Chapter 26 - Ethics

[misskiley]

1. What does Bella mean when she tells Jake “I never had a choice”? Is she saying she had no choice about falling in love with Edward -- it was a kind of compulsion like imprinting? Or that her love for him is irrevocable: once she fell in love, she could never love someone else instead? Or does she just mean that given the depth of her passion for Edward there is no real choice to be made here? Do you think she is right about this?
I'd say it's probably the same as imprinting. As soon as she saw Edward, she was obsessed with him. She may not have known if she loved him at that point, but she knew there was something.

2. Jake tells Bella that Edward was like a drug for her. Do you think he’s right? Is her love for Edward more like an addiction than a healthy emotion?
Yes,. They're both so obsessed with each other it's crazy. How can an intense love ever be healthy? Not that they have an unhealthy relationship.. it's just very very intense.

3. What is Bella getting at when she tells Jake that her love for him was overshadowed by something so strong it couldn’t exist in the rational world? Does she think her love for Edward is unnatural, something you could only feel for a mythical creature? Is the idea of two worlds -- the sane one humans think they live in and the mythical one of monsters and magic -- her way of explaining how she can love two people at once?
Yes. She knows if Edward would have died such a long time ago, Jacob was her real life soulmate. But it never would have been as intense or what she feels for Edward. Her and Jacob never would have been on the same level.

4. Jake acknowledges that it is too late now for Bella to be happy without Edward. But he insists that the human life she and he could have had together if she’d never met Edward would have been better for her than the life she will now have. Do you think he’s right?
Well yes. Obviously it would have been better if she never knew Edward existed. She is going to lose her family and friends-a risk she's willing to give up though. But overall she's doing what's going to make her the happiest. She could still have her family and friends and grow older,.. but she wants to live forever with Edward.

5. Jake tells Bella that he’ll always be there waiting for her if she changes her mind -- even when she’s a vampire. Only a few weeks ago (Chapter 8), he told her that he’d rather see her dead than a vampire. Why do you think he feels differently now?
He's had more time to absorb it all in. He realizes how strongly he feels about her and they really truly love each other. It won't matter what she is, because inside it's still Bella. It worked the same way the other way around. Bella still loved Jacob even though he changed into a werewolf,.. and a lot of people probably would have run away from that. I kind of felt like Edward was stealing Edward's lines.. Not that he doesn't feel the same way, but he could have used his own lines. And the whole tearing her in half thing.. what!? Edward isn't making Bella choose at all, he just wants her to be happy.

[The girlie-wolf]

First... this is my favorite scene (the Jscob part) in my favorite book

1. Of course she had a choice.. it's not like imprinting..but what I think she means is that her love for him is irrevocable..that she fell in love and this is so true and so right that she can't fall out of love. Edward left a "solid mark in her" .. don't know how else to explain...

2. Of course he is right... Edward is like a drug to her.. She is dependent on him (not in the bad way of the word) and he is not the best for her... sorry, but a vampire is not a very healthy choice for a human..

3. The idea of two worlds -- the sane one humans think they live in and the mythical one of monsters and magic --is her way of explaining how she can love two people at once... I think this is what she is trying to say.. This is kinda lame because Jacob is a mythical creature too...
My explentaion is that her love to Jacob devloped in New Moon... her darkest stage...and she clung to Edward so hard she couldn't recognize that love...But she fell in love because he was the only one who made her feel better.. And it reviled it self in Eclipse...But she was always in love with edward.. the love to Jacob was only a survive thing that happened in New Moon... not the true love like Jacob feels toward bBella..

4. I think that I don't know... Her life went in the path that it is.. And we'll never know if her life would have been better for her with Jacob...

5. He feels differently because he understands that he can't live without Bella.. no matter what "from" she is in...

[LadyParasyte]

1. What does Bella mean when she tells Jake “I never had a choice”? Is she saying she had no choice about falling in love with Edward -- it was a kind of compulsion like imprinting? Or that her love for him is irrevocable: once she fell in love, she could never love someone else instead? Or does she just mean that given the depth of her passion for Edward there is no real choice to be made here? Do you think she is right about this?
I think she is confident in her emotions and feelings. She has never felt this connected or alive in her life before being with Edward. Attempting any other life is just unnatural.If she chose to be with Jake the missing piece that Edward would leave would be too strong for her to go on living a fulfilling life. Being with Edward and not Jake would hurt her but in the long run she would be satisfied having chose Edward.

2. Jake tells Bella that Edward was like a drug for her. Do you think he’s right? Is her love for Edward more like an addiction than a healthy emotion?
It's an addiction definitely. It doesn't mean it's automatically unhealthy tho.If there feelings and love are equal than it could work out as long as their emotions are in sync.

3. What is Bella getting at when she tells Jake that her love for him was overshadowed by something so strong it couldn’t exist in the rational world? Does she think her love for Edward is unnatural, something you could only feel for a mythical creature? Is the idea of two worlds -- the sane one humans think they live in and the mythical one of monsters and magic -- her way of explaining how she can love two people at once? I just think that she without a doubt could not feel as strong for anyone as she does for Edward. He symbolizes everything she's been missing in her life.

4. Jake acknowledges that it is too late now for Bella to be happy without Edward. But he insists that the human life she and he could have had together if she’d never met Edward would have been better for her than the life she will now have. Do you think he’s right? From a logical standpoint yes however feelings are not logical. The idea of "better" really depends on what you value the most. If Bella's priorities were safety,living a normal human life and making her family happy with who she chooses than Jake would make sense. It seems clear to me tho Bella seems to have been a logical level headed person up until meeting Edward that now that she has felt such strong emotions she cannot live without Edward. Even though she cares deeply for Jake a relationship with him would not be as fulfilling as with Edward.

5. Jake tells Bella that he’ll always be there waiting for her if she changes her mind -- even when she’s a vampire. Only a few weeks ago (Chapter 8), he told her that he’d rather see her dead than a vampire. Why do you think he feels differently now?
I think in the beginning Jake let his anger from being forced to transform guide his feelings. So vampires were the blame for everything wrong in his life. After a bit more time passes and a few more conversations with Bella he knows deep down that she will still be Bella. Even though he hates the Cullens he cannot deny that they are morally superior than other vamps in their respect for human life.If they could choose to be good people then she could still have the ability to choose to love Jake.

[Brienna]

1. What does Bella mean when she tells Jake “I never had a choice”? Is she saying she had no choice about falling in love with Edward -- it was a kind of compulsion like imprinting? Or that her love for him is irrevocable: once she fell in love, she could never love someone else instead? Or does she just mean that given the depth of her passion for Edward there is no real choice to be made here? Do you think she is right about this?
Because she fell in love with Edward, the choice doesn't exist anymore. She can't just decide to be with someone else, because she is attached to Edward for life now.

2. Jake tells Bella that Edward was like a drug for her. Do you think he’s right? Is her love for Edward more like an addiction than a healthy emotion?
I don't think Bélla is healthy She overreacts a lot and does extreme things. Her love for Edward is also extreme. But, I don't feel it's like an addiction, it's just very powerful.

3. What is Bella getting at when she tells Jake that her love for him was overshadowed by something so strong it couldn’t exist in the rational world? Does she think her love for Edward is unnatural, something you could only feel for a mythical creature? Is the idea of two worlds -- the sane one humans think they live in and the mythical one of monsters and magic -- her way of explaining how she can love two people at once?
Yes, it is like two worlds. The human world and the supernatural one. Hadn't she ever seen the supernatural one, then she really would've been happy with the normal one. But since there are two, the supernatural one is stronger.

4. Jake acknowledges that it is too late now for Bella to be happy without Edward. But he insists that the human life she and he could have had together if she’d never met Edward would have been better for her than the life she will now have. Do you think he’s right?
No, it wouldn't have been better. It would've been good, not better.

5. Jake tells Bella that he’ll always be there waiting for her if she changes her mind -- even when she’s a vampire. Only a few weeks ago (Chapter 8), he told her that he’d rather see her dead than a vampire. Why do you think he feels differently now?
He realizes that she really wants to become a vampire. He has accepted the way she wants to go and live her life.

[Gochiruzeru]

1. What does Bella mean when she tells Jake “I never had a choice”? Is she saying she had no choice about falling in love with Edward -- it was a kind of compulsion like imprinting? Or that her love for him is irrevocable: once she fell in love, she could never love someone else instead? Or does she just mean that given the depth of her passion for Edward there is no real choice to be made here? Do you think she is right about this?

I think that she means that her love is irrevocable as well as similar to imprinting. There's just no way for her to not love Edward.

2. Jake tells Bella that Edward was like a drug for her. Do you think he’s right? Is her love for Edward more like an addiction than a healthy emotion?

Honestly? Yes, it is.

3. What is Bella getting at when she tells Jake that her love for him was overshadowed by something so strong it couldn’t exist in the rational world? Does she think her love for Edward is unnatural, something you could only feel for a mythical creature? Is the idea of two worlds -- the sane one humans think they live in and the mythical one of monsters and magic -- her way of explaining how she can love two people at once?

I suppose. It is entirely possible to love two people at once, though, especially when the types of love are so different from one another.

4. Jake acknowledges that it is too late now for Bella to be happy without Edward. But he insists that the human life she and he could have had together if she’d never met Edward would have been better for her than the life she will now have. Do you think he’s right?

Yeah, I do.

5. Jake tells Bella that he’ll always be there waiting for her if she changes her mind -- even when she’s a vampire. Only a few weeks ago (Chapter 8), he told her that he’d rather see her dead than a vampire. Why do you think he feels differently now?

Because now that he's worked with the vampires, and he understands the Cullens better, he realizes that they're not as bad as he thought they were.

[Tornado]

1. What does Bella mean when she tells Jake “I never had a choice”? Is she saying she had no choice about falling in love with Edward -- it was a kind of compulsion like imprinting? Or that her love for him is irrevocable: once she fell in love, she could never love someone else instead? Or does she just mean that given the depth of her passion for Edward there is no real choice to be made here? Do you think she is right about this?
I think she means that she knew her love was irrevocable once she had started to love him, probably a bit of suggestion two and three. It's clear from her reaction to his departure in New Moon that this was no ordinary relationship. It is love on a level that is too deep to be destroyed or surpassed.

2. Jake tells Bella that Edward was like a drug for her. Do you think he’s right? Is her love for Edward more like an addiction than a healthy emotion?
No I don't. Bella herself said in New Moon that Jacob was like a drug to her. He was the drug she was pumping to try and keep herself alive while Edward wasn't there. Her relationship with him was always a rebound relationship, and everything they did together was styled around her desire to see Edward. Not exactly healthy. Perhaps if they had met in the real world with no vampires and werewolves they might have had a chance. But even then, they are complete opposites, so it wouldn't have been as easy as he thinks. Certainly, with the way they started in this case, with her doing everything with him just to see Edward, it doesn't make me hopeful of a good ending.

3. What is Bella getting at when she tells Jake that her love for him was overshadowed by something so strong it couldn’t exist in the rational world? Does she think her love for Edward is unnatural, something you could only feel for a mythical creature? Is the idea of two worlds -- the sane one humans think they live in and the mythical one of monsters and magic -- her way of explaining how she can love two people at once?
I think that she recognises that what she feels for Edward is beyond the realm of normal relationships. And anyone can love two people at once. It happens a lot. I don't think this explanation is necessary to explain that. How many love triangles have there been in literature over the years?

4. Jake acknowledges that it is too late now for Bella to be happy without Edward. But he insists that the human life she and he could have had together if she’d never met Edward would have been better for her than the life she will now have. Do you think he’s right?
No, I don't. The fact that they are opposites would have made the relationship challenging. Bella is the anal-retentive, book reading, pseudo intellectual type. Jacob is the creative, impulsive, build-something-with-my-bare-hands type. Opposites attract relationships are always the hardest to maintain long term. I don't think it would ever have been as easy as he thinks it would be, which is not to say that it would have been impossible, either.

5. Jake tells Bella that he’ll always be there waiting for her if she changes her mind -- even when she’s a vampire. Only a few weeks ago (Chapter 8), he told her that he’d rather see her dead than a vampire. Why do you think he feels differently now?
I think he's just desperate, and probably reaching out so that she knows he can accept her no matter what happens to her.