A guy reads Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (2009-2011)

Reading Twilight: Chapter 24 (An Impasse)

The song for this chapter is How Does It Feel by Avril Lavigne (suggested by Kelcey M)

 [audio:https://twilightguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/howdoesitfeel.mp3]

It feels very odd coming to the final chapter of Twilight, when it seems like it was just yesterday that I started on this book. I know that most of you are probably gagging and choking at the moment. Feels like only yesterday? says he. Sheesh. One more week of waiting and it’d be to the pit of lions with him for sure.

This happens to be the chapter in which all things are resolved, and the final pieces of the first part of the Twilight Saga are brought to a close. Bella, awakening in a hospital, finds herself alive: and not only that, she finds Edward is still at her side, as he has been since the moment he found her with James.

One of my emailers used this scene as an example of why she despises Edward: and I find it also as one of the leading reasons many guys do not understand Twilight. They say that Edward is solidly over-protective of Bella, to the point of obsession: staying by her side for days and nights at the hospital, among the many other times he has lurked about with his eye on her. Although some of the Edward fans will try to deny it, there is no getting around the fact that he seems to always be watching Bella, keeping her in sight in case something happens. Is this a bad or a good thing?

Again, as always, you must peel away the layers and look to the core of Edward’s intentions. While this could certainly merit a checkup with a psychiatrist if Edward was a human, you have to remember that Edward is not a human. He is a vampire, and somehow things inside his head are different than other humans who match his (outward) age. Does it have something to do with the fact that he is so much older than the others, that he has matured enough so that selfishness doesn’t taint his reasoning as badly? I see it that his intentions for Bella are only the best, and he has proven it throughout the book. He watches her because he has seen how much danger follows her.

Edward knows what Bella wants, and yet he is against changing her. His reason is because he cares enough about her that he does not want to enslave her to the same state as he is. However, for Bella to remain a human means that she will die. For her to die would mean that Edward would be left alone again without her. Is that what he wants? I’m sure we all know the answer. But even though he wishes that he could change her, and have her with him for eternity, and Bella wants it as well, Edward wants what is best for her more:

“…as long as it makes you happy…as long as it’s what’s best for you.”

No matter what it takes he wants the best for Bella. In this chapter, Edward tries to tell Bella that he is leaving her: that he wants her to go to Florida with her mom and stay there, away from him. Of course, this is not what he wants. We’ve seen how much Bella means to him, so much that in the previous chapter he is willing to risk everything to save her. But in the end, it is what is best for Bella that is still his top priority.

You do have to remember, especially, that his lips were against her hand in the previous chapter. If there was ever a chance for Edward to think of himself for once, and allow Bella to turn into a vampire, he had it then. But instead, he chose to save Bella’s life as a human. Because of this, I see exactly why those on Team Edward trust him so well, and why Edward is such a shining light for so many millions of Twilight readers around the world. It is easy to trust someone who loves unselfishly.

Along these lines, I’ve finally noticed how much Bella and Edward argue. I mean, they argue a lot. This immediately reminded me of my own grandparents. They argue all the time, about anything and everything under the sun. This month, it’s been sixty-one years of marriage, and they still bicker like you wouldn’t believe. It is hilarious, and they know it too. But any outside person might begin to ask, as with Bella and Edward: why on earth are you two still together?

The reason is simple: they are together because they simply cannot be apart. True love is binding, and unselfish, and holds through any of the arguing and fighting and bickering that comes along between two people who are meant to be together for the rest of their lives. Twilight is not simply one of those ‘happily ever after’ stories where the two ride off into the sunset. It is real, with love that is just as difficult and confusing as in life: but it is worth it, because it is true.

Still, I hover around listening to Bella and Edward bicker, like an eavesdropping doctor about to explode into shouts of

doctor2

That said, I can only imagine the demise of James, at the hands of two angry vampires:

(Bella:) “What happened to James?”

“After I pulled him off of you, Emmett and Jasper took care of him.”

[audio:https://twilightguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/uhoh.mp3]

Shiver.

I just loved how cleverly in-the-dark Bella’s mom is. Crime in town? The dance studio burned to the ground? With a stolen car outside? Oh the loverly coincidences in this town (snicker, snicker).

Also, I found a bit of amusement in Edward’s excuse to Bella’s mom:

(Bella:) “Why did you tell her I’m here?”

“You fell down two flights of stairs and through a window.” He paused. “Then, you collided into the back of an ice cream truck which upon impact sent canisters of cold cream spiraling into the street, one of which tripped you into falling out of the truck again and down another flight of stairs into a subway tunnel, where you collided with no fewer than three dozen people and a small poodle on your way down, finally coming to rest by knocking over three trash cans.”

He shrugged. “Hey, it had to be believable. Two flights of stairs and a window just sounded contrived.”

My post on the epilogue will be Saturday, with the results for the Twilight Song and my final thoughts on the book.

——NOTES——

– This week, there will be no Friday post, so that I can go seamlessly from the last chapter to the Epilogue. See you Saturday!

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147 Responses

  1. YAY! You are almost onto New Moon! Quickly, read the Epilogue, so you can get cracking on NM. I’m sure you’ll love it. 🙂

  2. is this really why some people don’t like edward? when i met my husband, he was undergoing a series of surgeries to complete cancer treatment, and let me tell you, i *LIVED* in that hospital. we had only been together a few months, but there were three things that drove me to be there for him – one, obviously is love. two, is that nobody should have to spend a night alone in the hospital. and three, when you’re in a hospital, you need someone advocating for you. doctors and nurses have the best of intentions, but they also have a multitude of patients. being protective in the hospital isn’t cause for a psych evaluation, it’s just a caring thing to do.

    also, good work finishing twilight. i’m eagerly awaiting your analysis of new moon… mmm, jacob 🙂

  3. Edward is no stocker…he’s been around for a LONG time and has seen more than most humans have if not all of them, so he has a reason to worry…just like parents totally go nuts and over exaggerate a danger just because they’ve seen more or understand more…not like he’s a parent though… he’s wise and indestructible and totally in love and sometimes love can make you go a little crazy. To him Bella is this delicate treasure and to lose her would be unbearable…that’s why he’s so anxious when he’s away from her…not to mention the fact that she’s a complete danger magnet…keeping her safe is a full time job. If it wasn’t for his over protectiveness she would be dead. So people shouldn’t be too hard on Edward he’s only doing his job.

    Oh…and I’m all for savoring a book but let’s not take it to the extreme…like Edward we’re all a little anxious to hear your zany (cool word huh? 🙂 )thoughts about New Moon and Eclipse not to mention Breaking Dawn…. (and don’t forget the Host)

  4. Kaleb, you are GOOD. This was a great post to finish the book with, even if you haven’t done the Epilogue. Very thought-provoking. Thanks! 🙂

  5. “The reason is simple: they are together because they simply cannot be apart. True love is binding, and unselfish, and holds through any of the arguing and fighting and bickering that comes along between two people who are meant to be together for the rest of their lives. Twilight is not simply one of those ‘happily ever after’ stories where the two ride off into the sunset. It is real, with love that is just as difficult and confusing as in life: but it is worth it, because it is true.”——This section is extremly well written, you have master (in my mind) the complicated task of describing love into words. I’ve just read something that is life-changing to me..thanks

  6. Wow, this is a really fabulous post… my favorite so far, I think.

    You have some very insightful and intelligent things to say about Edward and Bella. I’m incredibly impressed.

  7. Wait…I’m confused. About the ending. When Edward is saying that she fell into the ice cream truck and all that stuff…I don’t remember reading that. Did he really say that?

  8. ER.

    (TEAM JACOB!!!)

    XD
    jk, jk.
    Team SWITZERLAND! (not that you’ll understand that one, Kaleb, dear.)

    There’s something in the epilogue I really want to see if you get/analyze. …Saturday, why aren’t you here already?!

  9. YAY! *claps* I’m exited that your almost done and I love your analisations (word? >_<) of it! I’m so glad a guy can understand them this well! lol I just hope other guys are learning from your example!

  10. you had me nearly in tears because you wrote it all so sweetly, then you turn them into tears of laughter! only you can do that…. lol. Im kindof wondering how youre going to deal with the cliffhanger ending of twilight. who knows? maybe you’ll end up having to go out and start new moon right away? (im hoping so!!)

  11. oh and kadie-wa, thats just what kaleb wrote in. he has a strangly accurate mind dont you think?

  12. Wow it does feels like it was just yesterday.I think Edward is a little overprotective; that might be a good thing since Bella is known as an accident prone. It’s funny that you mentioned that all the arguing is just like your grandparents,bella is her mother’s little middle aged child and edward is 107 years old.I always thought of their relationship as how the relationship between to middle aged people that have been married for a long time would be.

  13. i really like ur website.its hilarious.i especially loved the part about the icecream truck.lol.keep rockin!!

  14. I do love your insight into the two of them and their relationship, it’s always refreshing to know guys catch things like that.

    Personally, I like having a hero with imperfections, and though Edward may have plenty of good reasons for keeping an eye on Bella, I’d feel utterly suffocated if I were her 😉 But then, I’ve never had a vampire out to kill me.

  15. Wow Kaleb! Congrats on finishing twilight. You better watch out cuz with all your posts(sensitive yet hilarious) girls have realized what a catch you are and will all want to marry you!

    You understand the book so well! I’m so excited for you to read the epilouge and NM, hurry it up already 🙂

  16. Congrats! FINALLY! Aw, but it’s so sad it’s over.Oh! But you still got New Moon, and Eclipse. Which will bring you to Breaking Dawn in perfect timing……….

    I loved you’re insight on this chapter. I completely agree, a good relationship needs healthy bickering, it keeps things going and you’ll never get bored! Trust me!!!!

  17. I can’t wait to hear what you have to say about New Moon!!
    Although, to me it is my least favorite of all the books.
    But I guess you will soon find out why…

  18. “Twilight is not simply one of those ‘happily ever after’ stories where the two ride off into the sunset. It is real, with love that is just as difficult and confusing as in life: but it is worth it, because it is true.”

    well said!!!
    thats what I love about Twilight… It seems so real… though there are a lot of vampires and werewolves =)

    the part with the ice cream truck is soooooo funny!!!!!!

    You are great, Kaleb!!!

  19. -.- my absolute FAVOURITE of the twiligt saga is Eclipse…SO HURRY UP AND READ PLEASE!!!
    and damn it…i live in a certain place far away from America, thus, ur Satruday is my SUNDAY!!-.- not fair i have to wait an extra day!!!

  20. You have finally finished =)
    Congratualtions.

    I also think that Edward is more overprotective because he has seen so much danger.
    And he could hear what James was thinking and what the guys in Port Angeles were thinking.

    I hope you enjoyed reading Twilight as much as I did and writing about it as much as I did reading it =)

  21. just to test whether you insanely read all 121 (now 122) comments featured…….
    i have a few questions…
    1. what advice do you have for an aspiring writer?
    2. how do you find a comfort zone for writing (i.e. horror, romance, mstery, etc..)
    3. why do u like gnomes as much as i do?
    4. how r u so impecibly gut-bustingly hilarious???
    5. if edward doesn’t write back soon, will u marry me????

    please ignore all my typos (sorry!!) & please comment back!!

    also…….i luv the ice cream truck thing, but what gives about the poodle????? i have an adorable small poodle named pierre. i believe he deserves an apology…………
    😛
    -twi~hard <3<3

  22. I loved this: “Twilight is not simply one of those ‘happily ever after’ stories where the two ride off into the sunset. It is real, with love that is just as difficult and confusing as in life: but it is worth it, because it is true.”

    I have been married for 3 years, and I have one child. Love is NOT easy, and I really hate the stories that make it seem so. I think that is part of what I love about this story. It is a realistic love (well, aside from all the vampire stuff, ha ha).

  23. I really love your analysis of these chapters. I’m glad you actually feel the books and understand them instead of just ‘skimming,’ which I can’t say for everyone.

    And as much as Edward is overprotective, he is also clueless to Bella’s feelings- a reason I do not like him. He very clearly says that she’ll just forget him if he leaves her- like any other human.

    Does Bella ever act like a normal Human? Lol, no. And even if he’s watched humans for eighty years, no one’s like Bella. He doesn’t see that. But that’s just me….

    I really like your emails. A pleasant read compared to my dark little inbox =)

  24. Kaleb, you finally did it! you’ve almost finish the book!
    I’m so glad! Be ready for New Moon, but hurry up for Eclipse wich is my favorite, until Breaking Dawn comes out of course!!

  25. Jasmine, when Edward says that she’ll just forget like any other human, I think that he’s trying to convince himself just as much as he’s trying to convince her. And I think there have been times when he is a tad bit clueless to her feelings, but like he said, he may be a vampire, but he’s also a man. Men just do that. No offense Kaleb. 🙂 We can’t expect Edward to be perfect.

  26. i added two “quotes” of this post on my myspace page.
    they’re in the little scroll box if you want to check them out. =]

  27. ps. i also got the song “seven days of lonely” by i nine from one of your previous posts.
    i just found out about your site a few days ago when i saw your icon on twilightteez.com, and i’ve read every entry. XD

    pps. so, yes; i think it’s safe to say you’re awesome. =]

  28. ACK! what do you mean, saturday??? That’s two whole days away! How am i supposed to LIVE? lol joking. but seriously, how can you read that slowly and live? I had to stop reading the end of the first book to take my MAP testing, and i was practically shaking in my chair to get my hands on my book. I think i might have set a world record in the fastest MAP testing ever! = )
    also, props on sticking with the book ’till the end. Wait ’till you get to New Moon! I threw the book at the wall (hint hint) have fun getting through that book dry-eyed! (i sure didn’t!)

  29. YAY!!! *jumps up and down* UR ALMOST DONE WITH THE BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! are u goin 2 do the same thing 4 NEW MOON????? if u are… YAY!!! *jumps up and down more* STAY ON TEAM EDWARD!!!!!!!!!

  30. I love how you write, Kaleb. You have such a great handle on the Edward/Bella relationship.
    I wanted to comment on something you wrote about…
    “One of my emailers used this scene as an example of why she despises Edward: and I find it also as one of the leading reasons many guys do not understand Twilight. They say that Edward is solidly over-protective of Bella, to the point of obsession: staying by her side for days and nights at the hospital, among the many other times he has lurked about with his eye on her. Although some of the Edward fans will try to deny it, there is no getting around the fact that he seems to always be watching Bella, keeping her in sight in case something happens. Is this a bad or a good thing?”

    To this, I have to reply, in basically the same way you said, Edward isn’t human. And not only is he not human, but he’s one of the strongest, fastest, wisest inhuman beings on earth. What we need to keep in mind is that Bella is just so…BREAKABLE to him. He is also desperately in love with her–which is something he actually has no experience in and therefore isn’t completely sure how to act with her–and he’d just seen her basically come back from the dead after an evil vampire almost killed her. Of course he’d be protective of her! Just the fact that he sees her as fragile and he’s so in love with her alone makes him value her life over his so much that he doesn’t want her to be out of his sight. Not to mention that he knows she is a “danger magnet” and he wants to protect her as much as he possibly can, and I think the only way he knows how to do that is by keeping her under his watch nearly 24/7. I think this is just something that he’s so inexperienced with that he still isn’t sure how to handle everything, so that’s his way of dealing with it.
    But anyway, that’s all I have to say on that, lol.

  31. FINALLY! i have been waiting forever for this chapter, and you post while im away at camp ^^ o well, i think ur gonna have fun with the epilouge

  32. Wow. I just realized that you started Twilight absolutly FOREVER ago!! APRIL 16, 2008. EARLY APRIL for crying out loud!!! How is it possible that you took three months to read something that so many read within three days?? Because I have noticed this phenonemon, I have promptly come up with the idea that you wrote all 20-some posts in those three days because you were afraid of being “The Guy Who Read Twilight In Record Time” and just posted them periodically throught the time-span……(but I now wonder if you actually beat “The 300 Pages In Two Hours Twi-Guy…….) Who knows? Maybe you’ve already finished Eclipse and are dutifully awating August 2nd (at least you are in my theory) ……….. And finally, if you are reading this hair-brained idea, i hope it entertained you at least a little….. Lord knows you’ve entertained me enough….. —Thank You and Goodnight! 😀

  33. well. I think you just might have been turned into a Twilighter without know Kaleb.
    I loved your quote on true love, hope you don’t mind, it’s my myspace headline. 🙂

  34. OMG YOU ARE ALMOST DONE:) I love these books I hope you did to<3 I think I like these books more than harry potter wow i can’t believe I just said that:0 well this got longer than I planed so goodnight See you sat.

  35. Oh, and I should mention that by this time I am now dutifully awaiting your novel (As you are certainly awating the next Twilight book) 🙂

  36. YEAH
    whoohoo you finished Twilight!
    You will looove New Moon. hahah your analysis of Chapter 24 is awesome and hilarious like every othe chapters 😀 .

  37. I found this place yesterday and just love your posts. Last week I decided to read the entire Twilight series since Breaking Dawn is soon to be released and I am very impatient, and after investing time into the characters it’s good to get someone else’s perspective.

    Regarding Edward’s obsessive tendencies, I would like to point out that Bella is equally obsessed with him, to the point where it takes over her self-protective instincts. She intentionally cut herself off from friends and spent a great deal of time at the beginning obsessing over someone who was essentially a stranger. That’s no more “normal” than Edward’s fascination with her, and I think speaks volumes about their relationship.

    They both engage in destructive behaviors to be with each other because the pull between them is too strong. Yes, in a real world situation it wouldn’t be the most healthy thing for either of them, but Bella is never concerned with Edward’s obsession because not only is she thrilled that he is interested in her in any way, but she is as equally obsessed with him. How many times does she practically beg him not to leave? How many times does she worry more for his safety than her own?

    They’re drawn to each other beyond rationality. That is exactly what makes Twilight interesting. They both know that it’s not a good idea to be together and they cannot stand being apart and go to great lengths to protect the other. I don’t think for one minute that early on, if Bella had the means, she wouldn’t have been “stalking” Edward similarly as he was to her. They’re equally fixated and flawed, but that’s why I enjoy the book so much. Their flaws come from the same place.

  38. Wow kaleb, this is one of your best posts!! 🙂 Not even myself (I have read Twilight 4 times) could have break this book in the way you did, you got everything, every minor detail didn`t escape your eye! You are now truly the love doctor haha 🙂

  39. Ahahah… yes, I can imagine how being in the same room with them arguing would be a sufficient cause for the loss of a person’s sanity.
    Nice, of course that’s a fairly regular excuse of Bella’s.

    “I tripped,” she said with a shrug.
    “But you’ve broken an arm and your collar bone, had severe internal bleeding and are currently embedded with glass and twisted pieces of metal!”
    “Yeah… I tripped.”

    Ahaha.

  40. ACK, I luvers your blogs and website and your writing so much that I haven’t even started to do my homework and I REALLY REALLY REALLY need to. And I have to study for exams, too, soo….yea. I have to go on a -gulp- TwilightGuy diet. LE GASP!

  41. This is my favorite post from you EVER. I almost stopped breathing when I read your quote about the love in twilight being the same as love in reality. That is going on my myspace FOR SURE. I’ll be sure to say you quoted it, though. (:

  42. “they are together because they simply cannot be apart. True love is binding, and unselfish, and holds through any of the arguing and fighting and bickering that comes along between two people who are meant to be together for the rest of their lives. Twilight is not simply one of those ‘happily ever after’ stories where the two ride off into the sunset. It is real, with love that is just as difficult and confusing as in life: but it is worth it, because it is true.”

    Ok, I just have one question for you:

    ARE YOU SINGLE?!?!?!?!??!?!??!?!

    lol, but seriously, that is one of the sweetest and deepest thing I’ve ever read!

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