Let me just say that I am completely and utterly obsessed..... with the Twilight Saga. Don't stop reading. I am only slightly embarassed to admit it; I guess I've come to terms with the fact that despite trying not to be "of the world" I still fall victim to natural human longings.
Aaaand, being a counselor, I of course psycho-analyzed my obsession and broke it down into the following discourse. As I'm clearly not the only woman in the US who enjoyed the book thoroughly, you should pay attention and see if this applies to you too ;-)
Bella, the more than clumsy, desires-to-be heroine of the book with less than perfect features and a self esteem problem, does have the ability to make her readers laugh out loud in an empty room -- don't lie you did it, too -- and (case in point) relate. Don't we all want to feel like the outcast when we analyze the qualities of each person in a new setting while we subconsciously select which ones make us feel the most comfortable and accepted.
And who doesn't understand the fear that every athletically incompetent (or even semi-competent) girl has felt at some point while being asked to perform a physical activity in front of a crowd of peers? The difference is that fear sends most of us to the sidelines, while Bella forces us to experience with her the humility of serving a ball into the flashy smile of a barely-acquaintance of the opposite gender.
Well, the one area in which every girl can find a common ground with Bella is... dum dum dum... Edward. Oh you knew it was coming. So obvious... but Why?
I mean, I personally have never longed for an icy cold boyfriend to snuggle up to... never yearned for a guy who'd rather eat (or drink from) me than take me on a date... not really ever been interested in someone who was going to continue looking smokin' hot while I shrivel into convalescence and drown in the sorrows of my insecurity (I'm rather looking forward to not giving a rat's tail about what I look like when I'm 65! Let's just be honest...)
But there's something about Edward Cullen... And I think I can name a few things that are slightly more appealing to Bella, and the American female reader... some of the real reasons why Twilight has been the craze and continues to grip our gender in its paperback grasps.
What is every girl looking for?
Comfort and Security
Edward is SUPER-strong/fast and with his ability to read minds, he is always one step ahead. That certainly offers Bella a level of protection against the odds (which in her clumsy case is highly necessary) that provides her with the knowledge that very little could actually place her in danger. I mean she has an indestructible guardian who knows what everyone is thinking and has a sister watching Bella's future to warn him of any impending danger. As a result, Bella always feels safe, and we as readers feel safe for her. No worries!
Devoted Love and unhindered affection... that lasts... eternally
Edward will live forever. And Bella has the option, if she so chooses (don't worry I won't ruin it for you if you haven't read all the books) to become immortal as well, spending the rest of their undead lives, or at least the rest of time at the finite world's expense, together! Well, isn't that what every girl wants... a doting male with eyes ONLY for her, shunning every other girl (or really not even noticing any other girl), and to top it all off, one that will never ever go away? Even those who are married (and living in the realistic world where there are no vampires) want to believe that after this life there is some existence in which they will be united with their "soul mates." I'd like to think that someday I'll be in Heaven praising Jesus with my mate from this earthly life.
But who knows what comes next? Well, Bella does... at least she has the option of knowing. Must be nice, wouldn't the feminine world agree?
Attraction
Oh come on, like I wasn't going to mention the fact that Edward has unsurpassable physical qualities... he's hot! He's got rock hard abs, bronze hair, amber-colored eyes for crying out loud, and the guy glitters in the sunlight! I mean geez! (You know we girls are suckers for anything sparkly, right? I worry that my roommate's eyes will pop out of her head like a paperclip drawn to a magnet when a woman with bling on her left hand is anywhere within a 10 foot radius.)
Ok, ok, female hormones aside, that's not the attraction I want to point out, though it is important. The attraction I'm talking about is the pull of something good. She knows Edward's heart is kind; sees his humanity, no pun intended, when he confesses drinking animal blood instead of human and proclaiming how he does not want to be a monster; and adores his selflessness as he blames himself for every fault and takes responsibility for every course of action with its negative result. In short, Edward accepts all of Bella's faults and even takes responsibility for the pitiful choices she makes which never-surprisingly lead to some kind of small disaster or greater course of compromise. Then he takes those choices, and well, to put it simply, fixes everything while protecting her. Sigh. Clearly, this is not really about attraction, but more about redemption.
I think you're probably beginning to see where I'm going with this :-)
Bella has what we all dream about... a perfect, safe, unhindered, redeeming type of love relationship. The one you only read about in books. The kind we women think we can never find in a man!
I hate to be Debbie Downer and all, but it's true; you can't find that type of love in a man -- but you can find it.
That true love story IS real; and it's offered to every woman (and every man, technically).
Jesus offers that love story.. he offers us unconditional, unhindered, redeeming, and eternal love love LOVE! We just choose to sit up late reading about it in a clearly fictional book about vampires; we immerse ourselves in one of our favorite Notebook-esque movies; or we put the weight and responsibility of it on the shoulders of another sinful, imperfect human being... and find ourselves disappointed when he inevitably fails to meet our exceptionally high expectations.
Easily we could receive that perfect love... could make ourselves the heroine of that epic love tale... by accepting the gift that Christ offers us -- the love He wants to share; but that's so hard to do. And why? All because it's not tangible. We can't touch, see, or hear Him, in the literal sense, and so we don't accept Him as number one. We put Him number 2, 3, or 4 -- behind the movie, book, or blameless male.
I think we can all be a part of our own novels of true love and right relationships. If we do things the way God intended, by knowing Him first and finding ultimate satisfaction in His completeness, I believe we can survive and thrive in the imperfect human relationships we endeavor to maintain. Because when we are satisfied in God, the disappointments of the world don't seem nearly as detrimental or destructive. When we are satisfied with the Lord, forgiveness and mercy are at our fingertips to overcome human error. And when we are satisfied in Christ Jesus, we don't have to try to settle for finding true love in a book or movie -- we have that perfect love in us and it automatically overflows so we can share it with others.
