Twisted Love and Sick Romance | Teen Ink

Twisted Love and Sick Romance

July 28, 2011
By Danealle SILVER, Wheeling, Illinois
Danealle SILVER, Wheeling, Illinois
7 articles 0 photos 119 comments

Favorite Quote:
Anything is possible with a smile and goal in mind.


While walking down the school halls you see a great diversity of people. There are the jocks, preps, nerds, popular people, and the outcasts. At first glance they are all completely different types of people. The jocks are obsessed with looking buff, for some reason always needing to prove there superiority. The preps; so incessantly upbeat while looking down their noses at other people. Nerds; too busy with school and their future to have lives. The popular people are infuriated by the nagging feeling to try and fit into the crowd as much as possible. While still keeping the tiniest morsel of individuality they have left. Lastly, the outcasts, trying their hardest to avoid eye contact, while walking hunched as if they have the entire weight of the world on their shoulders. On the surface they are as different as vampires and werewolves. However, even though they are a diverse group, each one of them is connected through a series of events and overwhelming feelings of lust; otherwise known as love in the world of tweens and teens. Who do we have to thank for what some might call an unneeded and volatile connection, why Stephanie Meyer of course, the multimillion dollar author of Twilight! Stephanie Meyer is the one we praise for delivering what we once classified as a book, to the depressed and pathetic masses of the world.

Like a swarm of new born vampires the Twilight phenomena has taken over. According to USA Today Stephanie Meyer has sold well over 22 million books since 2008. What used to be a book about distorted love, overly aggressive monsters and a way for the outcasts to keep themselves physically attached to a world where most thought they didn't belong, and mentally inside a world where even someone as shy and insecure as Bella Swan can meet the "man" of their dreams. Or for the desperate house wife whose husband is a beer drinking redneck, who could care less if the so called “love of his life” is miserable or not. It has now turned to the holy bible for girls (and a few guys looking to get lucky). All of the Twilight books are giving tweens and teens alike unrealistic expectations in their love life. Reading the book will only lead the already lonely and poor souls into depression.

Jay Fox, a writer on Yahoo Answers has this to say about the book “I didn't want to read it (because I’m a boy, and I don’t usually like that stuff). But I started reading it anyway, and I couldn't put it down. I ended up getting slightly obsessed with it, and I think I was obsessed with their passionate love for each other.” This is a perfect example of how the Twilight marketers suck you in. For those girls ages twelve to eighteen this is the ultimate fantasy, a hot guy who loves you whether you look like crap or not! But, there has to be something more than this, something deeper. Could it be that the quiet-outcast-I-don’t-like-anyone-at-school-but-secretly-have-a-crush-on-the-hottest-guy-in-my-grade, type girl is using Twilight as a way to build up enough confidence to ask that person out?

Unfortunately, unlike in Twilight a beautiful glittering man will not come and save you from your repetitive and mind-numbing life. There are however, those all too common cases where the lonely girl does get a boyfriend. He is, as far as she can tell, her “Jacob”, not quite as perfect as Edward only second best. In spite of what seems like an almost fairy tale, the minute “Jacob” loses his temper he begins to transform into his true self. All of a sudden your fairy tale of being a “Pocahontas princess,” carrying a Native American baby boy in his cradle over your shoulders is shattered with the bitter howl of a wolf. This is the start of a physically/sexually abusive relationship. According to rain.org twenty-nine percent of all girls ages twelve to seventeen are sexually abused. Funny isn't it, how this is the same age group that Stephanie Meyer writes for.

Some say the solution to this problem is to “always tell our girls to wait and never settle for second best.” This is great a great way to keep your kids out of the wrong situations. Or at least it is if your child is one of the confident (well as confidante as teenagers get) people. But, what happens when the I-don’t-care-if-people-think-I’m-a-dude-bad-dressing-doesn't-need-a-boyfriend-to-make-her-happy-girl, meets the first guy who notices her? To her this is her “Edward,” the best of the best. Will she end up “falling unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him?”(Twilight page 195) The answer to that is “yes.” Alas, the male looses interest significantly faster than the girl. If this girl was your conventional unnoticed teen/tween she would sulk, write a few depressing Facebook comments and get over it. Too bad this doesn't include our girl! At this point she is dragged so far into the Twilight fantasy that when her “Edward” finally leaves her, she bcomesan emotional wreck! This reminds you of the Myspace scandal that happened in 2007. “Megan, a 13-year-old, corresponded with Josh for more than a month before he abruptly ended their friendship, telling her he had heard she was cruel. The next day Megan committed suicide,” MS NBC news said. Megan is an illustration of how unstable and distorted the teen/tween reality truly is.

Never the less, even though there is proof to the fact that the Twilight saga does cause mental anguish to teens and tweens, people still continue to buy into the vampric fairytale that Stephanie Meyer has created. In short, I am still walking the halls watching the disease spread among the adrenaline pumped jocks, arm wrestling and show off like premature wolves. The toffee-nosed preppy people laugh their little hyena laugh as they torment another exiled student. Yes, even the mastermind nerds are blindly following the phenomena. I ask you, is it our addiction of unrealistic love that draws us in, or the fact that if a vampire can find love then so can I?


The author's comments:
I wrote this as a freshman for my Honors Lit. class two years ago. I got an 'A,' but I want to see what you guys think!

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This article has 9 comments.


on Oct. 4 2013 at 7:56 pm
TimexxFlies GOLD, Sunland, California
16 articles 0 photos 44 comments

Favorite Quote:
I don't know the key to success. However, the key to failure is trying to please everybody. ~Bill Cosby

I like :) It's really nicely writen. Can you check out some of mine and maybe give me some constructive crit.? Thanks!! (By the way, five stars!! :D   )

on Nov. 11 2011 at 2:41 pm
Danealle SILVER, Wheeling, Illinois
7 articles 0 photos 119 comments

Favorite Quote:
Anything is possible with a smile and goal in mind.

Thanks! I wrote this freshman year 

BluBliss GOLD said...
on Nov. 11 2011 at 1:06 pm
BluBliss GOLD, New York, New York
14 articles 0 photos 161 comments

Favorite Quote:
Bella's love for Edward was like, "Omg. He's hot. He's mine because he sparkles. Now I'll brood the wholle book while I'm with him."

i was turned off when you mentioned Twilight, but I like where you went with it. Especially the stats. And the logicall conclusions that tie real people and Twilight fans.

on Aug. 20 2011 at 8:10 pm
Danealle SILVER, Wheeling, Illinois
7 articles 0 photos 119 comments

Favorite Quote:
Anything is possible with a smile and goal in mind.

I'm so glad you liked it! Of course I'll read your story!

on Aug. 20 2011 at 7:23 pm
Danealle SILVER, Wheeling, Illinois
7 articles 0 photos 119 comments

Favorite Quote:
Anything is possible with a smile and goal in mind.

;0Thank you 

on Aug. 20 2011 at 8:06 am
lucygirl26 GOLD, Greensboro, North Carolina
11 articles 0 photos 68 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Life is like a bowl of spaghetti. Every once in a while, you get a meatball." - Sharon Creech

I really liked this! I actually really agree with your argument here. When I finished the Twilight series I was like, "That's it? It was that easy? No war or any struggles?" I felt like Bella got everything too perfectly and that nobody even got hurt when she did. It was unrealistic in the way that she got Edward, who doesn't really have any flaws. I really enjoy your writing style, too; it flows nicely and especially with your great choice of words. Great work!

Could you please read my story, Stopping on the Tracks? Thanks!


Harebelle GOLD said...
on Aug. 19 2011 at 7:09 pm
Harebelle GOLD, Vancouver, Other
14 articles 1 photo 118 comments
This is a very interesting argument, and you wrote it very well. I haven't actually read Twilight myself but you are so right when you talk about how so many girls are waiting for a glittering man! Well done.

on Aug. 18 2011 at 7:33 pm
Danealle SILVER, Wheeling, Illinois
7 articles 0 photos 119 comments

Favorite Quote:
Anything is possible with a smile and goal in mind.

Thank you! The assignment was about teen archetypes so I had to keep my essay focused on that. 

on Aug. 18 2011 at 2:16 pm
Readqueenz7 SILVER, Oak Park, Illinois
6 articles 9 photos 16 comments
I think this is a very well-written argument, which I somewhat agree with. Although, I think you put a little too much emphasis on high school stereotypyes, which makes the argument seem a little bit less complex. I'm glad you're questioning the twilight series, because I agree that perhaps these are not the books that are the greatest role models for teen girls. From a feminist perspective, do we really want girls to think they need a handsome guy to sweep them off their feet in order to be happy? And really, Bella's whole life revolves around Edward. Is that really the kind of relationship we want to be portraying to the millions of teen girls who are obsessed with this book. But anyway, great argument.