By Mary Faulds, AFA Journal staff writer
June 2010 – Over 100 million books have been sold. They have been translated into more than 35 languages around the world. Over 100 fan Web sites are dedicated to this series of novels. The novels themselves have won numerous awards for best children’s literature. The first two books have been made into highly successful movies, and a third will be released at the end of June. Young people lined up in droves on the eve of each book’s release, but this is not about J.K. Rowling’s wildly popular Harry Potter series.
No, this is about a newcomer to the literary world, Stephenie Meyer, and the juggernaut known as the Twilight series. In fact, Meyer’s vampire character, Edward Cullen, has dethroned Potter as the king of teen lit and movies. When the second movie, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, was released in November 2009, it set domestic box office records for the biggest single day domestic gross at almost $73 million.
The series contains four books, Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. Many in the Christian community have debated the merits and drawbacks of the Twilight series, as well as the now very successful film series. When looking for information about a Christian perspective on the vampire love story, one finds two extremes: the Twihards (fans of the series) and those who deem it inappropriate reading.
AFA Journal talked with Beth Felker Jones, assistant professor of theology at Wheaton College in Illinois. She is also the author of Touched by a Vampire: Discovering the Hidden Messages in the Twilight Saga.
AFA Journal: Some of our readers may be parents who are unfamiliar with this book series. What advice would you give those parents when they are introduced to Meyer’s books by their children?
Beth Felker Jones: Of course, we can’t read everything our children read, but if Meyer’s books are really important to your kids, then it might be worth reading her books. I really do hope that parents would open up a conversation with their children about the Twilight series.
My book can be one resource for them by giving them good tools to think about the themes that are in the books. There are discussion questions, and there’s even a leader’s guide if someone wants to use it for a youth group setting. People don’t have to agree with me on every point, but I do hope it makes some points about Scripture and about thinking carefully.
I wrote my book as a guide to try to help readers think about the themes of the book, so I will say to people that I don’t feel like it’s my job to say “Read these,” or “Don’t read these.” But rather, it is to give people the tools to think carefully and faithfully.
AFAJ: What have you found to be the appeal of the Twilight series?
BFJ: My instinct is that it is twofold. First, it touches on that desire to be loved, and second, it intensifies and makes even more exciting the idea of that love by throwing in the vampire factor.
That brings an idea of danger from the fact that Bella, the heroine, is always in danger of being bitten by Edward, the vampire. It’s the “bad boy” idea. Even though Edward fights it every step of the way, it is always there. Will he? What will happen? That adds to the suspense.
AFAJ: Are there any redemptive themes in the series?|BFJ: I actually have more concerns about the books than not, but I do think there are some good opportunities for good conversations there. Bella has this longing for transformation, which I think could really be an avenue for thinking about our own longings for transformation and what it means to be fulfilled and ultimately happy. It’s kind of a way of thinking about salvation, though obviously, vampire salvation isn’t the kind I would advocate.
AFAJ: Conversely, what are the drawbacks of the vampire novels?
BFJ: My concern is that this love story between Edward and Bella is about making your whole life about the other person in the romance. Especially for Bella, she seems like she is willing to erase herself. She doesn’t have any other plans, she doesn’t have any other hopes and she doesn’t have any other dreams. It’s all about him.
It is not wrong to have deep longings in our hearts. I think we all have had them, but I think again it is a problem when it takes over everything. One of the obvious things that can be wrong is when that love disappoints. All other human beings will disappoint us. Nobody can fulfill us, and if we expect this other person to come along and make our lives perfect and fulfill us and meet all of our needs, we’re going to be disappointed. There is a reality there that’s needed. We can’t expect a person to be our everything. On the other hand, we can expect God to be our everything and we won’t be disappointed.
I think that is a dangerous way for anyone to think about love, but especially for young women, where our own hopes and dreams for individuality aren’t always honored. [It’s dangerous] to think that it’s all about a romantic love, instead of how we can use the talents and good gifts God has given us for His glory. It sounds trite, but life is about God, not about another person. If we think about love that way, as being obsessed and being all about someone else, that’s really dangerous.
The notion in popular culture about love and marriage fulfilling a person couldn’t be further from the truth. I think that idea actually destroys marriages too. When a woman discovers that her husband isn’t fulfilling her, she thinks it means she married the wrong person. That’s not what it means at all. It simply means that people don’t and can’t fulfill you. Marriage isn’t for fulfillment, but it is for having a partner to be united with and try to serve God with.
While Bella is obsessive and almost a non-character, save for her love for Edward, he is portrayed as a perfect man. I think that points up some worrisome view of what men are supposed to be like. If it’s a problem that the female character is almost erasing herself, it is also a problem that the man is expected to be this kind of super-human object of perfection. That’s a cruel thing to demand of a person that you love, that they try to be perfect and save you from every bad thing.
I’ve heard adult women joke that Edward ruined their marriage. There is something really dangerous going on. They say stuff like, “If this real person that I’m married to isn’t perfect, then he’s not my Edward. He’s not who he’s supposed to be.” Again, it’s about false expectations and destructive male stereotypes.
I also think the love story between Bella and Edward reflects some features of abusive love relationships. Edward is controlling, he takes parts out of her car so she can’t go visit a friend, he watches her sleep. If this is the kind of love we glorify, I’m worried that it could be a warrant for staying in an abusive relationship or looking for an obsessive kind of relationship. We should be looking for the kind of love that gives us freedom.
AFAJ: Since you believe Twilight doesn’t show an appropriate picture of human love, where do you suggest those longing for a married relationship look?
BFJ: I believe that they look to Christian brothers and sisters for discernment about that. Love isn’t purely a private thing, but we can help each other to see when something helps us to be what God wants us to be and when it doesn’t. We should turn to parents and pastors and so on for clues as to what real, godly human love looks like.
If something is dangerous to us, as Bella and Edward’s relationship is, then that is a pretty good clue that it is not what we’re looking for, because God doesn’t intend love to kill us.
AFAJ: Are there any content issues with the Twilight series that parents should be concerned about their kids reading?
BFJ: That is a really interesting question. I’ve heard some Christians celebrate these books as an example of sexual purity, because the characters do wait until they get married. But I really question that. They do wait, but it is very much a kind of desperate, erotic waiting, and I think that a parent would want to know that these are erotic books. Even if they have heard that these characters abstain until they get married, they are no less about sexual desire, and that’s what drives the books. There is also a fair amount of sexual explicitness when the characters do get married in the book Breaking Dawn, and I have some concerns about the way that is portrayed as well.
AFAJ: Some people will say that this book series is fiction and is clearly meant solely for entertainment. What is your response to that?
BFJ: I think for some it could be the case, but we should be willing to ask ourselves carefully if it is. Given how obsessed some people are about the books, I do question if something is taking up all of your thought time, all of your dreaming, then is it just entertainment or is it really shaping you? Or is it just pulling you into another world away from thinking about how to love and serve God? 
