I never thought that a love triangle between a sparkling vampire, an average high school girl and a “sexy” werewolf would be the foundation for a main-stream obsession. In fact, I think it goes without saying that The Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyer is a full-blown pop culture phenomenon.
These novels captivated millions of readers and have sucked our society into a vampire frenzy. Aside from the facts that the books have sold millions of copies, the movie adaptations have made millions at the box office and there are millions of dollars of merchandise available to purchase, “Twilight” was simply a catalyst in the growing vampire obsession of our culture.
Programs such as “True Blood” and “The Vampire Diaries” cater to television audiences; one can find his or her vampire fix by almost every form of media or entertainment.
I have read the “Twilight” books, and I saw the movies. They were entertaining but certainly not at the top of my list of favorites. I will, however, proudly admit that I have probably seen every episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”
What is the attraction to vampires? Is it the forbidden romance between an immortal and a human?
Is it the described physical attraction of a blood-drinking superman?
Is it the dangerous, passionate encounters that the lovers risk?
It is easy to lose oneself inside such a fantasy. Most people desire to have a relationship with someone who will love them with the same intensity and devotion that the vampires show to their sweethearts.
Whatever the case may be, I wholeheartedly believe that vampires give women unrealistic expectations of men and of love. I have seen 40-year-old women more in love with Edward Cullen than Bella Swan is.
I have heard a married woman speak with more passion about Bill and Sookie than she spoke about her own husband.
I cringed the first time I heard about “TwiMoms,” consisting of middle aged women — nonetheless mothers — obsessing over teenage actors from a fictional story and being completely consumed by the story itself.
These obsessions are pathetic. It makes me so sad to see women more excited about fictional vampires than their own significant others.
I cannot imagine how the husbands and boyfriends out there must feel when their ladies rave on and on about Edward and how wonderful and perfect he is.
Imagine the relationship those couples could have if the women channeled the same adoration and excitement towards their own men that they channel towards the fictional characters who will never love them back.
Perfect vampire men put a lot of pressure on guys today; if he is not tall, handsome, mysterious, sensitive, strong, charming, overwhelmingly intelligent, suave or intensely sexy (not that these are qualities one should not hope for), he’s just not up to par. Not only are the vampires not real, but the relationships are also not real.
That is the beauty of the stories: they are fantasy. They are fantasy stories about fantasy characters with fantasy relationships, not to be confused with real life.
Real life with someone I love- — someone who is real, not perfect, who makes mistakes, with a real body and a real spirit — will always be better than a fantasy novel. Rejoice in the fact that we can still enjoy the fantasy of vampires without crossing the line of what is real and what is not.
Mary Chase Breedlove is a sophomore majoring in communication and English. She can be contacted at [email protected].