Sexism: Men vs. Women

Men vs. Women

In Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight and the three following novels, sexism is crawling through the Saga’s pages.  The most blatant example is the typical “damsel in distress” Bella Swan and her hero in shining armor, Edward Cullen. Throughout the series, Bella is reliant on Edward and the rest of the Cullen Coven for her safety and is often in mortal and even immortal peril. She is plain, Edward is perfect. There is a fine line that defines sexism in the novels and it doesn’t just appear in the novels two main characters.

Women:

Alice:  According to Theorizing Twilight, Alice’s human life was no picnic. Being forced into an insane asylum because of her visions, she likely suffered “beatings, immobilization, choking, strait jackets, smothering and suffocation…”. She is the only Cullen woman, with the exception of Bella’s change later in the series, who gains a useful power. Her ability to see the future though is juxtaposed by her small frame and limited strength.

Rosalie:  After being beaten, abused, and raped by her fiancé and his group of friends, she was left for dead in an alleyway. Later being discovered by Carlisle on the brink of death, she too was turned into a vampire with no power other than sex appeal. Though confident in manner, her attitude is a somewhat positive and negative character trait that often makes her look pigheaded and arrogant.

**I must admit, I hate Rosalie. Though I appreciate her blunt honesty and kick-ass nature, I despise her comments when it comes to the amount of people she’s killed when she states that her record is cleaner in comparison to the other members of her family. Despite the fact that Rosalie has never killed a human out of bloodlust, she has taken revenge and murdered consciously, which I feel is much worse than Esme killing out of instinct and nature once or twice. Okay rant over. **

Esme:  As the matriarch of the Cullen family, she does hold a position of power; however, as a human she had everything but power. Forced into an abusive marriage to please her parents, she endured domestic abuse, which likely included rape and mental abuse as well. Though she eventually regained some of her lost power after running from her husband to protect their child, she later suffered his death and committed suicide. Later turned by Carlisle, she gained no quantifiable power and often fades into the background, only appearing to offer support or comfort as her motherly role dictates.

Men:

Jasper: As one of the last members to join the Cullen family, Jasper is really the only male to suffer hardships though most of those were as a vampire, not a human. Being a confederate soldier put him ahead of the rest of his kind when it came to battle, but he still suffered wounds leaving him with scratches all over his body. As a vampire, he teaches the rest of his family to fight which later aides them in their battle with the newborn army.

Emmett:  Possessing immeasurable strength, Emmett must rely on no one. Instead his family often relies on him as a protector. Other than being mauled by a bear in 1935, he suffered no hardships in his human life. Instead he was often the troublemaker that didn’t think of consequences and was a loving young man who enjoyed a fun life.

Carlisle: Though he possesses no quantifiable power like his wife, he is the overall leader and embodies male dominance due to the fact that he created the majority of his coven and often acts as their father. As a human, other than a slightly less intelligent father and losing his mother during childbirth, Carlisle suffered nothing but loneliness. As a vampire, he later exercises his power in deciding to change Edward, Esme, Emmett, and Rosalie.

After looking at the list of characters throughout the saga, it’s easy to detect the large amounts of sexism. Whether or not Stephanie Meyer made the characters this way intentionally, it’s difficult to overlook it without it leaving a bitter taste in your mouth.