Blogger Asks “Why *isn’t* Twilight’s Bella Swan a feminist creation?”
Posted on 29. Mar, 2012 by lisa in Movie Related, News
HUGE round of applause for Scott Mendelson who not only “gets” the character Bella Swan, but also “gets” feminism!
True Feminism is about a woman being able to make her own choices for her own life. Not a woman being able to make choices others think she should make.
Mendelson explains how a woman (in this case, a character, Bella) is still a feminist regardless of the popularity of her own choices among her peers, and without seeking the approval of society.
Below is an excerpt, but the full article is well worth the read!
We debate back and forth about what is the ‘correct’ decision for today’s women without realizing that feminism is not about the choice that one woman or another makes but merely the fact that she has that choice. Bella Swan is a fully-functional and intelligent young woman who makes a fully-formed decision about her life. We may disagree with that choice and may say that said decision makes her a poor role model for young women (that’s a debate for a different day), but why exactly is Bella an anti-feminist character? Feminism is about women having the choice to live their lives as they wish to. And that is exactly what Bella does for nearly every moment of the Twilight Saga. Bella Swan may not be a role model in a conventional sense, but she is arguably a shining example of feminism in its purest, if not idealized, form.
Also, what many critics of Bella Swan fail to understand is that the journey thus far that has been presented on screen is the backstory, if you will, of Bella’s rise to becoming ultimately the most powerful character in the “game.” Just as the cover of the last book in the saga, BREAKING DAWN, alludes to with chess pieces. A red pawn being overshadowed by a white queen.
3 Responses to “Blogger Asks “Why *isn’t* Twilight’s Bella Swan a feminist creation?””
mlj
29. Mar, 2012
Love this!
Rachel
29. Mar, 2012
I got the biggest kick out of these “feminists” who were so exercised abt the fact that Bella chose to get married. She made her choice, listened to no one but her own heart. It seems that it is celebrated when a girl/woman makes her own choices, but only if she makes a “choice” they approve of. I remember the story told by Marlo Thomas ages ago when she was on a plane around the time she was engaged to or just got married to, Phil Donohue. Some woman asked if she was indeed Marlo Thomas, and when she said she was, the woman told her how disappointed she was that Marlo had “chosen” to get married. I don’t recall all the details, the woman had seen her as a role-model then was disappointed that she was getting married. What crock. We either believe should be able to make their own choices or we don’t. You don’t get to espouse that belief, only if it meets your criteria of choice. Otherwise you are a hypocrite.
Koolchicken
30. Mar, 2012
This is exactly what I’ve been telling people myself for years. I met my husband when I was 19 and got married at 27. I’ve only worked for 5 years out of my life but stopped when we moved in together. I’m grateful other women worked hard to give me the option to stay at home. And to re-enter the workforce in the future should I ever want/need to.