Bella Swan Cullen #3

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Amanda Beth
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by Amanda Beth »

Esme echo wrote:Jasper told Bella that vampire venom was the only thing that scarred vampires. I wonder if the scar James gave Bella would still be visible after her transformation?
I wondered that reading New Moon because Carlisle told Bella when he changed Edward he gave him the same injuries he had suffered... yet when Jasper's scars are mentioned, neither Edward or Carlisle's ever are... so I'm guessing those scars are healed when they transform (since they are human and get "healed" during the process). Jasper's happened after the fact.
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by SenorGimp »

I'm not sure whether or not it would have healed, but i do know that the symbolism there (or perhaps I'm inserting depth where there is none) of Bella's crescent moon-shaped scar in relation to Edward's shining like a diamond in the sun is indicative of the orbital nature of Bella toward Edward...

Yeah, okay, I guess I was just reaching.... oh well, I've been out of commission for a little while... They can't all be beauts! ;)

(A little aside: Glad to be back.)
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by Jazz Girl »

SenorGimp wrote:I'm not sure whether or not it would have healed, but i do know that the symbolism there (or perhaps I'm inserting depth where there is none) of Bella's crescent moon-shaped scar in relation to Edward's shining like a diamond in the sun is indicative of the orbital nature of Bella toward Edward...

Yeah, okay, I guess I was just reaching.... oh well, I've been out of commission for a little while... They can't all be beauts! ;)

(A little aside: Glad to be back.)
GIMP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh my dear gods, it's good to see you, man!!!!!!!!!!! You have been missed, friend. And, as always, you return with a bang. I think that is a beautiful way to think about her scar.

Hmmmmmm, an interesting idea. But, I also believe her scar would still be there. I think that Edward's and Carlisle's scars are not mentioned is because they are not as numerous as Jasper's (he had I believe well over 1,000) and they were in very visible areas. Carlisle's and probably particularly Edward's would not be so visible. Additionally, Bella had to see Jasper's scars in very direct light to notice them. Also, Bella I think, would not notice a scar on Edward. We tend to look past what others would see as imperfections in the ones we love.
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SenorGimp
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by SenorGimp »

very eloquently put jazz girl
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It is truly great to be back...
PM me if you want to catch up, okay?
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TheSecretBella
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by TheSecretBella »

Hey, guys! I wanted to ask you all for a favor. I'm new here and have recently become enraptured with the Twilight Saga, and I would like to write an article about it in my school news paper. That being said, I want to know the opinions of true Twilight fans on the main character, Bella Swan. Do you think she is a good heroine? What qualities in her make her either a good one or a bad one? Is she at all relate able? Why do you think she is so popular with young girls today? I would love to hear your honest opinions!! Thanks!!
Asheleyo
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by Asheleyo »

TheSecretBella wrote:Hey, guys! I wanted to ask you all for a favor. I'm new here and have recently become enraptured with the Twilight Saga, and I would like to write an article about it in my school news paper. That being said, I want to know the opinions of true Twilight fans on the main character, Bella Swan. Do you think she is a good heroine? What qualities in her make her either a good one or a bad one? Is she at all relate able? Why do you think she is so popular with young girls today? I would love to hear your honest opinions!! Thanks!!
I think of Bella as a courageous heroine, who battles her way through emotional hardships and some very formidable physical opposition (though generally, she doesn't do much physical battle). I think that makes her much more of a modern heroine because what females most encounter now are emotional struggles, not physical ones.

What makes her easy to relate to, I strongly believe, is the simple fact that she is so flawed, and sees herself as flawed. She's not the great strong character who believes her virtues are undying and undeniable. She is pretty, but not even in a conventional way. Girls can see themselves as Bella because they can so easily see flaws in themselves and will relate better to a main character who is also imperfect.

And of course she's popular to the younger female readers because someone so great as Edward chooses not to see the flaws in her, but to see something deeper and wonderful, which is what we all hope for in a mate.
Precisely because death awaits us in the end, we must live fully.

Stars did fly toward each other, irresistibly, as if they were falling in love. And millions of years later, lovers on Earth drew together and fell in love, watching the stars fall.
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by Jazz Girl »

TheSecretBella wrote:Hey, guys! I wanted to ask you all for a favor. I'm new here and have recently become enraptured with the Twilight Saga, and I would like to write an article about it in my school news paper. That being said, I want to know the opinions of true Twilight fans on the main character, Bella Swan. Do you think she is a good heroine? What qualities in her make her either a good one or a bad one? Is she at all relate able? Why do you think she is so popular with young girls today? I would love to hear your honest opinions!! Thanks!!
I'm in complete agreement with AsheleyO. In my eyes, Bella is a strong and courageous woman who fights for her right to love the person she wants and to live the life that she wants, despite the odds and all of the barriers that are in the way. Bella never shies from the fight to keep the man she loves with her, no matter the odds, and no matter whom she is fighting. She has the courage to face the fears and prejudices of her family and friends and stay her course. And, she has the courage to face, acknowledge and move beyond the sacrifices that she must make in her life, recognizing that all of life is a compromise. And, most of all, she has the audacity to want to be blissfully happy, and to fight for that happiness with everything she has.

That is not to say there are not moments when I am completely exasperated with her, because there very much are. There are moments when I find her to be selfish and unyielding. But, even in those moments, it is precisely because she wants wht she wants and will find a way to have it. I may find fault with her methods, but her intentions are pure.

I think she is relateable, mostly for the reasons why Stephenie Meyer has told us she is. She is every girl. We all see ourselves in Bella. She isn't inhumanly beautiful, amazingly brilliant, ubertalented or otherwise distinguised in any other way. She isn't the perfect girl who gets all the breaks. She could be any one of us. Maybe she did write for the school paper, or play in the marching band, or hide away in the art room or compete on the academic decathalon. She could have done any of those things. So, in that, we are given a regular, everyday young woman who lives out this amazingly beautiful adventure.

As to why young women today find her so appealing, I think it is precisely for all of those reasons. I think it is the possibilities they see for themselves through her. Partially, yes, Edward sees her as absolutely flawless and perfect and we wish to be the same. But, more than that, we wish we had her courage and her stubborness and her devotion and her desire. If Bella Swan can do it, so can I.
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by TheSecretBella »

Thank you girls so much for what you had to say! I think you're absolutely right. I believe Bella's strength comes from the fact that she is flawed as well, and that she is an every girl who is striving for her own 'brand' of happiness, and the fact that she has to fight so many emotional battles and even life threatening ones to remain with the one she loves is something we all look to. I also think you're right in that Edward is a part of Bella's appeal because he sees the beauty in her, even when she can't see it in herself, and always thinks the most of her. Bella reminds me very much of a fairy tale maiden who the handsome Prince falls in love with despite her circumstances, and saves her from whatever dragon may come their way.

Bella sure seems to be rescued a lot, doesn't she? Do you think Bella would be as relate able if she maybe was a bit more like Buffy? Or at least someone who could hold her own a bit more against Vampires before she was one? Is the fact that Bella is so weak and must be rescued all the time a par of her appeal? I'm not saying she would kick Vampire butt like Buffy, but be a bit less vulnerable? Bella has such potential to be a stronger character, you'd think that after a year of living in a world where Vampires exist, she would pick up on a few things, at least how to throw kick or a punch. Haha, she probably wouldn't stand a chance, but still, the fact that she would try to fight, rather than just let Edward save her. Any thoughts?

Also, I've talked to many, and though I personally don't feel this way, many do think that Bella escapes the entire Twilight Saga without any major consequences. Bella chooses Edward, she keeps Jacob all the same. Bella chooses to be a Vampire, but she pulls a Hannah Montana and has 'the best of both worlds', keeping her human family and seemingly not going through the scary first year of being a new born. Bella seems to get everything she ever could want without having to pay any sort of sacrifices. What are your opinions on that?
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by Asheleyo »

Bella is strong in spirit. Some times you just can't bring any more physical strength to play, and when faced with beings so many more times powerful than her, what good would trying to act tough do? It would most likely get her hurt even more. If she attempted to hold her own, she might be so bold as to jump in the middle of a fight, where she would most certainly be of zero help and more than likely cause trouble. Think about the fight between Edward and Seth and and Victoria and whatever that kid's name was. The minute Bella started to act by trying to be strong and do her part, she threw off the plan that Edward and Seth had. But she was strong enough mentally to handle being there and the aftermath without it breaking her at all. Plus, if Bella tried to show that kind of physical fortitude, Edward might go crazy with trying to protect her. How much worse would it be for him if she goes looking for a fight? With her two left feet...pretty bad.

I agree with you, I think Bella had to pay consequences. People seem to underestimate the pain of a situation and the process of getting to a solution. Just because she got Edward and Jacob does not by any means verify that she paid no toll for it. She spent months in agony over the animosity between the two, fighting with the person she loved to be with another, and when she won that out, she still suffered with the knowledge that Edward was not at ease when she was gone. The whole thing cause strife and tension. And the only reason it didn't continue was because of Renesmee creating an out for Jacob. But no one can argue that Bella didn't suffer to get Renesmee. First, the physical pain involved in carrying the child, then the emotional pain of watching Edward suffer more and more and her condition worsened. Who would not be tormented by knowingly putting that much stress on the ones they love? She nearly died from the whole experience. Sure, she skips the difficult first year, but we have plenty of theories to explain that. But she didn't get to keep everyone. Renee is still out of the picture, all of her previous friends are out. The only one she gets to bring into the circle is Charlie. So she didn't suffer for a full year? So what? She still suffered.
Precisely because death awaits us in the end, we must live fully.

Stars did fly toward each other, irresistibly, as if they were falling in love. And millions of years later, lovers on Earth drew together and fell in love, watching the stars fall.
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Re: Bella Swan Cullen #3

Post by Jazz Girl »

Sometimes your greatest strength is recognizing your weakness and finding a way to live with it, or turn it to your advantage. We are never all things at once. Bella is amazingly strong emotionally and mentally. By virtue of her humanity, she is physically weaker than those around her. There isn't anything wrong with that. It is something that cannot be changed. But, I would never say that Bella just sits back and waits for anyone to save her. Bella is always trying to find a way to be a part of the fight, but in a way that will best protect everyone. Eclipse is the perfect example of this. She knows that she cannot physically fight. But, she can certainly help give her family the advantage, and she does, using her blood to draw the newborns where they are most vulnerable.

And, let's not forget that Bella saves Edward just as much as he saves her. In New Moon, she is the only one who can save him. And she does. Just as she saves the entire family in Breaking Dawn. Just because she does not perform these heroic feats by pounding another individual into the ground, or literally swooping in to save the day, does not make them any less. In my mind, that is always what Twilight was more about...mind over matter. The battle with the newborns, while physical in nature, was won with strategy, smarts and experience, rather than brute force. Every confrontation with the Volturi was a mental battle, rather than a physical one. In New Moon, Edward and Alice convinced Aro that Bella would be one of them. In Eclipse, the same situation. And, again in Breaking Dawn. Battles of mental toughness, preparedness, strategy and strenght rather than brute force. And in the end, it is Bella who is the strongest of all of them BECAUSE OF HER MIND AND HER HEART. No, Bella never seemed the damsel in distress to me. She has her strength. And part of this wonderful story is watching her find them and use them to become the most powerful of all of them.

As for Bella coming through the journey unscathed, well, I can't rightly say it any better than AsheleyO did. Bella suffered. Bella hurt. Bella burned. Bella earned every bit of the happiness she ended up with. Quite honestly, the fact that people wanted to see her more hurt, the people she loved more torn over her, kind of frightens me.
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