism. Because every writer does this differently (expressing their worldview), and sometimes they don't know they're doing it, and other times they do, but usually they do so as part of telling the story, because the story is coming from them....from a part of them, and their worldview comes with it whether they want to or not (and usually the story fails if they try and supress the worldview from showing b/c then the story becomes forced and unnatural to the writer).
41. Lynn said the following at 5:39 PM on Aug 19
Would you people please go read the books before you start jumping to conclusions? The vampire is not attracted to the girl because of her blood but because he is actually in love with her. He also became a vampire against his will and hates what he is. He doesn't even drink human blood but instead drinks the blood of animals. T
42. Courtney said the following at 4:07 PM on Aug 23
Whoa, guys. This free reading of anything that makes a best seller list and condemning anyone who chooses not to read it seriously troubles me. I have heard the argument many times that you "can't judge a book by its cover," but is the purpose of a books cover not to attract the person who might want to read it? Books, especially most new books that you would find at Barnes and Noble, often have a summary of the story on the cover for the very purpose of knowing what the book is about before you purchase it.
Your "don't judge a book by its cover" could quite easily be applied to other media that common sense tells us (even if some radicals who do not believe in morality tell us that whatever we want to expose ourselves and children to is our choice) that you should never hand your small child a porn magazine to read. Now, I have never read a porn magazine and this is honestly an area where I have never felt tempted. You could easily say, "well, you may have heard that it's bad, but you really won't know for yourself that it's porn until you open it up and look at it." But you see, I don't want to open it up and look at it, because even though my own eyes have not shown me it is porn, I have sufficient evidence to believe it is porn, and I know I don't want to see porn, so I choose not to look at it. And I don't believe I have made an uninformed decision, nor do I believe that I am unequipped to speak out against the idea of giving a porn magazine to your child instead of giving them a picture book intended for children.
This vampire may or may not be violent...I don't know because I have not read the book. Nor am I going to make any inferences concerning the plot of the book. Doing that would seriously make me appear stupid.
I do however understand the historical significance of a vampire. There are many proposed origins of the vampire, but one that stands out in my mind is Count Dracula. You may or may not be aware that Count Dracula was a real man. He was a tyrant of a ruler, and he really was from Transylvania. After his death, parents would scare their children by telling them that Count Dracula had not really died, and if they did not behave he would come and suck their blood out of their bodies while they slept. Now, I consider this playing on children's fears to be a horrible, depraved parenting tactic. In our culture, it would be the equivalent of telling a child that Osama bin Ladin will come for them and kill them if they misbehave. If a parent were to tell a child that, and someone found out, they might find themselves in court fighting to keep their child, as a statement like that would be defined as emotional abuse in most states.
The other theories concerning the origin of vampires are very similar and no less terrible. All that I have heard were stories intended to scare children. There are no happy stories about vampires in history. I have great difficulty with the concept that such a terrible parenting tactic would become glorified to the point that people would think that vampires are entertaining, harmless, or at the very least not necessarily bad. To support such a thing knowing what I do makes me no better than those medieval parents who had twenty-five kids that they couldn't control and therefore resorted to scare tactics. I can't enjoy stories with vampires in them, regardless of the target audience, because the sicken me. So if I read the cover of a book and find out it is about vampires, I choose not to read any further. That is not an uninformed decision. It is a decision that takes in other sources as well as what I believe and what I know about myself instead of drawing a conclusion based on one source (the book's cover or the praise it received in a review). Drawing a conclusion based on less than five sources would, by the way, would get me an F if this were a history paper.
43. Kim said the following at 8:46 PM on Nov 23
I agree, she was just jumping to conclusions. Edward hates, quote "The deplorable creature I am." and fights that part in him that would hurt her. This if you think about it is a metaphor for how we all have issues and things part of us wants to do, but we have self control, his case is more extreme. He loves her so much he is even willing to leave her if that's whats best for her. he actually does leave her for a time in book 2, and when he hears she commited suicide he almost kills himself, but of course she saves him from himself at the last minute. I think this is actually a good influence on people's thinking. She really had no right to say that when she hadn't even read the book.
44. cheryl said the following at 12:43 AM on Jan 20
I am a "young adult" and I just so happen to be a christian. i have a deep personal relationship with jesus christ. I have read all three books and in no way are they vampire pornography, and in no way have they harmed my relationship with jesus christ. how dare you sit here an condemn something you have not read. you are being judgemental, and the bible says judge as you would want to be judged. all it is, is a horror fiction novel, if you want to ban this book, then you must ban all fiction books. Thank you so much for writing a review in which you have no idea of what you are talking about.
you are small-minded, and I hope you feel great about being a hypocrite.
45. Jackie said the following at 5:35 PM on Feb 12
I would first like to say that this is a young adult book ages (16-21?). Not a childrens book. Young Adults should be mature enough to read a book such as this and realize it's a fictional love with extremely fictional characters. Another good point to be made is most women don't get their relationship tips from a fictional book with an undead guy as her knight in shining armor. lets just be honest and say what everyone else is thinking. YOU haven't read the book.
46. Ellie said the following at 2:46 PM on Aug 1
I just wanted to say, not that I am highly invested in this:
Team Edward!