While I am all for bringing the wisdom of Yoda into any discussion, I think you are being a little obtuse in your observation. I think you are deliberately focusing on the negative again. Fear can also lead to caution. Fear can also beget a willingness to change. And, fear can lead us to confrontation and communication. Yes, Edward lives in fear. He fears one thing and one thing only. He fears hurting Bella, losing Bella. So, his fear makes him cautious whenever he is around her. It gives him the power to curb his overwhelming thirst for her and instead be incalcuably gentle and controlled in her presence. His fear gives him the strength to change his nature, ignoring any instinct, thought or feeling that might lead to losing Bella. And, his fear gives him patience and courage that he never had before. Edward is a man used to doing what he wants, used to seeing and understanding the right course and following it. But, Bella turns that all on its' head because all of his instincts about what is right are wrong where she is concerned. So, his fear gives him the patience and courage to face what's wrong in his typical behavior and the courage to change it for the better.The Dark Knight wrote:• Edward lives his live in fear...Fear is one of the more nasty deadly sins, nothing good comes from fear...Any thoughts?
I do not argue that Edward sees himself as selfish. As you state, it is fact that that is how he sees himself. What I argue is that he is. No, we don't have much of his backstory. What we have are his deeds, as well as a way to compare what Bella sees to what he is thinking and feeling. MS provides that for us, giving us the unique ability to look at the same conversations and events through two sets of eyes. When he talks of being a killer, a monster, that is his own skewed view of himself. He loathes what he is because it hurts others and puts them in danger. But, let's look at what we know to be his most monstrous time, most monstrous act. His "rebellion" against Carlisle and the veggie lifestyle. Did he go on random killing sprees, consuming any and all humans who appealed to him? Absolutely not. Even in his darkest times, he hunted only those who would harm others, who were themselves dangerous and evil. And, even that is not arbitrary. Edward had absolute knowledge that the men he was hunting were in fact evil, were rapists and murderers. The very act of living Carlisle's lifestyle, denying his basest and most feral instinct proves how selfless he is. It is unfair to read the question, and to ignore all of the arguments that were posted after.The Dark Knight wrote:• Edward thinks of himself as selfish. I see this as more a fact than others. In the 90 years leading up to this short period of time (that we see through the filters of Bella, who only wants to see him in a good light) he could be exactly what he states he is. We have little back story on him. He talks about being a killer and his monster just under the surface (See Twilight in the Biology lab) is very much who he is. If we take the filters off, we might see a darker side to Edward, and who he truly is.
Or so you say... Summary statements do not make good arguments. If you want to discuss, than discuss. This isn't a fact and there are many here who would argue with you, if you choose to open that door.The Dark Knight wrote:• Knives, is right about him being controlling. That is his nature.
A 17/18 year old young woman with a boyfriend/husband who she readily describes as the most beautiful creature ever put on Earth. Yes, it is a horrible and unrealistic thing that she is attracted to him physically. Good grief! Yes, Bella wants to have a physical relationship with the man she loves. Last time I checked, that is, in fact, a pretty natural and typical part of a relationship. But, to contend that becasue we witness the evolution of their physical as well as emotional relationship, that the only thing she wants from him is sex is just...assinine. First, Bella is a healthy, typical adolescent young woman, experiencing all the growing pains and hormonse that we all experienced. Guess what? I wanted to have sex with my boyfriend when I was 17, too. I wanted to have sex with the man who became my husband when I was 18. Does that mean that I only wanted sex from him. Absolutely not. It is my opinion that you see this because you discount the intensity and reality (and I mean that in terms of it's existence within the story, not that the relationship itelf would translate to our reality) of the love between Edward & Bella. Without that love, than yes, I suppose it could look like Bella's just looking to score some vampy mattress time, see what all the hullabaloo in the Cullen house seems to be about. But, if that were true, than she would have reconsidered everything before James even came along to throw his monkey in the wrench. Remember, she asks Edward straight out about sex. It happens just after the meadow, I think (forgive, no books). She asks Edward about Rose & Em's relationship, if vampire marriages are just like "regular" marriages. She talks around it, but Edward figures out what she's getting at. He asks her if she's wondering if it will be like that for them. And, he tells her point blank that they can never go that far because he cannot let go of his control around her because he could kill her. If bedding the man was all she was interested in, that would have been the end of that. Bella does not see sex as the last and ultimate goal of the relationship, but as a natural part of the lasting relationship she wants with the man she loves more than anything and intends to literally spend forever with.The Dark Knight wrote:• Bella seems to be in a perpetual state of lust. She dazzled, breathless, attacking him sexually and willing to do just about anything to get him on his back, to steal a phrase. The one and only things she really wants is sex form him. If that’s not lustful I just don’t know what is.