Vampires have been a part of literature for centuries. Recently vampires have been more popular than ever. From Dracula to Twilight, the way vampires have evolved continues to be a reflection of societies views and concerns. One subject that has always been a topic of discussion in vampire texts is gender roles. Most vampire texts depict a female victim who is seduced by a male vampire. This holds true for Bram Stockers, Dracula, and Stephanie Myers, Twilight. However, other texts such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s, Christabel, depicts a female seductress and a female victim. From the late 18th century to modern day, what do these three texts have in common? All three of these texts depict women in a way that suggests that women should abide
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Bella’s character lends her to being more submissive. She constantly puts herself down, she’s socially awkward, and is very clumsy. In contrast Edward is described as perfect in everyway. Bella reflects saying, “I wasn’t interesting. And he was. Interesting… and brilliant… and mysterious” (79). Not only does Bella put Edward on a pedestal she puts herself down in the process. Bella’s character has low self esteem, which makes it more likely for her to be the submissive one in the relationship. There whole relationship centers around this power dynamic. Edward is the more powerful one, the better looking one and Bella is just lucky to be with him. A popular quote from the book is when Edward says, “And so the lion fell in love with the lamb […] What a sick masochistic lion” (274). A lion is the king of the jungle and hunts other animals with ease. A lamb is weak, soft and more than likely prey. Bella is the weaker one in the relationship. Edward describes himself as “masochistic”, which means deriving enjoyment from one’s own pain or humiliation (http://www.oed.com.ezproxy.ithaca.edu:2048/view/Entry/114636?redirectedFrom=masochistic#eid). Edward knows that this combination is wrong. The pain that comes from their relationship is because of the tilted power dynamic. This power dynamic leads to Bella being clingy. There’s a point where Edward is sleeping in her bed every night and they’re inseparable. Bella panics anytime Edward might leave. This is an unhealthy relationship. Someone should not be codependent on anyone else. Bella is a modern woman, but she still takes a submissive role in her own story. She becomes dependent on Edward to a point where she can’t image life without him. This kind of characterization sends that message that women need men to complete them and make them
Bella’s character lends her to being more submissive. She constantly puts herself down, she’s socially awkward, and is very clumsy. In contrast Edward is described as perfect in everyway. Bella reflects saying, “I wasn’t interesting. And he was. Interesting… and brilliant… and mysterious” (79). Not only does Bella put Edward on a pedestal she puts herself down in the process. Bella’s character has low self esteem, which makes it more likely for her to be the submissive one in the relationship. There whole relationship centers around this power dynamic. Edward is the more powerful one, the better looking one and Bella is just lucky to be with him. A popular quote from the book is when Edward says, “And so the lion fell in love with the lamb […] What a sick masochistic lion” (274). A lion is the king of the jungle and hunts other animals with ease. A lamb is weak, soft and more than likely prey. Bella is the weaker one in the relationship. Edward describes himself as “masochistic”, which means deriving enjoyment from one’s own pain or humiliation (http://www.oed.com.ezproxy.ithaca.edu:2048/view/Entry/114636?redirectedFrom=masochistic#eid). Edward knows that this combination is wrong. The pain that comes from their relationship is because of the tilted power dynamic. This power dynamic leads to Bella being clingy. There’s a point where Edward is sleeping in her bed every night and they’re inseparable. Bella panics anytime Edward might leave. This is an unhealthy relationship. Someone should not be codependent on anyone else. Bella is a modern woman, but she still takes a submissive role in her own story. She becomes dependent on Edward to a point where she can’t image life without him. This kind of characterization sends that message that women need men to complete them and make them