Bella Swan
Isabella Marie Cullen (née Swan) is the protagonist character of the Twilight book series by Stephenie Meyer. She is initially an ordinary teenage girl, but during the series, Bella marries vampire Edward Cullen, with whom she has a human-vampire hybrid daughter, Renesmee Cullen. The Twilight series, consisting of the novels Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn, is primarily narrated from Bella's point of view. In The Twilight Saga film series, Bella is portrayed by actress Kristen Stewart.
Bella Cullen
Bella
Bells
Bell
Vampire girl (by Emily Young & Embry Call)
Arizona (by Mike Newton in films)
Mrs. Cullen
Mom (by Renesmee)
Female
Student (Twilight to Eclipse)
Employee at Newton's Olympic Outfitters (New Moon and Eclipse, books only)
Geoffrey Swan (paternal grandfather, deceased)
Helen Swan (paternal grandmother, deceased)
Beaufort Higginbotham (maternal grandfather, deceased)
Marie Higginbotham (maternal grandmother, deceased)
Charlie Swan (father)
Renée Swan-Dwyer (mother)
Phil Dwyer (stepfather)
Edward Masen, Sr. (father-in-law, deceased)
Elizabeth Masen (mother-in-law, deceased)
Carlisle Cullen (adoptive father-in-law)
Esme Cullen (adoptive mother-in-law)
Emmett Cullen and Jasper Hale (adoptive brothers-in-law)
Alice Cullen and Rosalie Hale (adoptive sisters-in-law)
Jacob Black (best friend and future son-in-law)
Edward Cullen (husband)
Renesmee Cullen (daughter)
She is the daughter of Charlie Swan and Renée Swan-Dwyer and the daughter-in-law of Edward Masen Sr. and Elizabeth Masen (Edward's deceased biological parents). Bella is the step-daughter of Phil Dwyer (Renée's second husband) and the adoptive daughter-in-law of Esme Cullen and Carlisle Cullen (Edward's second and adoptive parents). Bella is the adoptive sister-in-law of Alice Cullen and Emmett Cullen as well as Rosalie Hale and Jasper Hale, the granddaughter of Geoffrey and Helen Swan (Charlie's deceased parents) and Marie Higginbotham (Renée's deceased mother).
In Twilight, 17-year-old Bella moves to her father's home in Forks, Washington, meets the mysterious Cullen family, and falls in love with seemingly teenage Edward Cullen. However, she soon discovers that the family is a coven of vampires. Bella expresses a desire to become a vampire herself, but Edward refuses to turn her. In the second novel, New Moon, Edward and the other Cullens leave Forks in an effort to keep now-18-year-old human Bella safe from the vampire world. Jacob Black, a member of the Quileute tribe who is also a shape-shifter taking a werewolf form, comforts the distraught and severely depressed Bella. She comes to care deeply for Jacob, though less than she loves Edward. At the end of Eclipse, she becomes engaged to Edward Cullen, and they marry in Breaking Dawn, one month prior to her 19th birthday. On their honeymoon, she becomes pregnant, and, due to the peculiar nature of her baby, Bella nearly dies giving birth to their daughter, Renesmee. Edward turns Bella into a vampire to save her.
Concept and creation[edit]
The premise for both Bella and the Twilight series originated in a dream Stephenie Meyer had in which an "average girl" and a "fantastically beautiful, sparkly... vampire... were having an intense conversation in a meadow in the woods." In this dream, the pair "were discussing the difficulties inherent in the facts that... they were falling in love with each other while... the vampire was particularly attracted to the scent of her blood, and was having a difficult time restraining himself from killing her."[1]
Meyer's original characters were unnamed; she took to calling the characters, who would later become Edward and Bella, "he" and "she" for the purpose of convenience as she "didn't want to lose the dream." Meyer explained that the name "Isabella" was decided upon because "after spending so much time with [the character], I loved her like a daughter. ... Inspired by that love, I gave her the name I was saving for my daughter,... Isabella."[1]
Bella's positive reception at her new school in Forks, particularly her popularity with male characters, was modelled after Meyer's real life move from high school to college.[2] Meyer has said that there are similarities between Bella and the title character of Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, a novel which she has cited as an influence on the Twilight series.[3]
Appearances[edit]
Twilight[edit]
Bella, who first appears in Twilight, is a 17-year-old human girl who moves from her mother's home in Phoenix, Arizona, to live with her father, Charlie Swan, a police chief, in her birthplace of Forks, Washington. There, she is enrolled at Forks High School, where she becomes intrigued by a 17-year-old vampire student, Edward Cullen, and his siblings. When Edward saves her life, she is determined to find out what Edward Cullen is and how he saved her with his super-human qualities. Later, Bella learns from Jacob Black that Quileute legends say the Cullen family are Cold Ones, or vampires.[4] Edward eventually admits that he is a vampire, though his family has what they call a "vegetarian" diet, only hunting animals.[5] Edward constantly warns Bella against being with him, perceiving her life to be at constant risk because her blood's scent is more seductive to him than any other human he has ever met, due to her being his 'singer'. Cantante is the Italian expression that the Volturi use to describe a human whose blood particularly appeals to a certain vampire in an extreme sense. "Cantante" is the Italian word for "singer", denoting when the blood of the human sings for the vampire. Bella's love and confidence in Edward's restraint are such that his warnings go unheeded. While playing baseball with the Cullen family, she becomes the target of a sadistic vampire, James. Edward saves Bella from James' predation, though Edward is still unwilling to change Bella into a vampire himself.[6]
New Moon[edit]
New Moon begins on Bella's 18th birthday. She has a dream where she looks like her late grandmother while her vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen, is still young. During a birthday celebration at the Cullen residence, Bella gets a small paper cut while unwrapping a present. Edward's brother, Jasper, instinctively thirsting for her blood, lunges for Bella, but Edward and Emmett restrain him. In a misguided attempt to protect Bella, Edward moves away with his family. Edward's departure results in Bella falling into a deep depression and isolation lasting months.
Charlie, concerned about Bella, wants her to live with her mother in Jacksonville, hoping a new environment will help with her depression. In an effort to stay in Forks, Bella begins seeing her old friends and attends a frightening movie with Jessica. While there, she carelessly approaches a group of dangerous-looking bikers gathered outside a bar; she discovers she can hear Edward's voice when she gets into trouble. Desperate to hear his voice again, Bella continually seeks out danger and convinces her friend Jacob Black to repair two old motorcycles and teach her how to ride them. Their friendship gradually deepens and Jacob admits his romantic feelings for Bella, though she does not reciprocate them. This results in Jacob isolating himself from Bella. When the vampire Laurent returns to Forks, he tries to attack Bella. She is saved by a pack of giant wolves. Later, Bella learns that Jacob and other tribe members are shape-shifters who phase into wolf form to protect humans from vampires. Bella also discovers that Victoria has also returned to Forks, seeking to kill Edward's mate, Bella to avenge her vampire mate, James' death.
To hear Edward's voice again, Bella attempts cliff jumping and nearly drowns, but Jacob rescues her. Alice returns to Forks after having a vision that Bella jumped off a cliff and has died, only to discover that Bella is alive. After Harry Clearwater died from a heart attack, her vision misread his funeral for Bella's. Edward, believing Bella has committed suicide, travels to Volterra, Italy, to request the Volturi to destroy him, though they refuse his request.
Alice and Bella follow Edward to Italy, barely in time prevent him from showing himself in daylight to humans, an act that would result in his execution. The trio is taken to the Volturi. Because Bella knows about vampires, the Volturi would either kill her or have her become a vampire. Alice shows Aro, the main leader of the Volturi, a vision she had of Bella as a vampire, and they are free to leave and are given a strict warning that there will be consequences if Bella remains human.
Upon returning home, Edward tells Bella that he never stopped loving her and only left Forks to protect her. Edward promises never to leave Bella again. Edward still opposes Bella becoming a vampire and intends to fool the Volturi. Intent on becoming an immortal, Bella asks the Cullens to vote on her fate. Only Rosalie and Edward oppose it. Later, Jacob reminds Edward about the treaty, and biting any human will nullify it. Bella insists it is her choice. Edward later agrees he will change her if she marries him.[7]
Eclipse[edit]
Eclipse continues the paranormality of 18-year-old human Bella and the vampire Edward's relationship. Edward is reluctant to change Bella into a vampire, believing that becoming a vampire will destroy her soul. Bella agrees to marry Edward on the condition that he will make love to her while she is still human and then turn her into a vampire. Edward initially declines, saying that he could easily lose control and unintentionally kill her. He reminds Bella that he is from another era, where relationships had fewer complications and couples remained celibate until marriage.
The plot is driven by the machinations of the vampire Victoria, who first encountered Bella and the Cullens during the first novel, Twilight. Victoria, seeking to avenge the death of her lover James, hunts Bella while building a new vampire army to wipe out the Cullen coven. To combat this threat, a reluctant truce is struck between the Cullens, and the shape-shifting wolf pack led by Sam Uley. Jacob Black pits himself against Edward as a love interest for Bella, but she considers him as a friend. Despite her love for Edward, she shares a kiss with Jacob and realizes she loves him, too, but loves Edward more. Bella acknowledges that Edward is the most important person in her life. After Victoria is killed and Edward has formally proposed, Bella must now tell her father, Charlie, knowing he will oppose her marrying Edward.[8]
Characterization[edit]
Physical appearance[edit]
Bella is described as being petite, with a height of roughly 5'4", and a very translucent, pale complexion. She has thick, long, brown hair, with a wide forehead, and a widow's peak. Her eyes are described as being "chocolate brown" and widely spaced. She has a small, thin nose, prominent cheekbones, lips a bit too full for her slim jawline, and thin eyebrows that are straighter than they are arched. Her fingernails are described as stubby from being bitten down. There are several references to Bella's hair having a red tinge to it which is only very visible in the sunlight; in overcast and dimly lit conditions, it appears browner.
The scent of her O-positive blood is incredibly attractive to vampires, described by Bree Tanner to be the "sweetest scent she'd ever smelled", though it is a thousand times more intense to Edward Cullen.
As for distinguishing features, Bella has a small crescent-shaped scar on her hand where she was bitten by James, a tracker vampire, in Twilight. The scar is described as being pale, always a few degrees colder than the rest of her body, and it shines like a vampire's skin when exposed to the sunlight. After Bella is changed into a vampire by Edward, she becomes extremely beautiful with even paler skin, straight waist-length hair, and crimson red eyes that eventually turn gold after months of drinking animal blood. Her features are also heightened and perfected by the transformation.
Bella wears plain shirts, jeans, and sneakers everywhere she goes, as she lacks care in her appearance during the beginning of The Twilight Saga. However, she is shown to take more care in looking better for Edward the more she falls in love with him. In Midnight Sun, Edward listens from a tree branch outside her window as Bella frantically searches through her wardrobe in search of something nice to wear for the day he plans on taking her to the meadow.
In the movie, Twilight, these changes are also shown gradually in the clothing she chooses from day to day. She wears plain clothes that look comfortable and easy to live in, with not much care for her appearance in earlier scenes. After beginning to have feelings for Edward Cullen, Bella is shown to dress in more stylish or eye-catching clothing, having a deeper V-neck shirt with embroidery in a cafeteria scene where she keeps sneaking glances at Edward.
Reception[edit]
Bella has received a generally negative reception from critics. Publishers Weekly states that, after her transformation into a vampire, "it's almost impossible to identify with her" in Breaking Dawn.[13] Lilah Lohr of the Chicago Tribune compares Bella's character to the story of the Quileute wolves and describes it as "less satisfying."[14] During Twilight, Kirkus Reviews stated that "Bella's appeal is based on magic rather than character", but that her and Edward's "portrayal of dangerous lovers hits the spot".[15] In the review of New Moon, Kirkus Reviews said that Bella's personality was "flat and obsessive".[16] Laura Miller of salon.com said, in regards to Edward and Bella, "neither of them has much personality to speak of."[17] Entertainment Weekly's Jennifer Reese, in her review of Breaking Dawn noted, in regard to Bella, "You may wish she had loftier goals and a mind of her own, but these are fairy tales, and as a steadfast lover in the Disney Princess mold, Bella has a certain saccharine appeal", and that during Bella's pregnancy "she is not only hard to identify with but positively horrifying, especially while guzzling human blood to nourish the infant."[18] The Washington Post journalist Elizabeth Hand noted how Bella was often described as breakable and that "Edward's habit of constantly pulling her onto his lap or having her ride on his back further emphasize her childlike qualities", continuing to write that "the overall effect is a weird infantilization that has repellent overtones to an adult reader and hardly seems like an admirable model to foist upon our daughters (or sons)."[19] Gina Dalfonzo, in an article posted on the National Review website, calls Bella "self-deprecating" before her transformation into a vampire, and afterwards she is "insufferably vain".[20] Dalfonzo also states that Bella gets what she wants and discovers her worth "by giving up her identity and throwing away nearly everything in life that matters."[20]