Vampires Without Fangs: The Amalgamation of Genre in Stephenie Meyer’s <i>Twilight</i> Saga

  • Anne Klaus University of Osnabrück
  • Stefanie Krüger University of Osnabrück

Abstract

Since the publication of the first novel of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight saga in 2005, millions of readers all over the world, the majority of whom are teenage girls and women, have fallen for the love story of Bella and Edward. Furthered by the release of the movie adaptations of the first three volumes in 2009 and 2010, critics have started to wonder about the foundation of Twilight-mania, especially concerning the basic theme of the story, namely the vampire myth, which, throughout its literary history, is rather a reflection of “adolescent male fantasy” (Twitchell, Living 6). Still, the indisputably kitschy story of an inconspicuous teenager who falls in love with the vampire next door fascinates today’s emancipated and independent females and thus can be regarded as an essential part of the success. It would seem that the attraction derives from Meyer’s unique interweaving of different generic elements, a strategy which can be found in other late 20th- and 21st-century popular literature. In the Twilight saga, we find such an amalgamation of various different literary genres – fantasy fiction for young adults, vampire story, gothic romance, and Arthurian legend. It is a medley, a generic crossing that is – not least due to its focus on an active young heroine – bound to entice a primarily female readership.

Author Biographies

Anne Klaus, University of Osnabrück
Anne Klaus is employed as a research assistant at the University of Osnabrück, Germany. She is working on a doctoral thesis on saviour figures in fantasy fiction for children and young adults.
Stefanie Krüger, University of Osnabrück
Savid Beagley is Lecturer in Children's Literature and Literacy at La Trobe University's Bendigo campus, Victoria, Australia, where he teaches units in Genres, History, Australian and Post-colonial children's literature. He has previously taught in secondary schools, and has been a school and university librarian.
Published
2011-02-28
Issue
Vol. 15 No. 1 (2011)
Section
Alice's Academy
Essays and articles published in The Looking Glass may be reproduced for non-profit use by any educational or public institution; letters to the editor and on-site comments made by our readers may not be used without the expressed permission of that individual. Any commercial use of this journal, in whole or in part, by any means, is prohibited. Authors of accepted articles assign to The Looking Glass the right to publish and distribute their text electronically and to archive and make it permanently available electronically. They retain the copyright and, 90 days after initial publication, may republish it in any form they wish as long as The Looking Glass is acknowledged as the original source.