Twilight

My contribution to the thousands of reviews about Twilight will be to discuss how the relationship of Bella and Edward can be seen as an illustration of romantic love in general.

Bella and Edward have a relationship that is dangerous to both of them. Bella risks death at the hands of Edward and his family. Edward risks exposure for himself and his family if anything goes wrong with the relationship with Bella. They are strangers to one another. They do not know the long-term emotional stability or reactions they each have had in the past or will have in the future.

As I was reading the book, it occurred to me that this danger is shared by many people who get into romantic relationships with people. Often when we fall in love, the long-term emotional behaviors of the other person is unknown. Generally in real life we are not exactly tuned into the thoughts, motivations and behaviors of other people. Unlike Edward, none of us can read other people's minds. So it is always a risk to put our trust and safety in other people.

So, I found reading Twilight offered me an interesting way to think about romantic relationships. Other than that, I also enjoyed reading the book. It had a balance of humor and danger to keep it interesting. Bella might be a Mary Sue, but she is an interesting Mary Sue.