Twilight\" by Stephenie Meyer Twilight

¶ … Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

According to the theory of narrative, there exists "a level of structure -- what we generally call 'plot'." (Culler, 1997, p. 80) Moreover, according to Culler, the plot is "the material that is presented, ordered from a certain point-of-view by discourse… the plot is something readers infer from the text." (1997, p. 81) Since the plot is something that is inferred through the text, the text is crucial in analyzing any literary work. This paper, which aims to analyze Stephenie Meyer's Twilight, will include an analysis of the text or the discourse through which its plot could be inferred.

"Every narrative is said to have a narrator, who may stand outside the story or be a character within it." (Culler, 1997, p. 82) In Twilight, the story is narrated by a character within the story. Stephenie Meyer makes use of the 'first person narration', wherein, according to theorists, the narrator says "I," in order to present the story. The 'first person narration' illustrated by the following passage from Twilight:

My mother drove me to the airport with the windows rolled down. It was seventy-five degrees in Phoenix, the sky a perfect, cloudless blue. I was wearing my favorite shirt - sleeveless, white eyelet lace; I was wearing it as a farewell gesture. My carry-on item was a parka. (p. 2)

In Twilight, the story is narrated by Bella Swan, the protagonist of the story. According to Culler, 'first person narrators may be the main protagonists of the story they tell; they may be participants, minor characters in the story; or they may be observers of the story." (1997, p. 82) It has been said that first person narrators "may be fully developed as individuals with a name, history, and personality, or they may not be developed at all and quickly drop from sight as the narration gets under way, effacing themselves after introducing the story" (Culler, 1997, p. 82) As a narrator and a protagonist of the story, Bella Swan's character is fully developed. Bella Swan's history and personality is revealed in the story as illustrated in the passage below:

It was from this town and its gloomy, omnipresent shade that my mother escaped with me when I was only a few months old. It was in this town that I'd been compelled to spend a month every summer until I was fourteen. That was the year I finally put my foot down; these past three summers, my dad, Charlie, vacationed with me in California for two weeks instead. It was to Forks that I now exiled myself - an action that I took with great horror. I detested Forks. I loved Phoenix. I loved the sun and the blistering heat. I loved the vigorous, sprawling city. (p. 2)

From this passage, the reader can glean information about Bella Swan. Readers learn that Bella's parents are separated, that Bella and her mother left Forks when Bella was still a baby. Readers also learn that Bella even though her parents are separated and lived in different places, Bella maintained her relationship with his father by regularly seeing him every summer. Readers also get to know what Bella Swan is like through the things that she likes and does not like. The readers learn that Bella does not like Forks. She does not like the rain and the cold. She does not like a quiet and sleepy town. More importantly, this passage also establishes a crucial piece of information about Bella and the story; it is that Bella has decided to live in Forks and it is a great sacrifice on her part.

"Narration may be situated at the time in which events occur. Telling may immediately follow particular events." (Culler, 1997, p. 83) In Twilight, events aren't narrated after the whole sequence took place instead they are narrated immediately after they happen:

When the phone rang, I returned to the front room, a little ashamed of my behavior. I hoped I hadn't offended either of them, that they would know how grateful I was for the sacrifices they were making on my account. Alice was talking as rapidly as ever, but what caught my attention was that, for the first time, Jasper was not in the room. I looked at the clock -- it was five-thirty in the morning. (p. 258)

In the passage above, the narration is focalized from shortly after the time that the events occurred. In the same passage, only the narrator's perspective is known and limitation of knowledge is illustrated as it's only Bella Swan's perspective that the readers see. Through the first person narration which rendered a limited point-of-view, there is a sense of unpredictability in Twilight. The passage below wherein Bella narrates the events shortly after they happen and the dialogue she has with James, the hunter, showcase this air of unpredictability:

Then he slumped forward, into a crouch I recognized, and his pleasant smile slowly widened, grew, till it wasn't a smile at all but a contortion of teeth, exposed and glistening. I couldn't help myself -- I tried to run. As useless as I knew it would be, as weak as my knees already were, panic took over and I bolted for the emergency door. He was in front of me in a flash. I didn't see if he used his hand or his foot, it was too fast. A crushing blow struck my chest -- I felt myself flying backward, and then heard the crunch as my head bashed into the mirrors. The glass buckled, some of the pieces shattering and splintering on the floor beside me. I was too stunned to feel the pain. I couldn't breathe yet. He walked toward me slowly.

"That's a very nice effect," he said, examining the mess of glass, his voice friendly again. "I thought this room would be visually dramatic for my little film. That's why I picked this place to meet you. It's perfect, isn't it?"

I ignored him, scrambling on my hands and knees, crawling toward the other door.

He was over me at once, his foot stepping down hard on my leg. I heard the sickening snap before I felt it. But then I did feel it, and I couldn't hold back my scream of agony. I twisted up to reach for my leg, and he was standing over me, smiling. (p. 272)

Since Twilight is being narrated by Bella and she can only guess what James, the other character, was thinking, James's actions were surprising to her. This way of narrating may heighten the feelings of the reader as they are treated to the same surprise that the narrator experiences in the story.