I'm going to say something and ask for no judgement.... I like Twilight. I'm sorry I do... I'm a sucker for romances and though some would say that it's no better than tacky velevet painting I thought they were good. The writing was marginal, but the story was really a good one (please don't judge by the movies!). What it seems pitted against is the Harry Potter series (yes I am a huge fan!). Harry Potter wins in pretty much every category, story line, character portrayal, movies, etc. So I hardly think we should compare. Both writers created a phenomenon for today's youth and both have good values. What I think we should take away from both series is what WE got out of the books (Harry Potter movies in my case, I have yet to get my hands on the books!) and characters. Harry Potter instilled loyalty, bravery, hope, and fortitude in it's readers and watchers. Twilight instilled a sense of historical fantasy (think Dracula), loyalty, and chastity... How many movies today really push teenagers to be faithful till their wedding day? Not many, i'm afraid. I'm not going to lie that the glittery skin was a tad over the top (not thinking Dracula), but werewolves and vampires have been part of history, legend, and tradition in some cultures for centuries. It was truly a new spin on a new age tale.
So what separates a novel from a classic? If Harry Potter could (in a sense) be compared to The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, will it take it's place among the ranks of classics by phenomenal authors? All of them had a story unwind around a world of witchcraft, wizardry, and creatures from myth and legend. Will Twilight be next in line to be inducted into the classics for it's similarity to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dracula, and Frankenstein? All were fanciful books about blood sucking men and humans with an alter ego or personality and the living dead... I think only time will tell, As I am not the person who could tell you whether or not a book could be a classic.
What do you base your opinion of a book on? There are multiple authors I adore that I set any book I read against, I love Jane Austen, Willa Cather, C.S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkein, L. M. Montgomery, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Bram Stoker, Mary Shelley, and countless others that have taken place in the classic writers hall of fame... What I'm looking for is your specs on what you read? What makes it a masterpiece in your eyes? Is it the storyline, the characters, the writing style, the setting, or the cumulation of all?
Thoughts for the day....
(You have unleashed the English major within! haha)
ReplyDeleteHere are my thoughts on Twilight. The movies are a nice escape from reality. Robert Pattinson is gorgeous and that's about where I run out of positive things to say about the series. The books are, speaking euphemistically, unimaginative. I don't think there's anything genre-bending about Twilight which might have been it's only redeeming quality if it had successfully pulled it off. They're also extremely anti-climactic. I literally reread the last few chapters to see if I had accidentally skipped some crucial moment in the plot, but alas, I did not. Stephanie Meyer is a poor author. Also, Bella is a poor example of a heroine. Compared to great literary women: Hermione Granger, Jane Eyre, Hester Prynne, Ophelia from Hamlet, Elizabeth Bennet, Scarlett O'Hara, Janie Crawford, even Katniss Everdeen are more powerful and moving than Bella Swan. All those characters I listed are witty, smart, driven and passionate about things other than boys.
But comparing Harry Potter and Twilight makes little sense to me, I don't know why so many try to. One is truly a masterpiece and the other is a middle-aged woman's fantasy. To understand the amazing scope of Harry Potter you really need to read the books. I don't meant to rag on Twilight so much, I know a lot of people adore the books but they pale in comparison to Harry Potter if you're going to compare them based solely on the fact that they're both contemporary fantasy.
And that leads me to the question at hand! Do you mean what separates a contemporary novel from a novel that has withstood time? Classic novels are classic for a few, very important however, reasons.
They employ modernism at the time written, or they push the limits of modernity. When Jane Austen was writing Pride & Prejudice, a woman like Elizabeth Bennet would be a stark contrast to societal norms. Which leads to character development being crucial to building a classic novel. There also needs to be a universal theme that all can relate to. There is one author in the Western Cannon that was best at the universal theme and that was Shakespeare. That man is of mythic proportions for a reason because he wrote about themes we all can relate to rather than the morality tales that were common of his era (again, pushing modernity). Romeo & Juliet is still relevant today because Shakespeare wrote of real, true and powerful human emotions; without Romeo & Juliet it would be hard to say if Twilight would be around.
The list can go on but I suppose the most important quality of a classic is that it has to stick with you. I think of Hamlet, Gatsby, Don Quixote, A Farewell to Arms...
I base my opinion of a book on essentially the same criteria I just listed. Are the characters well developed? How's the rhetoric? Is it relevant? And am I interested?
So, there you have it! Awesome post by the way! You have some really well developed thoughts!
And this ^^^ Ladies and gentlemen is why this woman should be a book editor!! :) Exactly what I was looking for! I found the Twilight books, engaging, and at points I was reading on wondering what could possibly happen next (New Moon). But beyond that I couldn't find myself sucked into that reality... In other words like us readers like to use, I couldn't get lost! I have yet to make it to the library and the one in Cascade has a pretty poor selection so i'm not even sure they would have them. However, i'm still very much interested in reading the books as the movies were specatular. You are 100% right on character and depth, I found it very hard to fall in love with the character of Bella, and falling for the female heroin is crucial for a woman reader. How could you not fall for Elizabeth Bennett? She was witty, and bright, charming and quick... Bella (and YES KRISTIN STEWART) were rather dull in comparison. Thank you so much for commenting! I love hearing opinions from other book readers, and friends especially!
Delete'Them' referring to the Harry Potter series!!! This is what I get for trying to write a comment and the children are going crazy!! :)
Delete^ do read the Harry Potter books! They are fantastic! Kyle hasn't read them yet, and had only seen parts of some of the movies, so I got him to watch the movies with me and have started reading the books to him (yes, with voices at times... I'm a total dork), and he's really gotten into it.
ReplyDeleteI love books that I. Cannot. Put. Down. The ones with things left unknown. I love that the mystery (whether the plot be an actual mystery or not) unfolds with each page I turn. But at the same time, I don't like reading as fast as I do because then the book is over and I have to find something new! Harry Potter is definitely this way, same with Life of Pi, which I just finished. And I'm currently in The Hobbit again, and I can't even remember how it ends, so it's proving a page-turner too.
I have a long list of classics that I have never read, but I usually tend to read more modern books - or those that are nearly to be adapted into film. I like adventures the most for sure.
The thing about Twilight that I don't like is the sexual tension that is pervasive throughout the books. It gets worse. And that seems to be the enticing point. Yes, I read them (but before they were popularized by the movies, and I thought the books better than the movies anyway). Yes, I believed them to be page-turners while I was reading them (they were worlds better than Eragon - in the second book, Eldest, he straight up plagiarized one of the Lord of the Rings movie lines <--- I mean, seriously!??! Paolini puts such a BAD wrap on homeschoolers' capabilities, creativeness, and imaginations...ahem /rant).
Why people compare Twilight to Harry Potter, to The Hunger Games (if you haven't read them yet, DO!!), to the Lord of the Rings I have zero idea - I can see some points between HP and LotR, but other than general themes there isn't too much. Although they are all fairly modern, they really aren't comparable. Yes, they all stand within a realm of fantasy, but on SO many different levels. People seem to get defensive when another person puts down something they liked - and most people these days don't actually take the time to really realize what they are taking in. It just continues with the flow of how much social media effects our world today...
ReplyDeleteI agree on your points of the values, although I think the value of abstinence in Twilight is a bit lost in the sexual tension and love triangle. Plus, most teens (and awkwardly enough, women, like our moms age [gross/creepy]) who get into it are mostly after just that tension (such fiction is the "porn for girls") and don't think of the historical significance at all. Yes, they CAN be read without that outlook on them, but for many, it's hard not to. I know a few GUYS who are into it simply on the basis that it's none too far off the track of zombie movies (I mean come on kids, this is getting ridiculous... it's a sappy love triangle after all).
I suppose you could go so far to say that thankfully Twilight is potentially more popular than other teen books/shows like Gossip Girl, which is literally only about the sex lives of New York high schoolers. In that sense, at least Twilight HAS some values, morals, and mythical characters when you look for them.
For me, in the end, Twilight was just too weird and I had mad ADHD when it came to finishing the 4th book (translation: I could put it down). Edward was ice cold, and sparkled like my Christmas decorations. I just can't help thinking how miserable it would be to snuggle up to an ice cube larger than my body... I get cold easily. The thought makes me miserable /random-rant.
Maybe (and I mean maybe) Harry Potter might be considered a "classic" in fantasy in the future, primarily on the basis of the following and the international fame and popularity of the story. But as for it having a message or "silver lining" that takes stab at political and social norms of today, it definitely does not cohere to other classics in that sense.
Sorry for this comment that is not cohesive in anyway...lol. I love love love love reading your blog!
I thought your comment flowed very well Hannah!! I think you're right, as I said above, I couldn't fully submerge myself into Twilight. That being said, the last movie was much better than the last book in my opinion, it was at least riveting in the action scenes that didn't take place in the book! Haha. I'm glad the love triangle was explained in the end of Breaking Dawn when Jacob imprints on Bella's child, but that in itself was creepy if not disturbing.
DeleteI have to admit I was getting a little bored with a Willa Cather novel I recently finished, it was one of those plots that went 'on and on and on and on and on and on and on' before reaching it's climax and finale. Something that is out of the ordinary for her style of writing.
As far as the 'porn for girls' I think you hit that dead on too, there is a sensationalism that has hit the women of this country, as far as wanting what you can't have. Ex. Bella and Edward, she could never take that finally step without him possibly killing her... ummm that's no fun. But it's the chase and the lead up to that grand finale that has women hooked. Instead of, in the Harry Potter films, wondering, are they finally going to get together?!?! It was replaced by the Twilight series, 'are they finally going to DO IT!?'.
I should probably go back and read the Hobbit again before I see the movie, i'm hoping the stick to the story line as close as the Lord of the Rings trilogy did! I'm in the process of reading 'The Picture of Dorian Grey' and it is proving intriguing! Thank you ladies for all of your thoughts! Please write more if you feel inclined!!! :)