Character Evolution

[Cocoa]

A thread to discuss the evolution of the characters throughout the series

[wishiwerebella010]

There are so many characters that change throughout the series, and obvisously the most noticeable would be the main characters, Bella Edward and Jacob.
But i am only going to talk about Edward, i'll leave the rest up to you guys

Edward changed alot, in Twilight and the beggining of New Moon Edward's mind was just so set on he was the sadistic vampire that was the worst thing on this planet for Bella no matter how she felt about him. Edward finally realized in the end of New Moon that no matter what his nature told him to do his love for her could NEVER be broken. It wasnt until Breaking Dawn that Edward truely got to see that Bella loved him with the same intensity. Edward always doubted Bella's love, thinking he could love her more but it was just so great, and it just jumped off the page when you got to see that Edward finally realized that she loved him just as much.

[museicalking]

There are so many characters that change throughout the series, and obvisously the most noticeable would be the main characters, Bella Edward and Jacob.
But i am only going to talk about Edward, i'll leave the rest up to you guys

Edward changed alot, in Twilight and the beggining of New Moon Edward's mind was just so set on he was the sadistic vampire that was the worst thing on this planet for Bella no matter how she felt about him. Edward finally realized in the end of New Moon that no matter what his nature told him to do his love for her could NEVER be broken. It wasnt until Breaking Dawn that Edward truely got to see that Bella loved him with the same intensity. Edward always doubted Bella's love, thinking he could love her more but it was just so great, and it just jumped off the page when you got to see that Edward finally realized that she loved him just as much.

agreed. too add on, bella has changed entirely.
from not being able to walk on a straight line to saving everyone from the volturi. her personality didnt seem to change much, but her protective-ness did grow. from her family to renesmee. she also seemed to be very straight forward with confronting her problems through the end of the books.

[Jules]

I felt like Jacob got a lot more sarcatic, but also more grown up. I mean, I think that realizing the world isn't a giant playground, helps.

[jamielikewhoa]

I felt like Jacob got a lot more sarcatic, but also more grown up. I mean, I think that realizing the world isn't a giant playground, helps.

I think Jacob was able to mature some, even though the evidence that he hasn't totally matured is still there (his want to always fight Edward) but overall, he did a lot of growing up, and fast. He was able to set aside his dislike for Edward time after time just to be there for Bella. And he did a lot more looking into himself in Breaking Dawn so that he was better able to understand himself and those around him. He also showed that he was mature in that he was able to follow through with his beliefs when he broke from the pack when they didn't want to see his reasoning.

[darkrider]

There are so many characters that change throughout the series, and obvisously the most noticeable would be the main characters, Bella Edward and Jacob.
But i am only going to talk about Edward, i'll leave the rest up to you guys

Edward changed alot, in Twilight and the beggining of New Moon Edward's mind was just so set on he was the sadistic vampire that was the worst thing on this planet for Bella no matter how she felt about him. Edward finally realized in the end of New Moon that no matter what his nature told him to do his love for her could NEVER be broken. It wasnt until Breaking Dawn that Edward truely got to see that Bella loved him with the same intensity. Edward always doubted Bella's love, thinking he could love her more but it was just so great, and it just jumped off the page when you got to see that Edward finally realized that she loved him just as much.

I agree with you. Though, I think Edward was still his old self a bit in BD. During their honeymoon, when He gave Bella the bruises...or Jacob did(that hasn't exactly been established yet), he still thought himself a monster. It was only until after Bella made light of the situation..where Bella began to show him how strong she can be.wanted to be for him, that he lightened up and began to trust himself again. All in all, Edward and Bella were the greatest evolutionary characters in the saga, in my opinion.

-Dark

[Emmy.G]

Personally, I think Charlie has changed a lot throughout the series. In the beginning of twilight, he barely spoke. He was probably extremely uncomfortable with Bella living with him for the first time, so that probably contributed. But, he became much more outgoing as the series went on. I mean, his hatred for Edward grows until the end of Eclipse. He is extremely outspoken about his opinions, especially his opinions about who Bella dates, much more so than I would have believed when reading twilight. In Breaking Dawn, he seems to accept Edward, but i get the feeling it's really only because he has no choice

Whatever, i know it's not very interesting, but his character development really stuck out to me.

[BeautifulVeins]

I think that by the end of Breaking Dawn, Jacob seems to understand Edward a lot more, and begins to view the vampires as more than just "bloodsuckers" He seems to tolerate them and begins to treat them as Humans, which is really nice to see. I don't know if Seth has anything to do with his acceptance of them, but either way, its great to see him care.
I think his love for Bella also helps him to mature.

[Juliana<3Jake]

I felt like Jacob got a lot more sarcatic, but also more grown up. I mean, I think that realizing the world isn't a giant playground, helps.

lol.
Yes I agree.

At the end of the Saga he is only 17.. (right?)
So still pretty young.

But he matured so much esp when he 1st phased into a werewolf and realized that life wasn't just fun and games. That he had responsibilities. Which I admired. :]

Evolution of Jacob Black:
Immature. crush on Bella.
Still crushing on Bella.
Phases into a wolf. More mature.
In love with Bella.
Loses Love.
Mature.
Finds someone to dedicate his life to.
Happily Ever After.

YAY!
I think he went through the most changes throughout the Saga. (other than Bella)
And he is such a deeeep character that I was so glad we could get inside his head.

[KeepMeWithYou]

There were a lot of changes that went on with a few more characters besides Bella/Edward/Jake, but I'll just go with two that stuck out: Charlie Swan and Leah Clearwater.

Charlie Swan: Charlie became more outspoken in NM and we saw his dislike for Edward in Eclipse and then accepted Edward as his son-in-law in BD and even got to know about the werewolves (shifters). In Twilight he didn't really have a huge role.

Leah Clearwater: We first saw Leah as a bitter woman, bitter over Sam and Emily's relationship. In BD she really changed and we got to see her as a person with determination and with a reason to be upset about her phasing: she might be a genetic end. It made the reader see her in a new way and feel pity. It also tied in with Rosalie's desire to have a child which sort of ties the Cullens to the Pack in an indirect way. Maybe...

Bella Cullen Swan: She became more mature (a bit of a sex-addicted honeymooner, sure ) but we got to see the more secure Bella, once Edward and her were married, she knew that nothing could take him from her. And during the pregnancy, she became a more protective Bella, the one who would die for her baby, to see that the child lived. And once she turned into a vampire, her protective-ness grew and she included both Renesmee and Edward in her life. Also, since she was no longer human, she was able to kiss her husband the way she had when they had first kissed (but had to stop at the time) and make love to him without the bruises.
Her personality hadn't changed much in BD, just the way she viewed life. She wasn't so human-like, andI think her biggest issue in the first three books was that she wasn't equal with Edward, that she was ordinary compared to him and mortal. But once she was turned, she could finally be his equal.

Jacob Black:

My answer, coped from the Jake's Book forum:

When in Jake's head, I saw everything as he had--through Eclipse and New Moon : There was conflict and lingering pain but he was beginning to accept things, beginning to heal. I thought his love was genuine enough, that he did love Bella, and Edward had reason enough to fight with him and soon find equal ground but it was really in Breaking Dawn Jacob really had a chance to shine! It took a few pages to shift from Bella's POV to Jake's, but once I did, it was really easy to see the Jake that Bella met in Twilight, the one she was good friends with in New Moon, and the conflicted Jake in Eclipse. Jake's book in Breaking Dawn was intense, funny, and a good way to see how his pack worked and how he saw Bella and Edward.

In other words he matured greatly through all three books and became a very real character. He wasn't just a guy on the sidelines like in Twilight.

Evolution of Jacob Black:
Immature. crush on Bella.
Still crushing on Bella.
Phases into a wolf. More mature.
In love with Bella.
Loses Love.
Mature.
Finds someone to dedicate his life to.
Happily Ever After.

The evolution in a nutshell.



Edward Cullen: Edward's a bit tricky but I'll try and explain the developement clearly...

At first in Twilight we saw him as this beautiful, perfect ideal boy who loved Bella but didn't want to condemn her to hell by turning her. In New Moon He left and we saw the pain that Bella felt after losing him but lived through with Jake's friendship. After she "died" he [Edward] couldn't live without her, he wanted to go to the Volturi to kill himself but it was Bella who saved him this time (with Alice's help). In Eclipse we see Bella torn between the two. But we also see the evolution of Edward and Jake's relationship. They go from enemies to comerades in battle, helpng each other win against the newborns and Victoria.

In Breaking Dawn We see Edward again as the beautiful vampire who cares about Bella, only now they are wedded. We see again, Edward's overprotectiveness ( and maybe his seductive, careful side as well? ) But once Bella's pregnant and wasting away Edward slips back into his New Moon-esqe mood, although now he is physically seeing Bella's pain and destruction as the baby grows (though this is also told in Jake's POV).
But once Edward is able to hear the baby's thoughts, we see him as a father might when he first holds his child: amazed and humbled.

But as the baby grows closer to birth Edward fears for Bella's life again: Jake's POV makes us see Edward as the "burning man"--the side of Edward that wasn't so gentlemanly or the embodiment of Adonis-like "perfection" as seen through Bella's eyes. Again I always think of New Moon when Edward and Jake agree that if Bella dies, Jake kills him, reminds me of the Volturi punishment of death.

It was an intense moment for both Edward and Jacob and a chance for both to somewhat reconcile thier differences that began in Eclipse, even if Edwad was desperate enough to offer Bella up to Jacob so that she could have puppies if that what it took to save her and keep her alive. It was a chance to see our flawless Edward as he remarks in Twilight: "I may not be human, but I am a man."

And, in this case, we see him in his most "human moment" as man--a husband--worried for his beloved.