Hear Me Out: I Think Kristen Stewart's Bella In The Twilight Movies Doesn't Get Enough Credit

In one of the best vampire movies, The Twilight Saga, some argue that Bella is one of the worst main characters of their own movie. Sure, she has flaws in her dependency on vampire Edward Cullen and is willing to make herself immortal for him. But before the Twilight TV show premieres, I think it’s time to hear me out about one of Kristen Stewart’s best characters and give the Forks resident more credit where credit is due.

Bella Gets A Lot Of Flack For Her Intense Relationship With Edward, But I Admire Her For Following Her Heart

It’s true that Bella gets a lot of flack for her strong dependency on Edward. Back in 2011, psychologist Wind Goodfriend Ph.D. argued in Psychology Today that Bella’s low self-esteem and attraction to forbidden men makes her a victim of relationship violence, with Edward being the “abuser.” However, the author of the book series, Stephenie Meyer, defended criticism about Bella not being a good role model since the main character is sure of what she wants and isn’t afraid to go after it.

Bella, indeed, deserves credit for following her heart. As soon as the new student noticed strange things about her classmate, Edward Cullen, like his abnormal physical strength and changing eye colors, she wasn’t afraid to investigate. Once she found out he was a vampire who had issues controlling his thirst for her blood, that didn’t stop her from pursuing a relationship with him, even if he pushed her away for the good of her safety. When Edward broke up with Bella in New Moon, she still traveled to Italy to stop him from sacrificing himself to the Volturi. She did what felt right for her, no matter what anyone said.

Bella May Not Be A Typical Beauty Queen In High School, But That Doesn't Stop Swooning Guys

As soon as Bella moved to Forks in the first Twilight movie, guys were all over her. Or as her new friend, Jessica, told her, “you’re like a shiny new toy.” She was no Queen Bee, though, as she wore more casual, laid-back clothes compared to anything with cleavage and didn’t wear any makeup. She actually wanted as little attention as possible with no interest in achieving popularity at a new school.

However, the guys at Forks High School weren't turned off by Bella’s natural beauty or her awkward persona. Clearly, being her natural self was enough to eventually bring on a huge love triangle that involved Edward and Jacob. There were never moments when she tried to be someone else to come off as likable. Even in terms of getting Edward to like her when they first met, she never tried to change her style to impress him. Sounds like role model material to me to never change yourself to get your love interest to love you.

Bella May Be Giving Up Mortality To Be With Edward, But It's To Help Protect Him

At the end of the first movie, Bella told Edward she wanted to be a vampire so that she could be with him forever. Then during her 18th birthday in New Moon, she continued to persuade him to change her so that she could protect him from the Volturi if it came down to it.

In Eclipse, Bella didn’t want to stand by and let everyone risk their lives to protect her from Victoria. By being a vampire herself, she’d no longer have to depend on Edward to save her from enemies stronger than her. Bella came to the realization that her decision to be a vampire wasn't even just about being with Edward forever. It was because she truly believed she belonged in his world.

Bella Engages In Reckless Behavior, But She's Willing To Sacrifice For The Ones She Loves

Throughout the Twilight film series, Bella got herself into a lot of trouble that audiences would define as reckless. In the first movie, she abandoned Alice and Jasper to go to a ballet studio where James, a Tracker, said he’d be. New Moon had her leave Charlie behind to go to Italy for Edward. Eclipse, saw her stay with Edward in the same location where Victoria and the newborn vampires fought against the Cullens and the werewolves. And, we can’t leave out Breaking Dawn when Bella chose to carry her half-vampire baby to term, even if it took away her own life.

What’s important to keep in mind about Bella’s extreme behavior is that it was all in the name of love. She took a risk going to the ballet studio to meet with James because he told her that he was holding her mom there. Her reasoning for dropping everything to go to Italy was to stop Edward from provoking the Volturi, who would have killed him. She also stayed with the Cullens and the werewolves so she wouldn’t leave them defenseless if they needed her.

Not to mention, Bella went through with her pregnancy so that Edward would have a part of her and saw her baby as a “miracle” when she thought she couldn’t have kids with a vampire. She was willing to commit a mother’s sacrifice to ensure her daughter would live, even if she couldn’t. Even when Alice and Jasper arranged for Renesmee and Jacob to leave together during the Volturi battle, Bella accepted it to ensure her daughter’s protection.

Bella Disobeys Her Father's Wishes, But She Needs To Create Her Own Path

Despite having a deep relationship with Edward, Bella still did typical teenage girl things like disobeying her father’s wishes. Charlie felt like whenever Bella was around Edward, their relationship kept bringing more trouble into her life. When Edward left Bella, he witnessed the overwhelming pain that he had put his daughter through. If anything, Charlie would have been Team Jacob since he’s known him and his father for a long time. I'm basing that on Charlie's advice to her: "You have to learn to love what’s good for you.”

While Charlie had good intentions throughout the Twilight Saga in wanting to protect his daughter, Bella felt what was good for her was Edward. There are many reasons why Bella was right to choose Edward, such as his always looking out for her and his deep loyalty to her. He’d go to the ends of the earth to make sure she was safe. She heard her father’s wishes for her to get distance from Edward, but she had to create her own path and follow her heart. This led to her decisions to get married, have a baby, and become a vampire. By the end of the saga, it didn’t appear at all that Bella regretted any of her choices.

There’s no denying that Bella Swan’s got her flaws in terms of her bond hold with Edward and getting herself in danger to keep staying with him. But, it’s important to remember that no character is perfect, and she deserves more credit than she’s given.

The Twilight protagonist remained true to herself as well as her wants and needs throughout her journey. If all of her extreme actions were in the name of love, we can’t fault a girl for that. You can see for yourself what a headstrong woman Bella Swan is by watching all of the Twilight movies with your Peacock subscription.