Crosses and Vampires? Did Stephanie Meyer leave Crosses out of her Vampire Novels?

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Permalink Reply by Shayna Montgomery on September 18, 2010 at 4:24pm

No, she did not. In Twilight, when Bella is visting the Cullen house (I think it's chapter six, called Carlisle), there is a huge cross hanging from the ceiling. Bella is speculative, and asks Edward about it. Because Carlisle's father was so extremely religious, Carlisle hangs it in a tribute to him. You have to remember that Stephenie Meyer's vampires are not the stereotypical vampires that have been written about for centuries.

But the fact that Meyer's vampires are immune to the cross runs paralell to Bella's belief that there is an afterlife for vampires. Maybe this immunity to the cross supports Bella's theory that there is a place in heaven for vampires, and that vampires can be moral.

Permalink Reply by Doc B MD on September 19, 2010 at 9:59pm

Dear Shayna,

You make excellent points as usual. "In the movie "Fright Night" the original character that confronted a vampire with a cross, has no success in "taiming the monster, because he is not a true believer. "I wonder if there might be a parallel concept in "Twilight" in the fact that Carlise "Beliefs." CC, Q: "I have never once quit believing!"

The Cullen Cross is an interesting artifact. It of course comes from Carlisle's father's church. Carlisle's father's church might be called "The United Church of vengeance and condemnation" concepts which have sadly returned to some American churches. But Carlisle had transcended away from the beliefs of his father to accept the beliefs of Paul, Luther and Wesley's. The belief in a God of Love and Grace. When Carlisle looked at the cross from his father's church what do you think that symbolized to him?

Permalink Reply by manuel castro on September 19, 2010 at 9:52pm

No she didn't leave out the cross theirs on big one in the Cullens house that was made by Carlisle's father who was a pastor. Also in vampire legends not all are afraid of crosses, so no she did not leave the crosses out. See SM made some her vampire characters creatures who want to be part of life and society also like Dr. Cullens who loves helping the sick and injurt,and both Esme and Carlisle are peaceful people and hate to take a life. So the cross to be left out would be insane when one of the character was a pastors son and probably religous also.

Permalink Reply by Doc B MD on September 19, 2010 at 10:27pm

Dear Manuel,

Thanks you make great points, as always. I actually forgot about the Cullen Cross when I was constructing this topic. But you raise the topic that prompted my question in the first place. If Stephanie Meyer's life revolves around "The Cross and serving the Cross" as she taught us that it does for her, in her true life short story "The hero in the grocery store," http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&source...
is it possible that part or all of her novel "Twilight" is actually a metaphor (which as you know is: an implied comparison between two unlike things that actually have something in common) for the cross? Your Friend, Doc