Vampires, Werewolves, and Oppression: Twilight and Female Gender Stereotypes

Abstract

This paper rhetorically analyzes the issue of femininity in the four books of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series. It argues that the image of women—particularly in the context of relationships— presented in the series is oppressive to women because it shows domestic violence by their male partners as acceptable, portrays its female protagonist in a stereotypical manner, and endorses unequal relationships in which the woman is at a disadvantage. These findings are troubling because of the series’ immense popularity and the ways in which media representations of women can affect young women’s conceptions of acceptable female roles.