First off, it appears that Stephanie Meyers used social networking and the Internet to promote herself and her book and it worked wonders. Stephanie Myers personal site was used by Meyers as, "she directly engaged with her readers. When fans posted messages, Meyer's response was personal. She'd write back or blog about it" (Susan Carpenter, ¶ 6). The idea of fans being able to directly communicate with the author and breaking down a barrier between themselves and the one who created the characters they love shouldn't be a surprise. But, for some reason, it seemed rare to me. Maybe I haven't been looking at the right author websites. So, obviously from the HUGE fan base and reader response to the Twilight series, the web worked wonders for Stephanie Meyers. To demonstrate just how big the Twilight fan base is, I found these two websites, Twilight Fan Page and Twihards.com
The Internet and technology has obviously bolstered Twilight, however is Twilight something to be taught in the classroom? In the article, Publishers Weekly children's book editor Diane Roback says that, "It [Twilight Series] speaks to this sort of exquisite pleasure of not being able to fulfill the relationship," Roback continues. "The books have a strong moral message, which is abstinence before marriage, and by choosing a vampire who does not want her to become a vampire, they're locked in that kind of struggle of the hormones that many teenagers find themselves in (Roback ¶ 16)." So, this book could help teens identify with the characters and the struggles of raging hormones. That's one lesson.
Some may say that Twilight lacks the serious literary quality necessary for classroom books, but what is one of the biggest reasons we choose the books we choose for classroom? They are classics, and they are classics because they abound in timeless, universal themes. Looking at the Twilight series from that point of view one can see that the story holds universal truths. For example, death, relationships, and what it means to be a moral human.
If the thought of studying the Twilight series in your classroom makes you squimish, perhaps an accompanying text might be useful. For example, do a whole lesson plan on vampires. Read the Bram Stroker's classic "Dracula" or "Twilight and Philosophy: Vampires, Vegetarians, and the Pursuit of Immorality" . Also, when teaching either "Dracula" or "Twilight" your class can explore the different movies, adaptions, websites, and even video games spawned from these stories - it's certainly an easy way to introduce the power of different mediums into your classroom.
Another thing to consider when possible teaching "Twilight" is the way the Cullen family is portrayed. "Vampires were a largely untapped subject in teen fiction. Meyer capitalized on this by inventing a breed of vampire that hadn't existed before. Morally evolved and stunningly beautiful, her vampires are socially acceptable because they eat animals, rather than humans And they have the added benefit of looking like supermodels (Carpenter ¶ 10). Would the beauty of the vampires have any affect on teens with self-image issues? It's something to think about.
Finally, I found this blog called Twilight Series: For Pleasure & For Pedagogy which gives a few more interesting reasons to teach Twilight in your classroom.At the end of the day, I don't really like "Twilight". It was alright, but I was never drawn into the books/movies and so I'm not sure if I would or wouldn't teach "Twilight" as I'm not vehemently for or against the books. I do however, find it very interesting how Myers used the world of social networking to connect with her fans and expand her popularity - just another example of the positives of technology.
When you say above, "Some may say that Twilight lacks the serious literary quality necessary for classroom books, but what is one of the biggest reasons we choose the books we choose for classroom? They are classics, and they are classics because they abound in timeless, universal themes." I don't really think of "Twilight" as a classic just yet. It is very popular with high school students, and I agree that it shouldn't be ignored, but my definition of a classic involves is being read for many generations. I do agree though, that if I were to teach it to my class I would definitely use another text to accompany it. Or even some films as well. Works like "Dracula" and "Nosferatu" would be great to talk about to high school students and talk about the vampire culture trend as well.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Twilight, but I think we need the distinction between pleasure reading and studying literature. For me I could sit and read twilight without really thinking about anything other than being Bella as I read. For me, it's definitely pleasure reading.
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