Twilight

[DragonNighthowler]

Well, ice can bring some minutes of fun in bed.

 

Anyways, my bf was reading wikipedia about Meyer out of curiosity since I told him about the books. he found this.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephenie_Meyer

 

Meyer cites many novels as inspiration for the Twilight series, including Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë and Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery.[36] Each book in the series was also inspired specifically by a different literary classic: Twilight by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice; New Moon by Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet; Eclipse by Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights; and Breaking Dawn's theme by Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice[37] and A Midsummer Night's Dream.[38] Meyer said, "I've been reading books for adults my entire life. Growing up I was an avid reader—the thicker the book, the better."[39] She also said she is a huge fan of Orson Scott Card, and "can't go through a year without re-reading" Jane Austen's books.[39]

 

She also says that her writing is strongly influenced by music, and she posts playlists on her website of songs which specifically inspired her books. Bands included most often in her playlists are Muse, Blue October, My Chemical Romance, Coldplay and Linkin Park.[40][41][42][43] As a Mormon, Meyer acknowledges that her faith has influenced her work. In particular, she says that her characters "tend to think more about where they came from, and where they are going, than might be typical."[44] Meyer also steers her work from subjects such as sex, despite the romantic nature of the novels. Meyer says that she does not consciously intend her novels to be Mormon-influenced, or to promote the virtues of sexual abstinence and spiritual purity, but admits that her writing is shaped by her values, saying, "I don't think my books are going to be really graphic or dark, because of who I am. There's always going to be a lot of light in my stories."[45]

 

Ok, so I admit I haven't read the Merchant of Venice, nor Wuthering Heights. Don't care much about Romeo and Juliet being a classic and Pride and Prejudice (unlike Sense and Sensibility) bored me to sleep, but...

 

Really? Bella is nothing like Elisabeth.

New Moon's only similarity with Romeo and Juliet is that the two of them try to kill themselves, and maybe how superficial their relationship is.

 

As for the whole graphic thing, she must be speaking about sex because the monster birth was pretty graphic to me in a way I was reminded of Alien. I mean, Tarantino would shudder at the sheer violence of what is supposed to be something that resembles the culmination of love. If my kid bit the way through my stomach, broke my bones and burst my organs, if by any reason I survived that, I'd offer him as sacrifice to some dark god, not love him.

It is implied that the little abomination is conscious even during pregnancy, and yet it kills its mother. Sure, she said she didn't want to, yet it doesn't make it better.

[Stromboli]

"I don't think my books are going to be really graphic or dark, because of who I am. There's always going to be a lot of light in my stories."

jklol, how about vomiting a few gallons of blood?

[Pixxelation]

I LOVE these books! Only when used as firewood though.

[funnygirl98]

I'm no twigh-heart...I read less then half of the first book and got board.

[Moonbeam22]

Harry Potter is 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 times better than Twilight will ever be! Twilight is completely unoriginal, and will never have the family that Potter does. Harry Potter could whoop all of those stupid, sparkling things anyway. He whooped them in the box office too.

 

*cough* *cough*

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT...IV7P5j1iydtH2ug

 

AND

 

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ...9wx9C9Y_NjmqIDA

 

AND

 

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS...9wjN6LGhaMhejvg

Edited April 19, 2012 by Moonbeam22

[funnygirl98]

(high five moonbeam! You just stole what I was thinking..)

[ShadowLugia99]

I read th forth book and loved it!

[HawktalonOfRiverClan]

I used to have a friend who was obsessed with Twilight. It was all she ever talked about! Vampire this, vampire that. She finally talked me into reading the first book, or starting at least. I read the first chapter and got bored. And I fell asleep halfway through the second movie. No offense to anyone who likes the books, they're just not my cup of tea. I'm more of a werewolf fan anyways.

[terioncalling]

I have to think that always calling him "ice-cold" was exaggerating in order to sounds more purple. Wouldn't they give off that freezer-steam-stuff if it was literal? I don't know, maybe the venom operates at a lower temperature? Blah blah convoluted trying to justify her crap.

 

Yeah, probably was more exaggerating to sound purple but I was also thinking of the fact that he was so cold that she needed blankets to sleep next to him. And it just kind of went from there with my brain not stopping at any logical courses.

 

Meyer cites many novels as inspiration for the Twilight series, including Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë and Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery.[36] Each book in the series was also inspired specifically by a different literary classic: Twilight by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice; New Moon by Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet; Eclipse by Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights; and Breaking Dawn's theme by Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice[37] and A Midsummer Night's Dream.[38]

 

Y'know, I've read Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Romeo and Juliet, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, read most of Merchant of Venice, and I know the plot for Wuthering Heights and what I haven't read of Merchant of Venice. And I fail to see how any of these classics are remotely related to Twilight.

 

Okay, maaaaaybe two. Maybe.

 

The only one with any real connection that I see is Jane Eyre as Rochester is older than Jane (but not ridiculously so like Edward/Bella). Now if Edward had a crazy vampire wife he was hiding in the Cullen attic, that might have been mildly more entertaining.

 

The only other comparison might be Midsummer if we're talking about the fae-touched love quartet running around the woods and making it connected to the Twilight triangle with the silly shifter forever-devoted thing being the reason Jacob was chasing Bella.

 

Gah, I'm thinking too much on this. Time to clear my brain.

[DragonNighthowler]

I read Wikipedia's sypnosis on Merchant of Venice and I fail to see where it resembles in any possible way Breaking Dawn.

[terioncalling]

Okay, this is what I've got upon second inspection of her "inspiration".

 

Jane Eyre: Age gap

Midsummer: Lover's quartet (triangle)

Romeo and Juliet: Super Special Love Story Power! (except it's a tragedy)

Wuthering Heights: Edward and Jacob's rivalry

Merchant: Big to-do that ends in general happiness

Green Gables: Not seeing self as pretty and pale. Oh, and instant GRR that turns into friendship (twu wuv for Meyer)

Pride and Prejudice: Major couple avoids each other for a period then end up together

[Rosedamai]

Okay, this is what I've got upon second inspection of her "inspiration".

 

Jane Eyre: Age gap

Midsummer: Lover's quartet (triangle)

Romeo and Juliet: Super Special Love Story Power! (except it's a tragedy)

Wuthering Heights: Edward and Jacob's rivalry

Merchant: Big to-do that ends in general happiness

Green Gables: Not seeing self as pretty and pale. Oh, and instant GRR that turns into friendship (twu wuv for Meyer)

Pride and Prejudice: Major couple avoids each other for a period then end up together

*Jumps off cliff*

 

Seriously, that's it????!!!!!!!!! That's why she claimed them as "inspirations"? (well then again, I can't see any other possibilities either)

 

*Punches picture of Meyer*

Edited April 22, 2012 by ylangylang

[terioncalling]

That's the only things that are similar that I can tell between the Twilight series and all of those books.

[DragonNighthowler]

Now that's pretty depressing. If she actually did read those books, that she only got those plot points out of them is quiet sad. I mean, Romeo and Juliet has a bigger, deeper meaning than the whole super special love. Actually, what I got from it was the conflict between the two households and how, ultimately, it lead them to loose that which was most precious to them by decades of petty grudges. To me, the love was secondary, and not even true love or anything. Simply teenage stupidity.

 

As for Pride and Prejudice, while I didn't like it and never got around finishing it, I can see why the two protagonists are kept separated. There is a reason the book is called Pride and Prejudice in the first place.

 

To be honest, I think she just wanted to look smart and cut down a bit of the criticism about how amateurish and absolutely terrible her writing was. The same as I believe the whole "pulling off" the Midnight Sun manuscript when it was announced and she was halfway through it, claiming it got stolen and distributed through the internet by some betrayer friend, was her own doing because she had gotten bored of it and didn't know how to get off without looking like someone who can't keep her "promises".

I have made myself an image of her as a teenager, amateurish writer, not as an adult. It's hard to do so when she, who has kids, went ahead in the last book and totally skipped the possibilities that real parenthood suppose in teenage children. Instead, she showed us the super awesome monstruosity, who is normally left in the care of the family pet (Jacob), Rosalie, or someone else, while Edward and Bella go about it in their awesome cottage.

 

I mean, the whole way love is represented, parenthood, relationships, it's no different that the average romance fanfiction you can find around the Pit written by 15 year old girls. You would expect an adult would be able to portray a more realistic insight into it.

Edited April 22, 2012 by DragonNighthowler

[Stromboli]

I don't know how people don't realize that Romeo and Juliet is not a love story.

The opening makes it abundantly clear. Yeah, they fell in love. Then they killed themselves. And their committing suicide was the only thing that could stop their families hating each other.

If it were a romance, you would have had the sappy love-conquers-all ending where they live happily ever after. But you don't. THEY DIE.

[Predat0rs]

At first, I liked the series. I was one of those fanboys all googly over it with my friends who are girls.

 

Then I grew up.

 

Basically, the series makes me puke now.

 

Bella: A depressed nitwit choosing between Necrophilia and Beastiality.

 

LMFAO.

[Quasismiles]

I agree with predatorfan. Except I'm a girl and I was giggly and obsessed over it. However, my obsession only went until a year afterwards, then I got sick of the books and everything even related to them. I could still sit down and watch the movies, but I wasn't hyped up about them.

[PointOfOrigin]

I don't know how people don't realize that Romeo and Juliet is not a love story.

The opening makes it abundantly clear. Yeah, they fell in love. Then they killed themselves. And their committing suicide was the only thing that could stop their families hating each other.

If it were a romance, you would have had the sappy love-conquers-all ending where they live happily ever after. But you don't. THEY DIE.

Not to mention that Juliet is somewhere around 13 years old. And Romeo just jumped from her cousin to Juliet when Rosaline didn't put out. So much about true love part.

 

Generally, when I read it, I had a felling that Shakespeare in a way made fun of young love and that he hinted at Paris as a better suitor. Which is hilarious when you put it in New Moon's context. Especially in the time before Jacob was promoted to love interest, and before he became date rapist. Because at that stage? He was better then Edward. He was even somewhat decent.

[Plant]

I actually liked the books; I thought they were well-written, but now...well, my taste in literature has changed. Somewhat. As for the movies - I liked the first one. I COULD NOT sit through the second one. It bored me terribly. :|

[3l3ctr0]

I definitely dug all of them when I was 14... but, the movies kind of annoyed me.

Sure, at first I was like 'YAY! A MOVIE FOR IT OMG!' 'I AM SO GONNA DRAW THEM ALL' but that died fast, once EVERYONE loved it. They give it too much attention. It was okay, but I have read far more better vampire love stories.

[kittygrl]

I hated how bella basically whined and was so freaking indecisive. I never read anymore because of the consistant whining.

[3l3ctr0]

Yeah she was just being a girl.

It did get annoying O_O

I don't feel that she really had a personality, if the author really even built it that well.

Bella seemed like a really boring chick.

[Elorendil]

I just finally read the books about a month ago. I found the first one on clearance at a used bookstore and thought, "what the heck?" I started at midnight and had to make myself put it down and go to bed at 2:30. I had finished by 1 pm the next day. I tore through the other books pretty quickly, too, and loved them all.

 

As for the movies, Kristen's acting brings them down. She's whiny and obnoxious and not a good actor. But, IMHO, the movies are worth watching simply for the gorgeous guys. I will admit to hitting the replay button on the scene where Carlisle first appears at the hospital more than once. Still, I just didn't care for the first Breaking Dawn movie all that much. I don't know, maybe it was just my mood that day. Still, I'm interested to see how they play out the last movie.

[ShadowMonster]

Twiling is SOOO stupid!

[Full of Bees]

Read the entire series a few years ago. At first, I thought it was funny. Hilarious, really. But around the time Edward disabled Bella's truck to keep her from seeing Jacob (or maybe about the fourth time he called her stupid for being with him), it just became terrible. So terrible.

 

I don't feel that she really had a personality, if the author really even built it that well.

 

Bella is basically an author/reader insert. She's purposely bland so the reader can give her their own personality.