by Brittney Nelson

There is a common misconception about the Twilight saga. Many critics consider the books unsuitable for young readers because the main characters live in a world populated with dark vampires, werewolves and overall evil. However, I feel there are other—more subtle—hidden dangers that many people may have missed.

I won’t deny that I am a fan of the Twilight saga. I started reading the first book, Twilight, just before the first movie hit theaters in 2008. I was instantly swept up in the romantic and passionate storyline of a forbidden love between an average human girl and a beautiful vampire. It only took me a few days to complete it, and I quickly jumped right into the next book, New Moon, which I read in a single day. Before I knew it, I had read the entire four-book series in less than two weeks! The story pulled a rush of emotions out of me, and I was completely consumed. I actually ended up reading the series five times that year, often staying up all night long in order to get to my favorite parts.

Those books transported me into a fairytale I very much wanted to live in. Every single girl wishes to fall in love with a man who would lay his life down for her. She wants to feel a sense of security and unbridled passion. And more importantly, she desires for her love to be returned with equal—if not greater—zeal, loyalty and commitment. I wanted an Edward (the main male character) of my own to adore me, passionately pursue me and love no one else but me forever! I became completely obsessed with this fantasy world and wasted massive amounts of time escaping to it in order to experience what reality couldn’t offer. It hindered my relationships with my friends, interfered with my ability to work and, most dangerously, distracted me from my relationship with God.

I believe the Twilight series has the potential to be dangerous for young girls and, in many cases, adult women as well … but not because of the vampires, werewolves or any other dark presence. I believe the danger lies in the obsessive relationships and accelerated sexual desires between the characters.

Bella (the main female character) is an insecure loner who falls in love with Edward, a boy whose appearance she describes as godlike and who she considers to be completely out of her league. For Bella, the fact that Edward is a vampire is irrelevant, even though it ends up being the reason behind many of the hurdles they deal with.

The Twilight saga is categorized as “Teen Fiction” or by some retailers as “Teen Romance.” The story starts off innocently enough with a young couple experiencing first love, full of drama and complications. The creativity of the plot is both intriguing and suspenseful. Many parents give their daughters consent to watch the movies or read the books based on their own insufficient understanding of where the series is headed. And anyone who has read the first book or watched the first movie would probably believe that the content is totally harmless and appropriate for girls of all ages … however, the series takes an unexpected turn in the third and fourth books.

My heart behind this article is a desire to equip parents to make the right decision for their daughters. If you’re a parent, I highly encourage you to read what your teens are reading and know the things they’re filling their minds with. And if your daughter has already read or watched the Twilight saga, I believe it’s important to be aware of the subject matter and begin to have an open dialogue with your daughter about the themes addressed in these stories.

Here’s a brief synopsis of each book to help you better understand the scope of the series as a whole. [WARNING: There are numerous spoilers.]

Book One—Twilight
Bella falls in love with Edward. Due to the fact that Edward is a vampire, Bella feels forced to lie to everyone around her, including her parents, in order to keep his secret. Because Bella is accident prone, Edward is always there to protect her and keep her safe. He doesn’t sleep, so he climbs into Bella’s bedroom at night and holds her all night while she does. Edward has set a boundary that they cannot be sexually intimate, because he doesn’t want to risk losing control and hurting her. They rarely kiss, but when they do, Bella becomes so dizzy she nearly faints because Edward’s effect on her is that strong. By the end of the book, Bella decides that since she can’t possibly live without Edward, she must give up her humanity, family and friends to become a vampire in order to be with him forever.

Book Two—New Moon
Edward tells Bella that he feels envious of the humanity of Shakespeare’s Romeo—a humanity that allowed him to commit suicide, something that Edward is not capable of. He informs her that when she gets old and dies, he plans to find a way to die also because he refuses to live in a world where she does not exist. Edward eventually leaves Bella because he feels like this is the best way to keep her safe. His departure leaves Bella completely devastated. She falls into a deep depression and almost stops functioning at all until she befriends Jacob (who later becomes a werewolf) and consumes herself in a friendship with him. In order to lessen her pain over losing Edward, Bella starts acting out. At one time, Bella attempts a dangerous stunt, and it appears that she has committed suicide. When Edward hears about this, he mistakenly believes that Bella is dead and immediately goes about his plan to have his life ended as well. The book ends with Bella saving Edward’s life. They once again vow to be together forever and make plans for Bella to be transformed into a vampire as soon as she and Edward are married.

Book Three—Eclipse
Edward and Jacob both obsess over Bella and fight for her love and attention. Bella struggles with a desire for both, although deep down she knows she will ultimately choose Edward. But because she still harbors feelings for Jacob, she starts sneaking off to spend time with him. Bella also decides that she wants to take her relationship with Edward to the next level and starts putting pressure on him to be intimate with her. He again refuses her advances. He proposes to her, and they plan to have sex after they get married.

Book Four—Breaking Dawn
Edward and Bella get married and immediately set off for their picturesque, unconventional and somewhat explicit honeymoon. Bella gets pregnant with a half human, half vampire baby girl who is slowly killing her from the inside. The baby makes her own way out in a scene which is extremely graphic with both gore and nudity. In order to save her life, Edward turns Bella into a vampire. Meanwhile, Jacob “imprints” on the baby girl, which is the werewolf’s binding version of finding a soulmate. Bella, a “newborn vampire,” starts describing the new sensations and abilities which include a descriptive second honeymoon with Edward where they are able to “enjoy one another completely.”

Bella and Edward’s relationship is far more complex and mature than most young girls can truly comprehend. While the intense obsession and sexual activity portrayed in the books can be difficult topics to talk about, it’s important to address any potential emotions and sensations these stories may evoke in your child.

Whereas boys tend to lust with their eyes, girls often lust with their minds. The Twilight stories make it all too easy for young girls to create romantic fantasies based on what they’ve read and to obsess over finding their perfect “soulmate.” Bella’s obsessive “love” for Edward is extremely unhealthy. She wrongfully puts all her trust, safety and happiness in him and allows her identity to be solely defined by her love with Edward. In addition, we never see Edward and Bella ever doing anything together. We never see them shopping, hanging out at a coffee shop, going to the movies, working at a job or volunteering to help someone. They never laugh and have fun. They simply talk about their feelings—it’s pure intensity … all the time.

The Twilight saga is definitely more about romance than it is about horror. And because it’s a romance, it tends to hyper-idealize the concept of love. It makes it all too easy to misunderstand the nature of true love and makes it feel like it’s somewhat disappointing in light of the “love” portrayed in books and movies. It is our responsibility as adults to teach young people to discern the truth from fiction. Because after all, the Twilight books are fictional. The characters, the plot, the love story are not real.

Spend time talking with your daughters about the dangers of unrealistic expectations for love at this stage and for the future. The true reality is that the right Man is not so far away. He loves her so much that He would lay down His life for her … and in fact, He has already done so. One of the greatest things you can do for your daughter is to help her understand that she can experience—right now—a romance that surpasses all others … a romance with Jesus.