Shawn L. Bird

This quote is making the rounds of Facebook statuses these days:

‎”Harry Potter is about doing what’s right in the face of adversity. Twilight is about how important it is to have a boyfriend.”- Stephen King

With all due respect, Mr. King.  I disagree.  That is a weak, simplistic statement simply designed to create controversy.  It is also completely erroneous.

Twilight is about the power of love, just like Harry Potter is.

In Harry Potter, you see this power in Snape’s obsessive love for Lily.  That love was a fundamental component that weaves through the entire series.  In Twilight, the mutual obsession of Edward and Bella drives the plot.  In both series, the obsession leads to protection.  Edward fights to protect Bella.  Snape’s obsession with Lily protects Harry, though secretively.

The  theme of love as protection is another theme the two series have in common.  Lily’s sacrificial love for Harry provides the blood protection that allows him to survive amid constant threat.   The same concept applied when he sacrificed himself for those fighting at Hogwarts.  Edward fights to protect Bella.  Jacob fights to protect Bella.  Both would have willingly died for her.  Because of love, Bella trains to be able to protect everyone.  Because of love she endures pain to develop her gift and fight to protect the Cullens and the Quileute wolves.

Harry Potter is about doing what’s right in the face of adversity, sure.  Being willing to sacrifice yourself for the good of the world is a pretty amazing thing.  However, Twilight shares this theme.  In  New Moon, Edward chooses to sacrifice his happiness for what he considers a better life for Bella.   His choice nearly destroys them both, because their love is too powerful to allow them to be separate.   Adversity takes many forms.

Twilight is about how important it is to have a boyfriend?  No way.  It’s about how having the right life mate fills your world with pain and joy in equal measure.  It’s about how the challenges of a relationship (like wanting to eat your true love, for example) need to be worked on, but that those challenges can be overcome.  It’s about how overcoming those challenges is worthwhile.  It’s about how learning to be together can make life more complete.

Harry Potter knew that, too.  When he got through with the task of destroying Voldemort, he married Ginny.  He knew love was important to have in his life.  That was the whole point of defeating Voldemort, after all.

Peace and love.  They both take effort.  Twilight and Harry Potter are different, but they come to the same conclusions.

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PS. They are the same conclusions that Grace discovers in Grace Awakening