THE MODERN FANTASY

IN STEPHENIE MEYER’S TWILIGHT SAGA1

By

Itsna Syahadatud Dinurriyah2

INTRODUCTION

Twilight Saga is a series written by Stephanie Meyer, an American female writer. She

is just a new debutant in this case. As a housewife with three children, she is successful in

introducing new way of fantasy story through these novels. The saga consists of five books so

far, they are Twilight (2005), New Moon (2006), Eclipse (2007), Breaking Dawn (2008), and

Midnight Sun (2009). Each of them has been publishing every year since 2005. Even though

the background of these novels is high school teenage students but the writer intends to make

it for young adult, that is why most of the readers are young women.

By using myth background that is believed by American and famous in the world, the

writer uses vampire (Russian/European immigrant myth), werewolf (Indian/natives American

myth) and their relationship with human. She also describes this relationship in human way;

even she introduces the new concept of vampire and werewolf.

When I, as a reader, read Twilight for the first time, I thought it was a single published

novel. Like most American postmodern literatures or movies, this novel is not ended by clear

statement, but the readers can guess what will happen next. In fact this condition is really

advantage for the publisher to continue the market, moreover at that time the series of Harry

Potter was really famous. Harry Potter series is from England. I do not know it is a kind of

publishing method or what but for sure American publisher thought Twilight Saga is a good

competitor for Harry Potter especially because of the same background of the writers, either

Stephenie Meyer or JK. Rowling are housewives. That is why in the second book, New

Moon, readers could feel the drag of the story which is so heavy to be fluent. It seems that the

1 A Paper for American Popular Literature Class, May 22nd 2009

2 A Student of American Studies, Gadjah Mada University, Indonesia

writer should think a lot how to create the saga as creative as possible, but as normal as

possible also.

When I tried to do a little ‘research’, I found that Twilight was made in two views of

the main characters, in Bella’s view (female main character) and Edward’s view (male main

character). It is proven in the last saga, Midnight Sun: Edward’s Story, the copyright was in

2006 while in the novel was printed in 2008 although the publishing plan is in 2009.

Unlike Harry Potter which is published every two year, this saga is published every

year. Since it got its fame, American market pushed it to bring this story into moving picture.

The movie was launched last year, on December 12 2008, and got its big success. It also

followed by releasing the DVD in March 2009. The packaging of this product through all

things about it including making some biography books of Robert Pattinson (Edward

character) and Kristen Steward (Bella character), even they also produce Pattinson’s song in

one beautiful case.

The novel of Twilight itself is made in two versions now. Since the movie got its big

success and many people became aware of Twilight world, the publisher launches the movie

version of the novel. So the early cover of the novel is never replaced by the movie picture

because the original one still uses a picture of hands hold an apple while the movie version

uses a picture of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Steward as the cover of the book.

For those who want to get more information about the novel and the movie, you may

google it in www.stepheniemeyer.com. But if you want to join being the fans of this saga,

you may sign up in www.twilightsaga.com. Even for those who really love to the main

characters you may click www.edwardbella.com, and many more.

The second movie, New Moon, will release this year, exactly in November 20 2009. It

will be produced by the same production house like the first, Summit Entertainment, but

different director. If in the first saga, it was directed by female director, Catherine Hardwicke,

the second saga will be directed by Chris Weitz. Most of the actors and actress are the same

since this is the sequel.

ANALYSIS

WHAT MODERN FANTASY IS

Fantasy derives from the adjective fantastic; it is from Latin word, phantasticus,

meaning that which is visible, visionary, and unreal. By that meaning, the sense that comes to

us is all imaginary activity is fantastic and all literary works are fantasies.

Meanwhile Rosemary Jackson in her book entitled Fantasy: The Literature of

Subversion, stated that fantasy, both in literature and out of it, associated with imagination

and with desire has made it an area difficult to articulate or to define, and the ‘value’ of

fantasy seems to reside in precisely this resistance to definition, in its ‘free-floating’ and

escapist qualities. Literary fantasies have appeared to be ‘free’ from many of the convention

and restrains of more realistic texts. Literature of the fantastic has been claimed as

‘transcending’ reality, ‘escaping’ the human condition and constructing superior alternate,

‘secondary’ worlds.

Since I would like to discuss about the modern fantasy through these novels, so I also

have to give a meaning to the word modern. Modern refers to all characteristics of social and

cultural product which are based on three ideas: idea of progress, idea of freedom and idea of

democracy. Those lead human to some revolutionaries such as scientific revolution,

technological revolution and political revolution. It means the era happened after the late of

eighteenth century; the point is at which industrialization transformed western society. So the

fantasies seemed produced in capitalist economy society.

Based on Jackson’s book also, it states that modern fantasy is rooted in ancient myth,

mysticism, folklore, fairy tale and romance. It seems that fantasy provides a range of

possibilities out of which various combinations produce different kinds of fiction in different

historical situations.

So fantasy is nothing to do with inventing another non-human world. It has to do with

inverting elements of this world, re-combining its constitutive in new relations to produce

something strange, unfamiliar and apparently ‘new’, absolutely ‘other’ and different.

Sartre claimed that the fantastic, in becoming humanized, approaches the ideal purity

of its essence, becomes what it had been. In this case, fantasy literature has different function;

it does not invent supernatural regions, but presents a natural world inverted into something

strange, something ‘other’. It becomes ‘domesticated’, humanized, turning from

transcendental explorations to transcriptions of a human condition.

In short, modern fantasy is a literary work which combines some genres in one story,

still shows its characteristic of being strange, other, new but without dismissing the humanity

in it.

THE APPROACH USED

In his book of Adventure, Mystery, and Romance: Formula Stories as Art and

Popular Culture, Cawelti explained that there are three approaches can be applied in the

cultural functions or significance of literature, they are: impact theories, deterministic

theories, and symbolic or reflective theories.

From three approaches introduced by Cawelti, I prefer to use the last one, it is about

symbolic or reflective theories. According to this approach, the work of art consists of a

complex of symbols or myths that are imaginative orderings of experience. That is why it

rejects the more extreme forms of reductive determinism by granting a special kind of

autonomy to artistic expression.

According to this approach, symbols and myths are means by which a culture

expresses the complex of feelings, values, and ideas it attaches to a thing or idea.

Especially in fantasy literature, there is no exact convention of the work since it has to

be free of it. It must produce something new, strange, and other but still in human world

condition.

According to Dostoevsky, true fantasy must not break the hesitation experienced by

the reader in interpreting events. It also must be so close to the real that you almost have to

believe in it.

THE STORY IS ALL ABOUT

The story of this series starts when Isabella Swan moves from Phoenix to Fork, a

small town in Washington State, America. She moves there because her mother, who got

divorced with her father, Charlie, remarried with a soccer player, Phil, and has to move from

town to town but later settle in Florida. So Bella wants to stay with her father, who is alone

for fifteen years.

In this place, she meets Edward Cullen, an introvert and freak, but handsome and

genius student. Many girls in the school want to be his girl friend. Unfortunately none of

them seems proper for him. No one knows that he is a vampire. His foster father is a doctor

and respected by many people in the town including Bella’s father, Chief Charlie Swan.

In this town also she meets Jacob Black, a son of Billy Black, a chief of Quileute

tribe. He is appointed by his nature belief being a werewolf and his father is Bella’s father’s

best friend. As an Indian, he lives and goes to school in reservation.

Both of these boys love Bella. Even Bella loves Edward very much, but she also has

good relationship with Jacob. Having good relationship with them makes Bella knows every

little thing about vampire’s and werewolf’s life.

The Modern Fantasy ‘touch’ through Twilight Saga

As it is stated before, Modern fantasy is rooted in ancient myth, mysticism, folklore,

fairy tale and romance. It is very clear that the myth used in this saga is vampire and

werewolf.

Vampire is an ancient myth from Russia; the famous name of it is Dracula. Dracula

that was really exist is a name of cruel King who killed human by using long hot iron from

human’s anus to mouth in Normandy era. It is used to describe how horrible this creature. So

common story talking about vampire must be in horror situation. This creature caught the

prey, which must be a human, by soaking human’s neck to get the blood. Human blood is

their meal for life. It appears in dark night by wearing black robe, showing sharp teeth, and

staring eyes. While in the day time, the vampire just stays or sleeps in their coffins. It seems

that they are corpses rejected by God.

While werewolf is an ancient myth from Indians. This creature is a human that is

cursed by sorcerer. Werewolf is also called children of moon, because in folklore they appear

in moonlight. They eat human body. So, like vampire this story is also scary. But they are just

ordinary human, they just change the appearance in full moon.

But in Stephenie Meyer’s work, it does not appear. Either in vampire family or in

werewolves pack, she does not mention the mean things. She introduces the vampire as

vegetarian ones; they do not consume human blood but soak animal blood. Meanwhile in

werewolf story, she explores that a boy could change into that form when he is in adolescent

age and because of appointed descendent.

This saga breaks the concept of myths that become convention about vampire and

werewolf before. I will describe the difference as the following:

Vampire

So far people have a mindset that vampire is a creature who consumes human blood

by biting the neck’s prey. They are described as devils who cannot bear of Cross, and other

religious symbols. They are also afraid to be in a bright place. If it happens, they will be

vanished or change to the dust.

In this novel, vampire is described as nice person who lives in normal society and

they consume alive animal’s blood (in this novel mentioned grizzly bear, deer and lion)

instead of human.

They are not afraid of Cross because it is part of their life and they also are not

vanished because of light. They just avoid a bright light because it makes their bodies like

crystal, which is very weird for human normal life.

They even do not sleep in coffin because the vampire characters in this saga live in

large, beautiful and open house. They have complete furniture but they less use it such as

kitchen and bed. They do not use kitchen because they never have normal meal so they do not

have to cook. They also never sleep. So, bed just has artificial meaning.

Werewolf

Almost similar with vampire, in the old concept, werewolf consumes human’s flesh.

But in this story they eat human food but in a big portion. They just hurt human when for the

first time they transform into werewolf. It happens because for the first time they feel

disappointed and uncomfortable with their condition. In Indians belief, werewolf was an

appointed person for saving human life.

Also in past concept, the appointed people change into werewolf in the full moon, but

in this novel, human change into werewolf when his or her emotion getting higher. In the last

concept there is no female werewolf, but Meyer introduces the different form but of course in

human way explaining how if a girl change into a werewolf. But basically werewolf appears

when it is needed, again, to help human.

The romance used in this saga is forbidden love. The love story between Bella who is

human and Edward who is vampire makes this novel more interesting. The way Meyer

conveys the story is so natural as teenagers’ puppy love into the serious one. Even when

Bella also has relationship with Jacob, the writer describes it as human as possible. Whatever

the creature is, they still have human feeling.

Even though this saga tell about ancient myth, but the readers do not feel ancient

nuance in it; it is not only because of the romance or the setting she used but also because of

the mixture of the story. In each novel, the writer explores how the vampire past story, their

dream, and the regulation they have to obey in vampire community. The story of fighting

happens to maintain the existence of them.

Let me tell you some detail through this saga in each novel;

Twilight

This is the first saga which become the ‘cause’ of all the stories. Like what I said

before, the ending of this novel is not provided by clear statement. In the last sentence of the

first novel states “And he leaned down to press his cold lips once more to my throat”. Every

reader will think that it means Edward will change Bella into vampire transformation. But

unfortunately, the series of the book made Bella has to wait until the last book.

This first saga tells us about the relationship between Edward and Bella from the very

beginning. It also gives us some information about the kinds of vampire used in the book

(vegetarian and the common one), their lifestyle which is very prosperous (they never wear

the clothes had been worn before, they also used a very luxurious car because they love

driving fast), and the treaty between The Cullens and the Quileutes.

This prohibited love becomes the trigger of the continuous story. If this story does not

exist, the problems facing illogic myth through human life will not expose.

New moon

Since Edward left Fork, Bella became very depressed. Fortunately she has Jacob as

her close friend to escape from Edward memory. In this novel, we can understand the life of

werewolf. Unlike vampire family who is very rich, werewolves’ life is very simple. Because

they are Indians, so they live in reservation.

But in this novel also, love dilemma appear; how Bella has to choose between Jacob

and Edward. Her choice to save Edward made her understand about the highest power in

vampire community, it is Volturi Coven who lives in Italy. This coven has prerogative right

to punish disobedient member.

Eclipse

The third saga is really wonderful fantasy because it tells us how werewolves pack

and vampire community get together to save human life. It seems there is no border between

these two different creature lives. Each of them explains their secret even for the very

weakness one.

In this novel also Jacob has to realize that Bella prefer to choose Edward better than

him for her life. In the last part of this novel shows how they get married in spite of their plan

to continue their study to university.

Breaking dawn

The incredible fantasy also happens in this saga. The writer explores what will happen

if human and vampire get married. She describes it in very detail one, including the sexual

relationship. This is the longest saga compared with the others.

Based on the myth, vampire never has children from their marriage. But this is special

marriage, between human and vampire. So that Bella never prepare if someday she becomes

a mother. She and Edward just think having an adopted child. Unexpectedly she gets

pregnant. The plot in this story makes the readers also imagine what kind of child they will

have. Even though readers can guess it but the way is really unpredictable that Bella who is

human has to drink human blood for her baby’s life.

The suspense arises when Bella delivers the baby without doctor and gets bleeding.

Vegetarian vampire has a right to change Bella into vampire transformation since she has no

choice. Jacob cannot do anything. He blames the baby. But when he sees the baby, he finally

realizes that the girl is his imprinting.

Getting married with human is a big sin in vampire community. And having baby

from that marriage is even worse. Again, the Cullens have to get support from other vampire

covens and the werewolf pack to face Volturi’s decision. Although the story has happy

ending but the sense is so flat. It seems the writer gets tired with this kind of imaginative

story.

Midnight Sun

Actually The Breaking Dawn is the last novel of this saga. But like I said before, a

single story novel that had been prepared for two views (Bella’s view and Edward’s view)

becomes different in applying because of market demand.

Midnight Sun is Twilight in Edward’s view. So anything that we do not understand in

the first saga will be answered in this novel, for example when Edward’s eyes always meet

Bella’s. It is not because Edward enchanted by her since the first sight, but because he hears

someone’s mind thinking about him and Bella.

So if you want to know more about vampire’s way of life, feeling and thought, just

read this book.

THE FORMULA OF MODERN FANTASY THROUGH TWILIGHT SAGA

Formula is a combination or synthesis of a number of specific cultural conventions

with a more universal story form or archetype. It is also similar in many ways to the

traditional literary conception of a genre.(Cawelti:5)

Like the other fantasy stories, Twilight Saga also uses the common formula of it.

There are four major points of the formula; they are the character, the time, the space and the

content of the story. Let me tell you the formula through this saga:

1. The main characters must be inhuman

Like we all know in the novels that the two main characters are vampire (Edward) and

werewolf (Jacob). They are inhuman even though they live in human community,

pretend to be real human, and understand the human life. I do not think there is

inhuman creature around us which has that way of life.

2. There is no time limit

Being vampire and werewolf means they will live forever. No matter how long they

live in the world, they still stay young. If vampire will stay in the age in which he or

she transformed into vampire, but werewolf will be young forever when they were in

their 25 year. Before that, the werewolf will be getting older fast, faster than their real

age. Like in this novel, when Jacob is just 16 but his physical appearance is like a man

who is 25. While Edward, as a vampire, is still stay in his 17 because he had been

transformed into that form in his 17.

So, both of them can life in any kinds of era. Like Edward in this novel, he had been

living in the World War I, great depression or World War II and he still lives in post

modern era like right now.

3. There is no space limit

Even though the source of the myth used in these novels is from Russia, but the space

used in these books are around the world. And people around the world also accept it

as part of the folktale. For example, Carlisle is from Europe. He was a son of a priest

in Italy but his life experience brings him into America. He learns about many kinds

of medical things in many universities around the world, again, by using his former

age. So people thing he is the youngest genius doctor in the world.

Besides that, from the stories we also know that there are a lot of vampire covens

around the world, for instance Volturi coven, Alaska coven, Australia coven, even in

the Africa. But please do not be paranoid because like in the fourth formula, the

content of fantasy story is illogic.

4. The content of the story is illogic

Although the story of inhuman characters (vampire and werewolf) in these novels live

with human but to have good relationship among them (human and inhuman) is

impossible. This impossible situation happened among Bella (human), Edward

(vampire) and Jacob (werewolf); they do not only have good relationship but also

good cooperation. That is why they help each other if one of them getting hard

situation.

It is illogic for human to get married with vampire and have a child that make the

world almost destroyed because of that. So the marriage between Bella and Edward

and their child which is imprinting for Jacob is really something beyond our logic as

human. And becomes very strange too, if there is a court for such false which done by

Volturi.

I do not believe in the existence of those inhuman characters in the world including

their behavior, and I think most people in the world do, too.

Cannot be denied that the success of Twilight Saga is because of some new inventions

in it. Unlike the conventional fantasy story, this saga deconstructs the characters appearance

and the influence to the readers’ mind. Indeed, this saga is not the pioneer of it. There are

some other works used it before; and the readers love it. Like in the introduction I explained,

this work gets a lot of attention for young readers to discuss about. Moreover this saga can

defeat Harry Potter’s popularity; one of the evidence is Nickelodeon Award.

So far, we know that the existence of inhuman creature in fantasy story is a horror

thing. The suspense happens when the creature appears to destroy human life and the drama

becomes more interesting when the human try to save his or her life and in the end he or she

is successful. He or she becomes the hero or the heroin especially if he or she is able to save

other human’s life and destroy the inhuman existence and the world back into the normal

condition.

But in this saga, we cannot find that way. It is not human who becomes the hero in

this story. The characters of inhuman, in this case, vampire and werewolf which are the

heroes. They do not destroy human life but they save it. So when Edward said, ”What about

if I’m not a hero? What about if I’m a bad guy?”, Bella did not believe it. He is the one who

save her life.

Their physical appearance also does not make the readers scared. Edward who is a

vampire described as someone who is handsome, fashionable, rich, smart and well shape.

Jacob who is werewolf described as someone who is creative, simple, good looking, manly

and well shape, too. So the readers can imagine how attractive these two men. They think

these creatures are the ideal male characters in human life, especially for the ladies. So the

readers enjoy the existence of these inhuman even pro to them because their appearance is

beyond of the horror figurative view.

Like I explain in the previous part that there are some different concepts between the

last and the new ones about the way of life run by these two inhuman characters in this saga.

It is related with the food they consume, the place they choose, the thought they have, and the

reason behind their action. It is also the detailed new inventions conveyed by the writer. As

the reader, we can imagine two parts of each side.

Such as the vegetarian vampires that do not consume the human blood but animal

blood. May be it is good, not being horror one for human life. But hunting alive animal

without weapon and bite it directly is different matter; the reader still feel the disgusting

thing.

Or just think about Jacob and the pack when they transformed into werewolf. It is

very illogic that they should destroy their clothes or put them off first in emergency situation.

We will count how many clothes should they buy for their daily need. We also cannot avoid

the imagination of the nakedness, especially because one member of the pack is a girl. Even

though the writer tries to make it as smooth as possible but our logic mind will always

consider about it.

Another new invention is about the regulation or treaty between the vampire

community and the werewolf pack. We know, so far, that inhuman life is like predator

system. But in this work we find that they have system that similar with human’s. They use

the treaty to make their life peaceful especially because they live in human community and

they do not want to be recognized as unnormal creatures by the normal ones. So, although

this story is fantasy but the readers can imagine the odd things in normal and enjoyable way.

Then, by the exposition above, I think there are four points of the new invention in

this saga:

1. The hero or the heroin is not human anymore, even the inhuman character could be

the hero or heroine. Their relationship with human is good and cooperative.

2. The story is not horror anymore. The readers enjoy it because it is not only talking

about the weird of the inhuman characters and how they hunt human but it also can

drive to many kinds of story such as romance or action.

3. The nice physical appearance for each inhuman character is really attractive for the

readers. There are no horror staring, haunt teeth, long black robe and odd make up in

the vampire characters.

4. This story uses some logical explanation so the readers are able to understand and

have different view through imaginative characters. The readers do not only think

about the imaginative figure and imaginative story but they also understand why the

story happened or why the characters do the action.

Of course the new inventions happened not only because of the creativity of the writer

but also because of the boredom level felt by the readers. So, maybe someday the new

invention will become a new genre or there will be new other invention done by other writer

to avoid the readers’ boredom.

CONCLUSION

The books that Stephanie Meyer wrote is a part of literature that use language as the

medium. It means that language can influent human mindset in analyzing culture even it

changes modern life view about culture.

Literature is social and cultural product. The myth, folklore, and romance are the

product of culture. You may believe in myth or folklore as cultural product which have

values. You may use the romance as means in social relationship through cultural touch. But

you cannot ignore that society will change time to time because human is really dynamic. So

it also influents to the culture including the product.

Such as in Twilight Saga, the writer exposes this kind of myth in different way. If in

the conventional one we know the story of vampire and werewolf are related with something

horror, in this novel the writer tells it in normal humanity life such as romance and action that

is very enjoyable to discuss about.

So fantasy story is not merely story beyond human life. To be humanized, it must talk

about human and all about his life.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cawelti, John G. Adventure, Mystery, and Romance: Formula Stories as Art and

Popular Culture. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1976

Jackson, Rosemary. Fantasy: the literature of Subversion. Inforum Ltd, Portsmouth.

USA.1981

Meyer, Stephenie. Twilight. Little, Brown and Company. New York. USA 2005

______________ . New Moon. Little, Brown and Company. New York. USA.2006

______________ . Eclipse. Little, Brown and Company. New York. USA 2007

______________ . Breaking Dawn. Little, Brown and Company. New York. USA

2008

______________ . Midnight Sun. Little, Brown and Company. New York. USA 2009

______________ . Stephenie Meyer: Unofficial Bio. www.stepheniemeyer.com

______________ . Twilight the Movie. www.stepheniemeyer.com

Suryo, Djoko. Memikirkan Kembali Paradigma Ilmu Humaniora Untuk Menghadapi Persoalan Masa Kini. A Paper discussed in Dies Natalis of 63th Humanity Faculty. Gadjah Mada University, February 26 2009.

The Assignment of American Popular Literature

THE MODERN FANTASY

IN STEPHENIE MEYER’S TWILIGHT SAGA

Itsna Syahadatud Dinurriyah

08/274895/PMU/5413

American Studies Graduate Program

Gadjah Mada University

2009