About midway through watching New Moon with two friends, I realized I was having a lightbulb moment. I got it. Suddenly, in the theater, I realized why this series is so popular, why all the criticisms of Meyer's work slide off like it is made of teflon, how the story of a somewhat codependent teenager torn between two increasingly controlling objects of affection is enticing enough to spend weeks on best-seller lists and to break box office records. To condescend toward this type of fandom is a mistake (even if said snarking is both hilarious and on point). In order to unlock the saga's chokehold on teens, we must use its own conventions. In other words - we need to learn how to reach teens from Twilight.

This may seem like a strange admission to make. After all, feminists and fans of young adult literature alike have been warning against Stephanie Meyer's siren song for years now. Newser points out how many of the headlines surrounding the massive success of the franchise focus on the sexism inherent in the series. Grady Hendrix, writing for Slate, notes:

Just as America's young men are being given deeply erroneous ideas about sex by what they watch on the Web, so, too, are America's young women receiving troubling misinformation about the male of the species from Twilight. These women are going to be shocked when the sensitive, emotionally available, poetry-writing boys of their dreams expect a bit more from a sleepover than dew-eyed gazes and chaste hugs. The young man, having been schooled in love online, will be expecting extreme bondage and a lesbian three-way.

Even Ms. Magazine, which has remained somewhat indifferent to pop culture, gets in on the action, with Carmen D. Siering explaining:

Fans of the books, and now a movie version, often break into "teams," aligning them- selves with the swain they hope Bella will choose in the end: Team Edward or Team Jacob. But few young readers ask, "Why not Team Bella?" perhaps because the answer is quite clear: There can be no Team Bella. Even though Bella is ostensibly a hero, in truth she is merely an object in the Twilight world. Bella is a prize, not a person, someone to whom things happen, not an active participant in the unfolding story. [...]

Maybe it's difficult for Edward to see Bella as an equal because Bella has almost no personality. Meyer writes on her website that she "left out a detailed description of Bella in the book so that the reader could more easily step into her shoes." But Meyer fails to give Bella much of an interior life as well; Bella is a blank slate, with few thoughts or actions that don't center on Edward. Outside of him and occasional outings with werewolf Jacob, Bella doesn't do anything more than go to school, cook and clean for her dad, write to her mother, read and romanticize over Victorian literature and find fault with her clothing. She has no other interests, no goals, few friends: Bella does nothing that suggests she is a person in her own right. If Meyer hopes that readers see themselves as Bella, what is it she is suggesting to them about the significance of their own lives?

And indeed, there is much to hate about the series. Hell, I even put forth an analysis of racism within the series.

So how can I suddenly advocate to understand Twilight, instead of destroying it?

I speak not to disprove what others spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do know.

To be a teenager is a difficult thing. Desires war against common sense, ephemeral things (like boy bands) take on deep, long lasting meaning, and you are devoted to friends, peers, and lovers. Everyone seems to want to separate you from what you want. And, even with the best intentions, those of us who hate Twilight are just feeding the mania. We bludgeon them with reason and forget two key things:

• 1. Fandom doesn't run on logic, and
• 2. A large part of exploring the boundaries of growing up is choosing things for ourselves - whether we make the wrong decisions or somehow stumble upon the right ones.

Sitting in the dark space I shared with another 40 or so people to watch the film last night, it dawned on me. I listened to the cheers that went up when Jacob Black removes his shirt for the first time, the laughter that erupted when Bella cracks her head while trying to cliff dive her way to Edward, and the radio silence when Edward confesses his undying commitment to Bella. I realized that Twilight does not represent a failure of feminism, but rather a golden opportunity to evaluate where we can focus on outreach.

How often do we get a non-personal opportunity to talk about issues with obsessive relationships? Promoting the idea of passive femininity and promoting an idea of controlling and all-powerful masculinity. While we may wince at the portrayals of Bella, Edward, and Jacob in the context of their relationships, it would be foolish to pretend that Meyer isn't just tapping into societal ideas surrounding heterosexual relationships and power dynamics that already exist. The documentary Micky Mouse Monopoly explores the messages portrayed in Disney films:

By exploring these themes with teen and preteen girls in a questioning, not a confrontational tone, adults can help them to discover for themselves why the things that Edward and Jacob do in the name of "love" are not okay. Conversely, teenage and pre-teen boys are also paying attention to the cues they are learning from Twilight. I was shocked last year to learn that my younger brother, whose sole ambition at the age of 11 is to sag his pants as low as possible, and to be as cool as possible by knowing every popular rap lyric on the radio, pulled out a Twilight DVD when I came to visit and offered to put it on "because this is what girls like." Apparently, his "girlfriend" - a term he defines as a female who gives him her phone number - and most of the other girls he knows love Edward or Jacob.

What are young boys learning about how to behave in relationships when they are exposed to Twilight?

A very similar message as to what they learn through Disney:

Just as Jacob started out as a genuinely nice kid who switched over to being a Nice Guy, when he realized Edward's tactics of being forceful and controlling were working on Bella, there are potentially thousands of boys who could decide that the way to win a girl's admiration is by emulating Jacob and Edward's controlling behaviors.

Only by understanding and critically engaging with the Twilight saga can parents and other adults start looking at what aspects of this series appeal to teens and where else they can channel their attention.

After all, the Twilight mania won't rule the world forever. The teenagers now will get older, a new crop of teen idols will arise. What will endure from Twilight won't necessarily be the messages of sexism - those are reinforced in thousands of different ways every day, and Stephanie Meyer will not be the last author to tap into them. What adults and pop culture critics should pay attention to is how Twilight breaks with many different conventions that have come to be accepted as normal. As Neesha writes on Racialicious, how often do girls get a chance to explore their budding sexuality in a safe (fantasy) space? I'm sure many of the young women who watch Twilight will have also seen the Transformers franchise, featuring Megan Fox as hyper-sexualized eye candy. How often do they see a movie geared at teens and young adults that allows for the main heroine to wear double layer shirts and oversized jackets? And how often do studios discount budding adolescent desire, and fail to consider that perhaps, girls would also like to see attractive, shirtless men parade around on screen?

Indeed, the mania resulting from New Moon and other parts of Twilight saga allows more than just an easy feminist critique - it also allows the opportunity for adults to influence the great Twilight-after. Eventually, all of the books will be read, and all of the movies will be left. What could be next? Can they help to exert small variations in the narrative by encouraging teens to write their own fan fiction (and guide Bella in their own ways)? Can they recommend other books to fill the aching gap left by the end of the Twilight saga with similar content but more progressive leanings? (Try Kelley Armstrong's The Summoning, Tamora Pierce's Song of the Lioness quartet, The Silver Kiss and Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause, The Uglies Series, by Scott Westerfeld, and Magic or Madness by Justine Larbalestier, for starters.)

There is so much possibility within the world that Meyer has created to reach out to teens. And the way to do it isn't by dismissing their fandom, but engaging within their world, on their terms. As Nancy Gibbs writes in Time magazine, "Kids, like adults, resist force-feeding."

We can't force anyone to take their medicine. But what adults can do is allow teens the space to explore, grow, and come to their own conclusions on their own time. All they need to do is be ready, and willing.

O judgment! thou teens art fled to both brutish beasts (vamp and were),
And women have lost their reason. Bear with me;
Their hearts are in the coffin there with Edward (or in the forest, with Jacob),
And I must pause till they are ready to hear me.

New Moon' Breaks Midnight Record [Box Office Mojo]
LDS Sparkledammerung IS HERE! [Stoney321's LiveJournal]
New Moon Sexist, Say Critics [Newser]
Vampires Suck [Slate]
Talking Back to Twilight (Partial Article, Full in Print Only) [Ms.]
Running With the Wolves – A Racialicious Reading of the Twilight Saga [Racialicious]
Mickey Mouse Monopoly: Disney, Childhood & Corporate Power [Media Education Foundation]
Friends [XKCD]
Disney, Twilight and Bollywood: Reinforcing the Purity Myth or Fantasy of Safe Sexual Exploration for Young Girls (and Their Mothers)? [Racialicious]
The Gospel of Glee [Time]

First things first: yes, K.Stew's posture betrays her habitual ambivalence, but she looks flat-out lovely.


...and a million teenage girls swoon. He's obviously learned he can show up hung over and it makes no difference, so he does.


Why, you ask, was Joan Jett here? We don't question it (but we're pretty sure it has to do with the Joan Jett biopic Kristen is starring in).


Even in cruel shoes and hinting at her gothic villain tendencies, Dakota Fanning looks sweet, poised, and perfect.


Disco-ready sequinage like Anna Kendrick's was, not shockingly, practically de rigeur.


Exhibit B: Actress Christian Serratos.


Lea Michele, meanwhile, sheds her nerd duds, impresses Joan Jett with her pipes, leathah. (Her shoes might be more comfy with an insole. Or five.)


One imagines that Mary Murphy's screams rivaled the tween twi-hards. Her dress is made for easy shrieking.


I think Madeline Carroll dresses for all teen Twi-hards in this Gothic situation.


The always-restrained Emma Roberts shows a quieter approach to vampire-appropriate sparkles.


Jennifer Love Hewitt is an old hand at teen fans, talking with the dead. No wonder she looks so relaxed.


Jailbait Taylor Lautner looks suave beyond his years.


On the one hand, I like the whole deco thing Stephanie Meyer's doing. On the other, this is odd and not terribly flattering. What say you?


Actress Noot Seear brings us an ugly, a palpable ugly.

[Images via Getty]

Since Cougars and New Moon are the biggest stories of the year, it's no shock that there are two - count 'em, two - stories about the older Twi-hard phenom today. Cue plenty of easy cracks about hot flashes and vampire-level body temps, but really, why shouldn't they? Any phenom worth its salt by definition has cross-appeal, right? Yeah, they're tween books. But no phenomenon can run on Teen Spirit alone. That's no shock, but the shame element is new. After all, whereas Harry Potter love just involves a certain amount of geeking out, there's the whole sexual element to Twilight.

Says CNN,

Since so many of "Twilight" fan sites were overrun with teenagers, adult women have erected their own digital havens for fans who could take only so much of the "OMG Edward's so hot!!!" reaction to "Twilight." There's Hansen's Twilight Moms Web site, which she started for married women and mothers who want to revel in their "Twilight" fandom, and sites like 49-year-old Patricia Kopicki's, which is for any adult "Twilight" fan, parent or not.

And, after all, Edward Cullen is, like, 108, anyway, right? Plus, a vampire. Plus, a fictional character. If it weren't escapism, it wouldn't work. (As one commenter sagely noted during a discussion of Star Trek, "we're not talking about Zachary Quinto. We are talking about Spock. Remember this distinction.") It's oft been said that the books appeal because they capture that feverish teen love so accurately. As this week's New York Magazine puts it, "Twilight taps into a time when passion is as much about fantasy as reality, before drunken college hookups, before booty calls, before scheduling sex into a marriage. Twilight reinvents sex for women who might have placed it at the bottom of a to-do list." And as one older fan tells CNN, "I wouldn't go back to dealing with teenage love in a million years. I'm happily married and I have a great relationship, so it's not that I feel that 'Twilight' is filling a void...the appeal is that it's very simple and pure and it outlines this love story of someone who's average and normal with this stellar, amazing person who has eyes for no one but her and could save her from anything."

It kind of makes me sad that these women have to justify loving the books, or having fantasies. I thought that was the point of fantasies. The judgey poster who New York quotes as saying "The only people obsessed with Twilight are teens and fat suburban moms from the Midwest," probably explains why a lot of people want to keep their fixation in the closet. I'm more curious about how the Twi-hard daughters feel about their crush being co-opted, but morally I don't see why anyone should care. Okay, within reason, as CNN makes clear:

But when the actors are under 18, like Taylor Lautner, the 17-year-old who plays Jacob, is, all of the women agree that a line has to be drawn on the swooning."We're very careful about that, because even to me that would feel creepy," Hansen said. "And then we have the mothers who say, 'oh my gosh he's the same age as my son!'"

Older Women Crave 'New Moon' Vampires [CNN]
‘Twilight,' Take Me Away! [New York]

• A member of Israel's "modesty patrol," an all-male vigilante group, has been sentenced to four years in prison for the brutal gang assault of an Israeli divorcee. • Bone tests reveal that Chinese athletes have been faking their ages to compete in junior events. • Ugh: Last week the Arizona House voted to impose new restrictions on women seeking to have abortions, including an enforced 24 hour waiting period and a mandatory lecture. The bill also allows pharmacists to refuse EC, even to rape victims. • Not even sex is recession-proof: sex toy sales have fallen in France, according to sector specialists. • Thanks to Twilight author Stephanie Meyer, French teens are rediscovering Emily Brontë's classic dark novel Wuthering Heights. • Monday got you down? Here are some adorable pictures of a baby panda. • With 670 women dead per 100,000 live births, Haiti has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the Western hemisphere. • A study from Cornell University found that women with advanced math abilities are more likely to chose a field not related to mathematics than men with similar skills. • According to Sociological Images Singapore Airlines are known for their advertising featuring "Singapore Girls" - pretty, smiling girls who "have become a symbol of Singapore itself." • Most Australian voters in Beaudesert, Queensland say that they don't really give a crap about parliamentary candidate Pauline Hanson's nude photo scandal. • At 80, Jaswantiben Jamnadas Popat is the only surviving member of a group of housewives who founded Lijjat Papad, a multimillion dollar company which sells the popular Indian wafers called poppadoms. • Today, two female cops became the first women to direct traffic in Rome's Piazza Venezia. • New research from Denmark shows that early pacifier use may lead to shorter periods of breastfeeding. • Drew Peterson's stepbrother Tom Morphey went on Good Morning America today and confessed to suspicions about Peterson's involvement with his wife Stacy's disappearance. "He was planning on killing somebody," Morphey said. • 

While there is nothing wrong with enjoying a little Twilight or Harry Potter here and there, Ron Charles argues that this is all college students are reading. Instead of reaching for well-thumbed copies of Sylvia Plath or Allen Ginsberg, our nations undergrads are buying "The Tales of Beedle the Bard" or even worse, Tucker Max's terrifyingly popular "book" "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell".

This latest iteration of the old "kids today!" gripe is mostly based on anecdotal evidence, but Charles does have some numbers to back up his claims. Charles relies on data from the Chronicle of Higher Education about the best selling books on college campuses, which are "mostly about hunky vampires or Barack Obama." He connects this trend to the recent upswing in conservative students:

A new survey of the attitudes of American college students published by the University of California at Los Angeles found that two-thirds of freshmen identify themselves as "middle of the road" or "conservative." Such people aren't likely to stay up late at night arguing about Mary Daly's "Gyn/Ecology" or even Robert Pirsig's "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance."

According to Charles, the decline of card-carrying liberals has led to a generation of "vampire-loving boneheads" (because being politically moderate and enjoying Stephanie Meyer automatically makes someone an idiot). It seems that even literature students are rejecting Melville in favor of escapist fantasy. Professor Eric Williamson says, "There is nary a student in the classroom — and this goes for English majors, too — who wouldn't pronounce Stephen King a better author than Donald Barthelme or William Vollmann."

Full disclosure: I am currently an undergrad, working toward my BA in American Literature, and I am not entirely unfamiliar with the situation described by Charles. His fears that students are no longer getting their politics from contemporary books may very well may be true. However, like Mike Connery, writer for Future Majority, I'm not sure that this means students are entirely rejecting either great books or progressive politics. Connery says: "I don't know that there is a fiction writer out there right now who speaks to this generation's political ambitions. We're still waiting for our Kerouac." Could it be that there just hasn't been a great novel that speaks to our generation in the way that Hemingway and Kerouac once spoke to theirs? I certainly hope that this is the case, because if it turns out that Tucker Max is the true voice of America's youth, then we might as well give up and wait for the coming apocalypse.

On Campus, Vampires Are Besting The Beats [Washington Post]

Related: Students Pretty Much Expect B's For Breathing, Twilight's Stephanie Meyer Admits Her Writing Sorta Sucks

A Mother-Daughter Twilight Obsession [Time]