Critical Analysis of Twilight Club
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posted by nuxi
{edited, added some stuff, just an informal consideration of a few of the arguments that support the accusation}

"Bella Swan is a sociopath."

It’s an extreme statement, to be sure. However, it’s not one to be dismissed offhand, without consideration towards its arguments.

First, here are a couple definitions of the term sociopath.
-Random House Dictionary:
a person, as a psychopathic personality, whose behavior is antisocial and who lacks a sense of moral responsibility or social conscience.
-American Heritage Dictionary of Cultural Literacy:
Someone whose social behavior is extremely abnormal. Sociopaths are interested only in their personal needs and desires, without concern for the effects of their behavior on others.

I'm going to discuss what seems to be the two main indicators: (1) antisocial behavior or abnormal social interaction habits and (2) thought pattern focused so extremely on the self, that negligible interest is given to anything else. Notice that neither of these are necessarily destructive or detrimental to outside society. Rather, it reflects a disturbed frame of mind and way of thinking that often leads to criminal behavior. Particularly, indicator (2) could be simplified as "egocentricity," however the word gives the false insinuation maliciousness. Keep in mind that this means that it just doesn't occur to a sociopath to think of other people outside of how they affect the sociopath themself. They may not even be able to understand how this or anything they do out of self-interest is wrong.

Part I: Is Bella antisocial?
For the time being, we are putting aside her interactions with the vampires.

Some people who are extremely sociopathic or anti-social are not concerned with appearances and openly engage in “behavior deviating sharply from the social norm” (from Meriam-Webster definition of anti-social). However, many sociopaths learn to skillfully mimic the superficial behaviors that indicate social interest in others and empathy. In this way, they are able to appear to normal to those who only see these superficial actions. Luckily, Twilight was written from Bella’s point of view, allowing us to see somewhat into her true values, concerns and intentions.

Bella certainly engages in social interaction on a daily basis in Forks. However, from before she even arrives in Forks, she has no true interest in the people around her, including her father. Her narrative makes it clear that all of her interactions and conversations were purely the result of courtesy and to hide that her true social interactions (ability/desire to bond with those near her) are abnormal. Despite many of her classmates going out of their way to welcome her warmly, Bella quickly judges everyone she meets and insults or makes fun of them. In New Moon, Bella’s entire pretense fails and she is so obviously antisocial for months that her behavior disturbs her classmates and family. However, the rest of the time she is sure to engage in the minimal amount of superficial social interaction required to appear normal.

As with her habit of calling her father “Dad” only to his face, Bella displays no actual respect for him outside of superficialities. She lies to him about her boyfriend and other things, allows Edward to sneak into his house every night, and even states she doesn’t think she needs her father’s permission to go on a long road trip alone to an unfamiliar city. Bella shows no signs of remorse or concern for these things and outwardly mimics a perfectly gracious and respectful daughter throughout.

Then she sees the Cullens. They are the only people in the town that Bella can be bothered to take an interest in. Their superficial beauty, wealth, and obvious exclusivity from the rest of society represent a social status above Bella’s own. “The isolation must be their desire; I couldn't imagine any door that wouldn't be opened by that degree of beauty.” And Edward, the available one, is her way in. Edward becomes the key to Bella’s own happiness, fulfillment and meaning in life. She quickly becomes obsessed with what he has to offer her.

Part II: Bella Lacks a Social Conscience
Exhibit A: Bella finds out a coven of vampires is in living in town. They tell her they don’t hurt people, but she has no reason to trust them. Did I mention they’re blood-sucking, people-eating-by-definition VAMPIRES? On top of that, there are bodies showing up and Bella knows the perp is a vampire. Does she try to warn or protect the entire town of very vulnerable succulent humans? No, she’s too busy trying to protect the cover story of dear Edward and his friends. Even if he kills her, she doesn’t want anyone to know it was him. She has no concern for the fact that she would be making it easier for him to prey on other people in the town because her feelings for Edward make him more important than anything in the world, even if he turns out to be a BLOOD-THIRSTY MASS MURDERER.

Exhibit B: Bella wants to be a vampire. She has no reservations about this. She wants that increase in status no matter how it affects other people. She is told that newborns begin with extreme bloodlust, that she would be overcome with the desire/need to kill people and eat them. Edward says he will protect her from hurting anyone, but she is told that newborns are extremely strong as well. It’s not difficult to imagine Edward being over-powered. However likely or unlikely it is, there exists the possibility that Bella becoming a vampire could result in the deaths of innocents. She does not even consider for a moment the risk she is taking with other people’s lives. What. The. Hell? That takes a HUGE lack of social conscience and empathy.


Conclusion:
I’m not formally trained to make a diagnosis, but it seems clear to me that Bella has sociopathic tendencies or is severely abnormal in some way. Or maybe I'm just desperate to believe that there is no way a sane human could think the way Bella does.


link
I used to be a die-hard Twilight fan. (see my username. Damn I wish I'd chosen ANYTHING else sometimes.)

I still like the book in small doses now, and I even write fanfiction for it, but now I've looked critically at SMeyer's characters, and I think I realize what people are talking about when they say Bella Swan is a Mary Sue.

As a person who has seen it from both sides, I'd like to say that maybe Twilight fans didn't see Bella like that to begin with because she has so many "flaws".

I'm not really a mega-supporter of Bella's neediness. And I even, admittedly, wonder why she took Edward back after New Moon. Normal people with lives and better things to do would say, "Hell no am I taking you back. You left me crying in a forest, and you think I'll just come running back to you? You wanna commit suicide, go right ahead while I get the popcorn."

I still like Twilight. But maybe Bella Swan was kind of 2-Dimensional.
added by Cinders
Source: RadRad @ Fanpop
I'm just sayin' Bella is one of the worst role models ever when it comes to love, sex and life choices and should not have allowed to be published in any shape or form. I mean, when she's made the heroine of the story and marketted at teenage girls.

1. She's obsessively in love with a control freak stalker.

Unfortunately it seems the vast majority of the Twilight fangirls are too with the very same freak.

2. She wants him so bad that she'll abandone everyone else she loves so that she could be with him. Even when it means she'll practically have to become a blood-drinking corpse.

(The movie 'Eclipse'...
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Credit: Very Demotivational
Credit: Very Demotivational
I felt a compelling need to write this article because recently I have found myself more constantly thrust into situations and debates where I have to defend the Harry Potter fandom against the Twilight fandom, which I despise so much. My best friend and her family are actually major pro-Twilight fans. This past evening made me realize that there are so many reasons why Harry Potter is much more awesome than Twilight, and its not just the obvious ones either. Thus, I give you all the evidence you will ever need to successfully pwn a Twilight fan trying to bring your fandom down.

Obvious Reasons...
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OMG she totally stole that apple from Adam and Eve!!!
OMG she totally stole that apple from Adam and Eve!!!
The people on this spot who know me will be aware I'm an anti, but I think a part of using this spot fairly means me not only talking when I have something against Twilight, but also fessing up when I don't think Meyer/the books/actros/etc are in the wrong. I've heard a lot about how many of Meyer's plot points are too similar to those in other vampire/fantasy stories. Well, that's never the way it's put. It's usually closer to "she totally ripped off _____. That's a stolen idea!" and I wanted to talk about why I actually disagree with most of those accusations. I say 'most of' and not 'all...
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1:57-2:44 Have I said how much I love this man?
video
interview
new moon
robert pattinson
jacob black
edward cullen
bella swan
jacob and bella
edward and bella
added by bendaimmortal
Source: by BratPrinceFan at DeviantArt
added by Mallory23
Source: http://www.forksforum.com/twilight
posted by Dragonsphere
Twilight vamps&other people;

Don't have fangs,
sparke in sunshine,
live on animal blood and call themselves veggies,
don't have a lumpy face,
live in really rich mansions(?),
don't have souls but are completely lame like rehabilitated drug-users(that never took drugs),
Can't be staked
Are looked (from the fangirls view)upon as superior beings that don't hurt anyone and call themselves dangerous
Stalk young girls only to seem romantic
Fall inlove with small children and beg to be their lover while they are like 16(just 12)
Don't belong in sassy teenage crap that is pure drama

They arenot vampires...
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Ok, so I visited a fanclub not too long ago and I noticed this one question I asked; "If Bella killed Renesmee, would Edward forgive her?" or something like that.

I looked at the comments, and at first they were fine. But then as they progressed to the more recent ones, I had one girl saying what a stupid question to ask, and some other crackhead telling me to go f**k myself.

Being my highly emotional self, I was irked to no end and I responded to these comments.

I'm trying to find a way to just delete this question, because I posted it a year ago and don't even recall the reasons why it was...
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posted by anna0789
hi this is my first rant ever hope you like it

im a twilight fan but i hate bella
for several things

first of all when you first read the book you have the idea that BELLA is very contempt with herself and a normal looking teenage girl that is very unselfish and very kind and loving and warm and falls in love with a vampire and she would do anything for him ..right..

ok but if you concentrate and look beyond all the adjectives s.meyer uses for descriving how beautiful and sparkly edward is and really LOOK at the story and at their characters you will realize the truth about bella that is

1)...
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Right ok, so there's all this hype surrounding Rob more so than any of the other cast from Twilight. But why?

It's not because he's the hottest. Because, well he just isn't. He was voted 'sexiest man alive' in numerous magazines such as heat and glamour. My personal favourite from the Twilight film is Peter Facinelli. I met him in July and he is the most geniune actor I have heard of. He has time for his fans, something which Rob doesn't.

Then again Rob does gets chased by crazed fan girls, so yeah valid excuse. But say if Peter played Edward, everyone would be all over him just because of the...
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posted by laureng114
First off, I would like to say that I have absolutely no problem with the C.A.T. spot and have just joined myself. If anything, I think that this spot is a good idea and is definitely NOT an anti-spot. The point of this article is to explain the point of view of a Twilight fan that does not just like the series because Edward Cullen is SO HOTTT <333, Vampires are AwEsOmE, etc. etc.

Let me start off by saying that I am SICK of uneducated Twilight fans making the rest of us look like a bunch of air-heads. By uneducated I mean fans that scream their heads off whenever they see a picture of Robert...
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posted by Imyselfandme
Many people bash popular movies because "It didn't measure up in the exact way they thought it would.

STOP PEOPLE!!! Stop your too Critical Analysis sometimes.Stop your phony rebukes.Just STOP!!!

And accept movies the way they come.

As a one time author of a book called Elfin Magic (become a fan of it:link)

I think i can speak for all(or at least most)authors when I say It's FINE!!! If someone offers you a direct line to the movies and the author refuses because the director says some plans that differentiate from the book and someone refuses then they are just stupid!!!

Miner changes and summarizing...
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Haaa xD
video
you belong with me
taylor swift
jacob black
remix
jacob and bella
twilight
new moon
funny
parody
added by Frizzhead
added by Plenilunio
Source: comixed.com
added by nuxi
Source: Paramount and some 70s magazine
added by marthatsal
I was following an online series called the Hillywood Show. It was two girls acting in Johnny Depp roles such as Sweeney Todd,Ed Wood,Edward Scissorhands.Here is a link of one of their link.This is their link
But after the release of Twilight they have stopped doing the Johnny Depp impression which made them famous they started doing twilight video's but even worse . Its Twilight Music Video's. So that means cheesy music and annoying dancing and skimpy outfits.
It reminded me of how twilight is no longer a personal thing no matter where we go we will see twilight dangled in our faces in merchandise,...
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