Why The Twilight Saga Was Banned in the US
The Twilight Saga has stood strong in the entertainment world since the first movie hit the big screen in 2008. It’s insanely successful to this day, and there’s even a Twilight TV series in the works. But the series has been the target of political groups in the United States. In fact, the Twilight books have been banned a few times.
Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight Saga hasn’t aged well in terms of the movies, but some people viewed the book series as inappropriate as far back as 2005 when the first book was dropped. In 2009, The Twilight Saga was banned or challenged so much in the US that it made the American Library Association’s top five most challenged books. Twilight is very clearly a romance novel, and the inclusion of the sparkly vampiric Cullen family references death. As such, it’s not the best choice for younger kids. Some parents stick to the rule that a book is a safe bet so long as the reader is no more than three years younger than the main character. Under that logic, since Bella Swan is about 17 in the first Twilight book, it’s generally okay for teens to read. But not everyone feels this way.
Twilight’s Content Is Considered Controversial
One of the biggest reasons for The Twilight Saga’s ban is the book’s sexual content. While there aren’t any explicit sex scenes, some of the language is quite suggestive, and Bella does get pregnant in Breaking Dawn. The series itself isn’t necessarily sexual, but The Twilight Saga did inspire Fifty Shades of Grey, which is definitely not geared toward a younger audience. Another issue with the Twilight books is what some refer to as “religious views.” As Twilight has supernatural elements, some view it as evil and against their beliefs.
The Twilight Saga is hardly the first book to be banned, and unfortunately, it likely won’t be the last. However, Twilight is part of a specific genre that draws the most controversy. Of course, this is the Young Adult genre, and many YA books are banned or challenged for various reasons.
Books get banned for various reasons, but some have a lot of overlap. For starters, it tends to be the same political groups banning books year after year, but aside from that, most of them are slapped for the same reasons. A good example of this is The Hunger Games and Harry Potter, which were both handed a ban because of their “anti-family” elements. A lot of YA books are deemed sexually explicit as well, and this can be attributed to the sexual awakening aspect of coming-of-age stories.
It’s vital to remember that not every book is for everyone, and some people just don’t like The Twilight Saga. With that said, having concerns about a book’s subject matter is absolutely normal, and families must be aware of what children may be reading or watching. But that doesn’t mean all books that face controversy are inherently bad, as series like Twilight and Harry Potter have also done a lot of good for the world.
