Reading Twilight So You Don't Have To: Chapter Ten
Sorry it's been a while. I actually read two chapters while I was on my vacation, but I didn't get around to writing down my comments. Then the week after was a blur of stuff to do, so... yeah. With limited free time, for some reason, I'm finding it hard to motivate myself to do this.
Chapter Nine
First, something random that occurred to me. If Edward has been 17 "for a long time," then how the heck do the Cullens explain it? And how and why is he going to school? Does he keep repeating senior year over and over? Do people ever wonder why the hell the Cullens never grow up? I can see Dr. Cullen pulling it off--Lord knows Dick Clark didn't age at all from 1957 to 2000+, and he managed to convince most of us he isn't the living undead. ;) But how do teenagers in a small town where everybody knows everybody else pull off never aging? And why didn't Edward finish school a long time ago, if he even wanted to at all? I hope there's some sort of explanation for all this forthcoming, because it really doesn't make any sense.
Okay, now that I got that out of my system, on to Chapter Ten: Interrogations.
After Bella confirms Edward is a vampire and decides she's "irrevocably in love with him" (whether or not he eats people), she walks out the door the next morning to find Edward there to pick her up for school.
"Do you want to ride with me today?" he asked, amused by my expression as he caught me by surprise yet again. There was uncertainty in his voice. He was really giving me a choice--I was free to refuse, and part of him hoped for that. It was a vain hope. (emphasis mine)
She actually finds it notable that he's giving her a choice. I think it's supposed to come off as endearing, like he's insecure, but it's much more: "Why, thank you, Master, for your kindness in offering me a choice about whether or not I get in the car with you. How magnanimous."
She notices his "perfectly muscled chest". (Don't take a drink.* No human can survive that much alcohol.)
He brings a jacket for her so she doesn't "get sick or something." She responds that she's "not that delicate" so, naturally, he has to make another crack about how she is completely helpless without him.
When they get to school, they see Jessica brimming with curiosity and Bella knows she's going to get ambushed later. And, of course, Edward will listen into (ie mindread) Jessica's half of the conversation when they do. Nothing says romance like your new boyfriend eavesdropping on what you tell your girlfriends about him! ::swoon:: Mike also sees her, and the poor boy is "resigned" to having lost the Amazing Bella to Edward. ::pet pet::
In Trig, Jessica finally gets her chance to interrogate Bella. There's three pages where she repeats for Jessica's benefit everything the reader already knows. Oh, and here's a choice one:
"I can't explain it right... but he's even more unbelievable behind the face." The vampire who wanted to be good--who ran around saving people's lives so he wouldn't be a monster...
In point of fact, he only saves her life, and he does it because he has a thing for her, not because he doesn't want to be a monster. Angel, now there's a vampire who had a saving-people-because-he-doesn't-want-to-be-a-monster complex. Because, you know, he actually saved people. Plural. Without telling them they were so clumsy they'd kill themselves without him. Geez, who knew there was a "good" vampire I'd respect less than I respect Angel?
Bella also confesses (knowing Edward is reading Jessica's mind and will "hear" everything she says to her) that she likes Edward "too much... More than he likes me." Then Bella finally is able to divert the topic to Mike and Jessica, but we don't get two pages of that (for which I'm grateful, don't get me wrong), because they are Not Bella And Edward and therefore Don't Matter.
Edward and Bella have lunch together, and Edward is bothered by the fact that Bella thinks she likes him more than he likes her. She explains that he always seems like he's "trying to say good-bye," then points out that he's perfectly perfect, while she's "absolutely ordinary." She goes on to list her faults ("near-death experiences and being so clumsy that I'm almost disabled." To which he replies, "You don't see yourself very clearly, you know. I'll admit you're dead-on about the bad things (because why pass up on opportunity to remind her she'll kill herself without him???)... but you didn't hear what every human male in this school was thinking on your first day."
She is "astonished." Despite the fact that every human male in the school hit on her, and she has five different guys actively pursuing her. Honestly, has there ever been a more Sue-ish Mary Sue, clumsiness notwithstanding?
Then he goes on to say how he'll leave or hurt himself rather than hurt her. Lord save me from the emo broodiness.
Oh, and then she briefly considers that she could put herself in danger to keep him close but "banishes that thought before his quick eyes read it on [her] face" because that would "definitely get [her] into trouble." Ya THINK? Oh, wait. She means in trouble with EDWARD. It's not that it's a terrible, awful, horrible, no good idea. It's that it would piss off EDWARD.
::headdesk::
They spend several more pages deciding to do something else together on Saturday instead of going to Seattle, since that was only her excuse to beg off going to the dance with all her other suitors. He mentions that she should tell her dad that she's going with him "To give me some small incentive to bring you back." She gulps, but decides she'll "take [her] chances." Do I even need to comment on that?
They talk about the family camping trips, wherein they hunt bears and mountain lions and whatnot instead of people. Emmet likes bears; Edward prefers mountain lions. She wants to go hunting with them (Uh, ewwww...), but he is horrified and will tell her later why.
So that's it. Half a day at school in which they talk about stuff we already mostly knew. Any wonder why I didn't rush home to write down my thoughts after reading this?
Chapter Eleven
--
*I suggested back in Chapter Three that there should be a Twilight drinking game in which you take one drink every time a Cullen is described as "perfect," and two if it's Edward. I quickly determined such a game would be lethal. Don't try this at home, kids.
Quick Links:
Why I'm doing this | Preface & 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 16.2 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | Epilogue |
Discussion Questions
Chapter Nine
First, something random that occurred to me. If Edward has been 17 "for a long time," then how the heck do the Cullens explain it? And how and why is he going to school? Does he keep repeating senior year over and over? Do people ever wonder why the hell the Cullens never grow up? I can see Dr. Cullen pulling it off--Lord knows Dick Clark didn't age at all from 1957 to 2000+, and he managed to convince most of us he isn't the living undead. ;) But how do teenagers in a small town where everybody knows everybody else pull off never aging? And why didn't Edward finish school a long time ago, if he even wanted to at all? I hope there's some sort of explanation for all this forthcoming, because it really doesn't make any sense.
Okay, now that I got that out of my system, on to Chapter Ten: Interrogations.
After Bella confirms Edward is a vampire and decides she's "irrevocably in love with him" (whether or not he eats people), she walks out the door the next morning to find Edward there to pick her up for school.
"Do you want to ride with me today?" he asked, amused by my expression as he caught me by surprise yet again. There was uncertainty in his voice. He was really giving me a choice--I was free to refuse, and part of him hoped for that. It was a vain hope. (emphasis mine)
She actually finds it notable that he's giving her a choice. I think it's supposed to come off as endearing, like he's insecure, but it's much more: "Why, thank you, Master, for your kindness in offering me a choice about whether or not I get in the car with you. How magnanimous."
She notices his "perfectly muscled chest". (Don't take a drink.* No human can survive that much alcohol.)
He brings a jacket for her so she doesn't "get sick or something." She responds that she's "not that delicate" so, naturally, he has to make another crack about how she is completely helpless without him.
When they get to school, they see Jessica brimming with curiosity and Bella knows she's going to get ambushed later. And, of course, Edward will listen into (ie mindread) Jessica's half of the conversation when they do. Nothing says romance like your new boyfriend eavesdropping on what you tell your girlfriends about him! ::swoon:: Mike also sees her, and the poor boy is "resigned" to having lost the Amazing Bella to Edward. ::pet pet::
In Trig, Jessica finally gets her chance to interrogate Bella. There's three pages where she repeats for Jessica's benefit everything the reader already knows. Oh, and here's a choice one:
"I can't explain it right... but he's even more unbelievable behind the face." The vampire who wanted to be good--who ran around saving people's lives so he wouldn't be a monster...
In point of fact, he only saves her life, and he does it because he has a thing for her, not because he doesn't want to be a monster. Angel, now there's a vampire who had a saving-people-because-he-doesn't-want-to-be-a-monster complex. Because, you know, he actually saved people. Plural. Without telling them they were so clumsy they'd kill themselves without him. Geez, who knew there was a "good" vampire I'd respect less than I respect Angel?
Bella also confesses (knowing Edward is reading Jessica's mind and will "hear" everything she says to her) that she likes Edward "too much... More than he likes me." Then Bella finally is able to divert the topic to Mike and Jessica, but we don't get two pages of that (for which I'm grateful, don't get me wrong), because they are Not Bella And Edward and therefore Don't Matter.
Edward and Bella have lunch together, and Edward is bothered by the fact that Bella thinks she likes him more than he likes her. She explains that he always seems like he's "trying to say good-bye," then points out that he's perfectly perfect, while she's "absolutely ordinary." She goes on to list her faults ("near-death experiences and being so clumsy that I'm almost disabled." To which he replies, "You don't see yourself very clearly, you know. I'll admit you're dead-on about the bad things (because why pass up on opportunity to remind her she'll kill herself without him???)... but you didn't hear what every human male in this school was thinking on your first day."
She is "astonished." Despite the fact that every human male in the school hit on her, and she has five different guys actively pursuing her. Honestly, has there ever been a more Sue-ish Mary Sue, clumsiness notwithstanding?
Then he goes on to say how he'll leave or hurt himself rather than hurt her. Lord save me from the emo broodiness.
Oh, and then she briefly considers that she could put herself in danger to keep him close but "banishes that thought before his quick eyes read it on [her] face" because that would "definitely get [her] into trouble." Ya THINK? Oh, wait. She means in trouble with EDWARD. It's not that it's a terrible, awful, horrible, no good idea. It's that it would piss off EDWARD.
::headdesk::
They spend several more pages deciding to do something else together on Saturday instead of going to Seattle, since that was only her excuse to beg off going to the dance with all her other suitors. He mentions that she should tell her dad that she's going with him "To give me some small incentive to bring you back." She gulps, but decides she'll "take [her] chances." Do I even need to comment on that?
They talk about the family camping trips, wherein they hunt bears and mountain lions and whatnot instead of people. Emmet likes bears; Edward prefers mountain lions. She wants to go hunting with them (Uh, ewwww...), but he is horrified and will tell her later why.
So that's it. Half a day at school in which they talk about stuff we already mostly knew. Any wonder why I didn't rush home to write down my thoughts after reading this?
Chapter Eleven
--
*I suggested back in Chapter Three that there should be a Twilight drinking game in which you take one drink every time a Cullen is described as "perfect," and two if it's Edward. I quickly determined such a game would be lethal. Don't try this at home, kids.
Quick Links:
Why I'm doing this | Preface & 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 16.2 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | Epilogue |
Discussion Questions