The Twilight vs. Harry Potter Debate: On to Question #2

December 24, 3:43 AMBook ExaminerMichelle Kerns

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Be sure to take a look at the responses to Question #1 here if you missed it.

Question #2: How do you think the overall plot of the books compare? Is one series richer and more complex than the other?

 

Team Potter is up first this time:

Ms. Annalisa Freeman:

 

Let's look at what SM minimized or disregarded in order to get us to the end. Vampires are scary and soulless according to Edward, but if we truly want Bella to be happy it can't be that bad so the thirst because a drone instead of an unquenchable impulse. Vampires have to break ties with their families to protect their secret, but for Bella, we can sneak Charlie in there and never question that a cop wouldn't accept monsters in his community without hesitation. Vampires can't have babies, but for Bella we can devise a way for that to happen that doesn't entirely make sense, but who cares, its fantasy, go with it. Werewolves and vampires innately hate each other, but for Bella they can learn to get along so well that werewolves who imprint on people with the best genes to further the race would imprint on a half-vampire, their mortal enemies, in order to tie the families together.

Forever Dawn may have been the original intention, but it doesn't fit the story anymore. Because SM couldn't marry Bella off after her junior year she resorts to exploring a relationship with a werewolf that distracts from the obsessive love she has with a vampire. The scene in Eclipse on the mountaintop where Bella kisses Jacob because he tricks her is so contrived that I couldn't believe anyone would fall for it unless she wanted to, and then the story isn't about her undying love for Edward anymore. The scenes between Jacob and Leah take the story in one direction, but since that wasn't the original plan for the characters, SM dropped the flow of that storyline to pick up one that leaves too many unanswered questions and unsettled satisfaction in order to justify a year's worth of obsession for Jacob. Somehow this is supposed to smooth over the story and excuse Bella's and Jacob's relationship.

Even people who like the series will agree that "Breaking Dawn was good except" and then name the disgust of the imprinting, the boring Volturi chapters that accomplished nothing, all the fade to black moments, the Jacob chapters, or how off the story the new vampires and all their strange powers were. In order for a plot to be bought by its fans, it has to be believable and suspension of disbelief can only take you so far before logic and reason prevent you from buying the story any further. The idea of Twilight is a good one, but the direction the saga took is not a viable ending to the story.

You can't tell me that so many people were disappointed with Breaking Dawn because their expectations were too high. JKR succeeded under just as much pressure. Some people wanted Harry to die, others would have started mass protests if he had, and me, what I cared most about was that Snape was good and his reasoning made sense. So many contradictory desires and expectations and sure there are people out there who didn't like Deathly Hallows, but overall JKR satisfied the masses. SM did not. Twilight fans can criticize Potter for the plethora of deaths, but I'd rather have sadness that makes you grow and develop and completes a story than to completely stagnate the story so that nothing bad happens to the characters. SM could have given Edward and Bella and even Jacob a happy ending without resorting to the ridiculous.

 

Ms. Molly Gerber: There is no comparison. Rowling spent years prior to writing the series planning the plot and mapping even minor characters' back stories. Every aspect is so well thought out that minute details could be argued for ten years on forums. Even now, with all the books published, fans find things to debate and discuss. Of course, there were plenty of things for fans to discuss in Twilight, but that mostly consisted of whether or not Bella would become a Vampire and when Edward and Bella would have sex.

Ms. Juliana Gomes:  I don’t think the Harry Potter series are more complex than the Twilight series, but I do think it’s a bit richer (not that the Twilight plot isn’t – I love both of the books and I know how amazing they are.)

Even though Stephanie Meyer is an awesome writer – one of the best, indeed –, J.K. Rowling is like a Goddess, more than a genius. Because Bella and Edward live a romance – a breath-taking one, I have to say –, so the plot and the story are mainly directed towards that, and only that. Even if there’re James, Victoria and the Volturi, the books are always about Bella and Edward loving each other and struggling to be together. The Harry Potter series, on the other hand, are about much more than that – they’re about action, magic, friendship, family, the meaning of life, and, of course, also about love. And while Stephanie focus on writing different plots to each book – first saving Bella from James, then rescuing Edward from the Volturi, then saving Bella again but from Victoria and then saving Renesmee from the Volturi –, J.K. Rowling sticks to the same plot, the same story – with the Harry-Voldemort relationship –, but in a way that makes everything connect. It’s like when she was writing the first book, she already knew what she was going to do with the seventh one before even writing it, because all the stories from the seven books link.

But both of the plots are always about fighting for what you want, protecting who you love (even though it just sounds cheesy when I say it.)

Ms. Victoria Landaker: I’d have to say that the overall plot of the Potter series is far more intricate than the plot of the Twilight series, mainly because of the amount of thought that J.K. Rowling put into the progression of the story. That isn’t to say that Stephanie Meyer did not put the same amount of thought into the Twilight series, merely that the miniscule details that appear in Rowling’s books early on in the series, end up playing a huge role in the plot later on. For example, no one would have guessed that the crown that showed up for a split second in the Half-Blood Prince, in the Room of Requirement, would end up being a Horcrux in the Deathly Hallows. These small details, as well as the development of the characters, contribute to the rich plot of the Potter books.

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Let's see what Team Twilight has to say:

 

Ms. Caroline Gates: Twilight totally had a better, richer, more complex plot line than Harry Potter. In Harry Potter, Harry basically has only one foe, Voldemort. Sure, he also deals with the awkward adolescence stage, fights with friends, and his parents dying, but its only moving in one direction. Twilight constantly surprised you in the plot line. Just as you thought, "Oh! This is where Bella is going to become a vampire!" Stephenie Meyer throws a curve ball at you! Edward leaves her in New Moon. Bella can't become a vampire if the Cullen's aren't there. Then you have the constant battles of people hunting after Bella. She gets pursued by James, Victoria, Laurent, the Volturri, and Jacob. Granted Jacob doesn't want to kill her, but he tries time and time again to win Bella's affection. I'd say thats a pretty awesome plot line compared to Harry.

Ms. Taelor Ball: Harry Potter is definitely more complicated than Twilight. With all the different spells, characters, and battle scenes, I can’t remember which happens in which book. And there are too many Harry Potter books to re-read them all.

 Ms. Caroline Suh: For complexity and richness, the Twilight series definately prevail over Harry Potter. Even with the fantasy element of vampires and werewolves, it does not take away from the realism of the human feelings and interactions that the characters deal with. The Twilight books do not rely on action-packed sequences, like the Harry Potter books do, to keep readers in suspense (the intensity of Bella and Edward's relationship handles that department very well on its own - Breaking Dawn people?!), but rather it draws people in with its timeless love story and relatable characters and relationships. I, for one, am easily able to forget that the Cullens are vampires or that there are werewolves running lose in the woods, and instead find myself empathizing with each of the characters and their problems of dealing with dating, unrequited love, being the new person in town, divorced parents, etc. Each of the characters are so complex in their personalities that one can find themselves relating to some aspect of each. The plot of the Twilight series invokes the fundamental love story of Romeo & Juliet, yet is able to apply it into a modern world which is what makes the storyline more appealing to people today. With Harry Potter we get the same old conflict of good versus evil. Therefore, it needs an over-exaggerated expansion of magical creatures (centaurs, house-elves, half-giant faculty members etc.) and weird magic terminology (dementor, muggle, bogart, howler, etc.) to keep the reader's attention, which makes the series all the more unrealistic. The Harry Potter series also depends on the downfall of other characters (Sirius, Dumbledore, etc.) in order to raise Harry Potter's determination to defeat Voldemort. Basically, in summary, I see more value and richness in the complexities of human relationships more frequently than I do of dementor attacks near parks.
 

 

Ms. Laura Nelson:  First off, I do believe that the Twilight Series offers a more rich and complex plot than the Harry Potter series, my only proof being my obsessive need to read these books…over and over and over. The plot is so rich in fact, that I have not yet “sated my thirst,” for Stephenie Meyer’s vampire love story. The characters came off as real people, in fact I was looking for Edward, Bella, and Jacob around every corner for several weeks after I read the books the first time. The world that Stephenie Meyers created is rivaled by no other fiction that I have read. She certainly has a way with words in the construction of her characters, description of environments, and crafting her gripping plot lines. The Twilight series’ plot revolves around Edwards and Bella’s love and his intense need to protect Bella from all harm. This indebted protection that Edward is compelled to provide touches every part of Bella’s life, whether it means getting to school safely, avoiding a vampire who is tracking her, or keeping her safe from a band of newborn vampires that are trained to kill her. The plot has surprises around every corner, and Bella is constantly in danger in one way or another. There is also much conflict in the Harry Potter series, though it usually revolves around protecting a group. There is the always present Voldemort who yearns to take Harry’s life which creates quite a dramatic plot throughout the series. I think the similarities in plot lines lie in the constant conflict, danger, battles, and uncertainty the main characters constantly endure. The difference in the Twilight series is the intense love between Edward and Bella. This is the tone that underlies every book and is, at some points in the series, the only hope readers can hold onto. Meyers described a love so intense most would die for. There is also the presence of family cohesiveness and devotion in the Twilight series that was not apparent in Harry Potter. It could be argued though, that Harry’s family was consisted of the Weasly’s Hermione, Dumbledore and Hagrid. There is a devotion to Harry in all of these characters, but in the end I saw no love that was blinding enough to disarm the readers and capture their hearts the way Twilight’s love did mine.

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Yow, there are great arguments on both sides. Now, take a look at Question #3: What lessons does your favorite of the two sets teach to young readers and how do those compare to the lessons taught by the other series?