Author's Note:
This is my DWA essay on how Twilight's vampires are very different from humans.
Every day we walk around amongst our peers, ignorantly believing we are all alike. We never seriously question the sheer mortality of anyone else, and we are given no proof to suggest otherwise. What if there were creatures alive that looked and acted like human beings, but were almost the total reverse? What if there really were vampires? The vampires in the Twilight series are described as looking like humans, but they have very distinct differences. These creatures fit in with society like they belong, but are almost the complete opposite of human beings.
One of the largest distinctions of the vampire lifestyle is their lack of sleeping and eating. They never eat real food (they hunt people/animals for their blood) yet they are inordinately healthy individuals. Their thirst for blood gradually dies down after they are no longer ‘newborns’, but still count on blood to keep them existing. Also, vampires are incapable to sleep. The characters do not mind never sleeping, and quote, "like the night. Without the dark, [they'd] never see the stars." I believe that this also shows acceptance of staying awake: like a polite friendship with the night.
While their lack of energy sources is surprising, what are even more flabbergasting are their physical abilities. They can outrun any creature alive, or created, are stronger than anything on earth. They can lift a tree out of the ground, as you or I would lift a feather. They can even run faster than a car on a highway. We find these to be impossible, because our human bodies are not physically able to complete these tasks. This is why their strengths create a huge difference between them and humans.
Another extraordinary trait that vampires contain, that we all wish we could have, is their powers of irresistibleness. Everyone wants to be their friend, date them, look like them, and have what they have! These creatures are described as perfect, while it has been proven, real humans are full of imperfections. When Bella, from Twilight, first met Edward, she couldn’t help but want to be his friend. People naturally like the vampires because of their faces, their voice, and even their smell draws humans in.
Perfect and imperfect, strong and weak, fast and slow: these are all major differences between vampires and humans, but another important factor is age. Once someone has become a vampire, they will remain their current age forever, unless they happen to be torn apart, limb by limb, and then burned to ashes. I found this to be a hefty difference because humans age every second, ever day of lives, while vampires do not.
We, as people, enjoy comparing our eye colors with friends. We brag about our bright blues, neon greens, and rich, chocolate browns. But vampires are a very different story, for they have colors such as deep reds, blacks, and golden caramels. These distinct features are yet another trait that separate vampires from humans.
Another difficulty of being a vampire is that they cannot walk in sunlight. Vampire skin begins to give off a slight glow when the sun reaches their skin. Vampires are not permitted to let humans notice their shiny appearance and are forced to hide when the sun is out.
The last, final, and, what I think to be, the most important distinction between humans and vampires is the fact that vampires to do not have souls. They are quite literally walking dead. Their lack of souls reminded me of, Harry Potter’s, Dementor, Kisses of Death. “Sometimes Dementors perform the Kiss where they suck out a person's soul. The person is left incapable of thought and emotion, in an irreversible state that is said to be worse than death.” The human beings, or wizards, after they have been Kissed are left to walk the earth alone, without a soul to keep them company. Worst of all, they cannot even die. Bella experienced, temporally, what it would feel like without a soul when she was comatose in the hospital. She said, “Death is peaceful, it’s easy. Life is harder.” I think that this gives Bella glimpse into how vampires must feel all the time. Because being a vampire and being Kissed both take away a person’s soul, they would be similar lifestyles and seem impossible for us to even imagine what those lives would feel like.
If I had the option of being human or vampire, I would chose to be human. While this might sound cliché or goody-two-shoes-y of me, I honestly would prefer being human. I love being able to walk in sunlight, talk to my peers (without wanting to drink their blood), knowing that one day I’ll grow taller, grow older, and I might even grow up. The differences between Twilight‘s vampires and humans are subtle, but they are most definitely there. Keep a close eye on your friends, because you never know...
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