Bella Swan and the Construction of the Monstrous-Feminine in the Wt Ilight Saga Amanda Jayne Firestone University of South Florida, [email protected]
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University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 6-13-2014 "Is That What You Dream About? Being a Monster?": Bella Swan and the Construction of the Monstrous-Feminine in The wT ilight Saga Amanda Jayne Firestone University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Communication Commons, and the Women's Studies Commons Scholar Commons Citation Firestone, Amanda Jayne, ""Is That What You Dream About? Being a Monster?": Bella Swan and the Construction of the Monstrous- Feminine in The wT ilight Saga" (2014). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/5217 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. “Is That What You Dream About? Being a Monster?”: Bella Swan and the Construction of the Monstrous-Feminine in The Twilight Saga by Amanda Firestone A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Communication College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Major Professor: Elizabeth Bell, Ph.D. Rachel Dubrofsky, Ph.D. A. David Payne, Ph.D. Kimberly Golombisky, Ph.D. Date of Approval: June 13, 2014 Keywords: Stephenie Meyer, Hysteria, Sexuality, Motherhood, Edward Cullen Copyright © 2014, Amanda Firestone DEDICATION First, I dedicate this dissertation to my mom and dad, Brenda L. Firestone, Ed.D. and Timothy Firestone. Thank you for instilling in me a belief that I could do anything I wanted with hard work, dedication, and practice. Between the music lessons, endless band practices, musical rehearsals, and recitals, I ran them ragged all over town in the pursuit of a richer artistic life. They complained little although it took up a great deal of time, gasoline, and expense, because they believed that not all learning happens in books. I’m grateful for their willingness and ability to let me experience those things and many more. Next, I dedicate this labor of love/hate to my husband, Michael Rowland. The Board wishes to recognize your exemplary effort and hard work these last six years. Thank you for loving me, putting up with me, and enduring the string of stray dogs, nights with little sleep, small battles over chores, and my endless talk about menstruation, feminism, and Twilight. I know it’s been downright nauseating at times. You’re a good man—the best man—and I’m fortunate to have found a partner in life who challenges me as much as he delights me. For this you deserve so much more than thanks. Finally, I dedicate this work to my fellow Aca-fans who choose to critically engage in texts that they genuinely love. It is difficult and sometimes scary work pulling to pieces the very thing that brings us joy, but we do it in the pursuit of academic inquiry and creating tighter bonds within fan communities. To my fellow Twi-hards especially, thank you for the overwhelmingly positive responses to this research. We may choose different “Teams” but we know we’re all part of something special. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I thank my committee members—Elizabeth Bell, Annette Cozzi, Rachel Dubrofsky, Kim Golombisky, and David Payne—for their mentorship, dedication, and faith in me. Each of you has affected me deeply, pushing my critical thinking skills to new heights and insisting that I do better, that I perform better, because I have the capacity to do so. I am humbled to feel that I can in the near future call you colleagues as well as my professors, my teachers. I know the kind of professor I want to be in a classroom because each of you has shown me the very best of what good pedagogy and mentorship can (and should!) be. I thank my extended family, most particularly my grandmother, Alberta E. Leitzel, for her part in my extracurricular education. Without her I probably wouldn’t be able to knit or bake a pie, and because of her I know the value of having skills that not only are practical but serve a greater purpose. Her love, support, and string of care packages and cards have buoyed me in spirit across oceans and states. When the zombie apocalypse arrives, I’m ready for it! To my friends who helped to keep me partly sane on this journey, I’m indebted. Through brainstorming sessions, heart to hearts, long nights out, and more food and wine than can be remembered, you’ve helped me take myself less seriously, encouraged me when I was down, and pushed me forward when I felt I could go no further. I especially thank Emily Ryalls, Leisa Clark, Megan Wood, Alisha Menzies, and Tasha Rennels for their special contributions to this process. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... iii Chapter 1: “And So the Lion Fell in Love with the Lamb”: ............................................................1 An Introduction to The Twilight Saga How and Why Study Twilight? ............................................................................................3 The How ...................................................................................................................4 The Why ...................................................................................................................6 Young Adult as a Literary Category ....................................................................................8 The Romance Genre ..........................................................................................................11 Critically Evaluating Romance ..............................................................................13 Situating Myself among Twilight Scholarship ..................................................................16 Statement of Purpose .........................................................................................................20 Summary of Chapters ........................................................................................................21 Hysteria ..................................................................................................................21 Sexuality ................................................................................................................21 Motherhood ............................................................................................................22 Chapter 2: “A Fresh Round of Hysteria”: .....................................................................................23 Bella Swan and the Hysterical Teenaged Body Theorizing Monstrosity and Hysteria ................................................................................25 Analyzing the Hysterical Body ..........................................................................................27 Renée and the Mother/Child Binary ......................................................................27 Engorged Emotions and Traitor Tears ...................................................................31 Twilight ..................................................................................................................32 New Moon .............................................................................................................36 Eclipse ....................................................................................................................40 Discussion and Conclusion: Vampires Don’t Cry .............................................................44 Chapter 3: “It’s All I Want”: Bella Swan’s Unspoken Sexual Desire ...........................................48 Through Euphemism and Ellipses Euphemistic Sexuality .......................................................................................................50 Euphemisms and Ellipses ......................................................................................50 Theorizing Monstrous Sexuality ............................................................................53 Analysis..............................................................................................................................55 “Until the Hormones Kicked In”: Physical/Biological Euphemisms ....................56 “You’re Driving Me Crazy”: Emotional/Cultural Euphemisms ............................60 That and It: One for One Euphemisms ..................................................................65 “I Don’t Think That…That…Would Be Possible For Us”: Ellipses .....................69 Bella’s Big Night ...................................................................................................72 Discussion and Conclusion: The Price for Pleasure ..........................................................76 i Chapter 4: “There Will Never Be More Than Two of Us”: ..........................................................81 The Twilight Saga’s Monstrous Mothers Abject Motherhood ............................................................................................................82 The Monstrous Mothers .....................................................................................................85 Rosalie Hale ...........................................................................................................86 Esme Cullen ...........................................................................................................89