Twilight

Jessiel Gerena
Jeanina Perez
February 16,2010
WST 3015

Twilight

It’s the lastest tween phenomenom all the teens of america going crazy over a pale vampires. This phenomenom is over the book series Twilight which focuses on the story of Bella Swan who moves to Washington from Arizona and meets Edward Cullen . She is mystified by this family of pale individual , she later finds out there are vampires and aspires to be one . When one originally watches the film you think oh its just another teen movie about vampires . when you watch the movie again and giving the themes discussed in class , it shows there are some sexist and racist undertones.
The sexist undertones are displayed in the main character Bella Swan . Bella Swan is a teenage girl who leaves her home in Arizona to move with her dad in Washington . She becomes intrigued by The Cullens who are pale white vampires. When shes walking to her car she almost gets hit by a car but Edward uses his power and stops the car from hitting her(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrBQNiN8ifY). She becomes fascinated and falls in love with Edward. The character Bella Swan is protrayed as being clumsy and stubborn . during one scene she is at a birthday party at the cullen house and she cuts herself . She stutters and twitches during the hospital scene . This shows her the woman as being impcomptent. In the Patriarchy article, it talks about how we continue to perpetuate stereotypes and give in to the system. One of the ways we perpetuate stereotyoes is through media , one of the things we did in class was list what women stereotype are and on the list was the word weak and needing emotional support. She is shown to be distraught and needs help and emotional support , she moves to washington for emotional support from her father.(Patriarchy,The System)
The film also gives attention to beauty ideals and what is seen as attractive. The character Bella Swan goes after Edward Cullen . In the Film Edward is seen as the beauty ideal . He is portrayed as her protetctor because she is clumsly as scene in the crash scene and is “rescued”. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrBQNiN8ifY . He is pale white, ice cold, and shines in the sunlight, though he is seen by as everyone as being different and exotic. He and his family are separate from the whole school and seen as this attractive cool kid group.( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBoILMLrvNU) the problem with this is that it gives the image that being pale white is the beauty standard and whats hot. This is racist because it shows that not only being white is the beauty standard but pale white. This movie also gives an unrealistic goal to tweens who are watching this movie that pale is beauty. This does challenge the beauty standard but also gives the illusion that your “whiteness” is not enough . This is the essential of “The More you add the more you subtract” the more u add to the beauty standards the more you subtract



Works cited
Johnson,Allan “Patriachy,The System”
Kilbourne ,Jean “The More You Subtract,You Add”
Twilight-Car Crash Scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrBQNiN8ifY
Twilight twilight cafeteria scene, bella sees cullens for the first time.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBoILMLrvNU