Bella's Old Friends

[emilyswain]

i think being busy being the parent around the house when her mother was "young for her age" probably made it harder for bella to connect with anyone in her age bracket; imagine having a mom who is still making up for lost youth while dragging her daughter on several adventures that required bella to move around(which i think i read somewhere here, or on myspace i cant remember which)? having a father who is not the most verbose of people also puts a damper on things. i just think bella couldn't relate to anyone because it seems no one took the time to really know her, like edward did. even then she was kind of frustrated because she was use to being on her own, lost in her thoughts. edward forced her to "socialize" which i think made him even more intriguing: a really hot guy who talks to no one but his own family wants to know your life while others treat you like a prize to be won? she saw through everyone else's pretenses(except angela) and at times she sensed that edward was making small talk to convince her he didn't hate her(which she thought was likely given his demeanor when they first met) but the more he asked the more she talked about herself, hence the more fascinated he was with this human whose mind he couldn't read and who was very mature for her age. i think firefly was the one who doesn't see bella as mature enough, considering her self-esteem issues. she has yet to fully mature but compared to jess and lauren she is very mature in regards that she thinks of everyone else first; she's self-less and gives more than she takes. thats kind of rare for a 17 year old girl in this day and age. when i was her age some moons ago, i was very self-involved into my own drama. nothing's really changed but i shoulder everyone's elses drama too; i've progressed

<geneaologygirl>
I agree with Ellabelle ---- clearly, Bella was not meant to stay human. <*grins*>

as do i.

[firefly]

imagine having a mom who is still making up for lost youth while dragging her daughter on several adventures that required bella to move around(which i think i read somewhere here, or on myspace i cant remember which)?

I asked in one of these threads if Bella had moved around a lot, which I thought may have accounted for her lack of friends or even acquaintances, but I don't think I received an answer, and I'm not sure there's anything in the Books that points to or disregards this theory except for Bella's reason for moving to Forks - Renée didn't want to be away from Phil, who had to travel a lot. I'm guessing if Renée and Bella already had a nomadic lifestyle, Renée probably wouldn't have worried about uprooting Bella again so they/she could be with Phil (unless he had a really hectic schedule or something).

I can understand not having close friends or, heck, any friends at all, but to have no one who made some sort of impression? Not even a teacher or some student in another grade who did something crazy or in some way memorable? That's where either the story is weak, IMO, or some characteristic of Bella that may need to be explained/explored a little more (i.e., if it is that she's on a whole nother level from most humans that she doesn't remember them at all once they're out of sight).

i think firefly was the one who doesn't see bella as mature enough, considering her self-esteem issues. she has yet to fully mature but compared to jess and lauren she is very mature in regards that she thinks of everyone else first; she's self-less and gives more than she takes. thats kind of rare for a 17 year old girl in this day and age.

Compared to Jess and Lauren, of course she'd look good . She's also a lot more fleshed out character-wise than either of them are. If the story were told from the other girls' POV, I think we'd be seeing Bella in a very different light. I also think it's pretty easy to think of others first if there's practically no one else in one's life to think about, other than her parents, who are rather conveniently moved to the periphery, which helps with the story. Bella does move to Forks for Renée but my problem with that is that I don't actually get the sense that it was that much of a big deal - especially because of her lack of attachments to other people (except her mom, but even then it seems like she was happy to have a bit of a break from her (yay! for character complexity )); Edward tells us how much she's suffering, but I thought that was a slight discordant note in the narrative because I hadn't seen it myself, and I'm supposed to be in her head, seeing things from her perspective, and I'm not sure how much suffering I was getting from her. She didn't like the rain or the town's library - all in all, IMO, not very major things to be suffering over. (It's possible that the rain part doesn't affect me because the weather where I'm from is rather similar to Forks and complaining about the rain is very commonplace, and one becomes rather immune to it after a while.)

I also don't think it's so rare not to be wrapped up in one's own problems or taken with boys or whatever it is teenage girls are supposed to be like, but perhaps I've been around too many strange people who were atypical teens . Or, likely, I'm still too close to that age to have enough perspective on it. And, it seems there are many, many coming-of-age stories that center around teens who are (supposedly) mature for their age, so maybe that's why Bella doesn't stand out that much to me in that particular regard.

[Cocoa]

I asked in one of these threads if Bella had moved around a lot, which I thought may have accounted for her lack of friends or even acquaintances, but I don't think I received an answer, and I'm not sure there's anything in the Books that points to or disregards this theory except for Bella's reason for moving to Forks - Renée didn't want to be away from Phil, who had to travel a lot. I'm guessing if Renée and Bella already had a nomadic lifestyle, Renée probably wouldn't have worried about uprooting Bella again so they/she could be with Phil (unless he had a really hectic schedule or something).

Think back to Twilight. She went to ballet around the corner from her house when she was a little girl. The same house her mother just moved out of. Which implies that until Phil came along, they were anything but nomadic. She goes on to say that the reason she thought boys didn't notice her was because they had witnessed her go through her akward phases.

[firefly]

I asked in one of these threads if Bella had moved around a lot, which I thought may have accounted for her lack of friends or even acquaintances, but I don't think I received an answer, and I'm not sure there's anything in the Books that points to or disregards this theory except for Bella's reason for moving to Forks - Renée didn't want to be away from Phil, who had to travel a lot. I'm guessing if Renée and Bella already had a nomadic lifestyle, Renée probably wouldn't have worried about uprooting Bella again so they/she could be with Phil (unless he had a really hectic schedule or something).

Think back to Twilight. She went to ballet around the corner from her house when she was a little girl. The same house her mother just moved out of. Which implies that until Phil came along, they were anything but nomadic. She goes on to say that the reason she thought boys didn't notice her was because they had witnessed her go through her akward phases.

Ah, well, there goes that theory then. Which to me makes her not having any friends even stranger.

[Cocoa]

I moved when I was in middle school. And I was glad of it. Sometimes you just want to break away. In fact I don't keep contact with any of my high school friends either. I guess I am just a weird as Bella. Let me explain how people like me think.

1. They were never all that great a friend anyway.
2. They didn't really know me, only who I pretended to be
3. I didn't like who I was with them
4. My connection to them were only superficial, not bonding lasting friendship

[firefly]

Preaching to the choir . I moved schools three different times until we finally stuck to one high school, and didn't keep in touch with any of the kids I knew (in the most superficial sense) in the previous schools. I do "get" what it's like, and was one of the strange kids who didn't socialize well (I prefered to spend lunch hour in the library reading instead of being outside), but I do still recall the odd name or two, and even once in a while come across someone and think, "Oh, wow, she or he looks like or reminds me of..." (in a good or bad way). Not keeping in touch or wanting to think about those years I understand, but having what seems to be no connection* at all to her past years, I don't quite follow (unless it's supposed to somehow mirror the vampire experience of fading human memories). And it doesn't quite match up, IMO, with Bella suffering so much that it makes her miles more mature than all the other kids in her class (for reasons I explained in a previous post, so I won't repeat them again).

*I should have written "connections", not "friends" earlier - it's what I get for posting in a hurry.

[Kissa]

I've been reading your post, and I won't comment on every single thing that's been said. however, I understand why Bella could "forget" everyone, and how she hardly had any friends..

teachers or other kids may have made impressions on Bella, and she probably does think of them sometimes. we don't get to hear all of her thoughts! so why would Stephenie bother to put it in the books if it's not relevant to the story? we didn't get to know that Bella danced ballet when she was younger either, until it was important to the story-line...

Bella does move to Forks for Renée but my problem with that is that I don't actually get the sense that it was that much of a big deal - especially because of her lack of attachments to other people (except her mom, but even then it seems like she was happy to have a bit of a break from her (yay! for character complexity ))

well yes, but she was also surprised by herself, the way she settled in so easily and stuff. she was surprised by the fact that she was able to like Forks as much as she does!!

But I felt no relief. no sense of homecoming.

Twilight pg 407.
this is what Bella says when she returns to Phoenix. I think the whole deal is that Bella really belongs in Forks, and she never really did belong in Phoenix, no matter how much she loves the sun! and this is probably why she hardly ever think about people, or "connections", she had there either!

I was a foreign exchange student in Texas last school year, and I hardly kept in touch with my friends back home... it's not like it would've been hard for me to do so, you just get so much stuff on your mind that seems more important at the time! so I understand it if Bella doesn't keep in touch with anyone when she wasn't really close to anyone...

[Kissa]

I've been reading your post, and I won't comment on every single thing that's been said. however, I understand why Bella could "forget" everyone, and how she hardly had any friends..

teachers or other kids may have made impressions on Bella, and she probably does think of them sometimes. we don't get to hear all of her thoughts! so why would Stephenie bother to put it in the books if it's not relevant to the story? we didn't get to know that Bella danced ballet when she was younger either, until it was important to the story-line...

Bella does move to Forks for Renée but my problem with that is that I don't actually get the sense that it was that much of a big deal - especially because of her lack of attachments to other people (except her mom, but even then it seems like she was happy to have a bit of a break from her (yay! for character complexity ))

well yes, but she was also surprised by herself, the way she settled in so easily and stuff. she was surprised by the fact that she was able to like Forks as much as she does!!

But I felt no relief. no sense of homecoming.

Twilight pg 407.
this is what Bella says when she returns to Phoenix. I think the whole deal is that Bella really belongs in Forks, and she never really did belong in Phoenix, no matter how much she loves the sun! and this is probably why she hardly ever think about people, or "connections", she had there either!

I was a foreign exchange student in Texas last school year, and I hardly kept in touch with my friends back home... it's not like it would've been hard for me to do so, you just get so much stuff on your mind that seems more important at the time! so I understand it if Bella doesn't keep in touch with anyone when she wasn't really close to anyone...

[emilyswain]

on her myspace profile, bella comments that she moved when she was younger: she lived in california then she moved to phoenix. maybe it wasnt a lot but when she realized that life with mother might be impetuous she probably felt no desire to connect with anyone. im sure as she got settled in phoenix she probably was on another plane of reality where she focused on her mother than really focusing on typical teen things like boys, fashion, and like oh my god, the mall. she seemed like a very calm and passive teenager who just took life in stride. her life didnt really begin until she moved to forks, a place she dreaded only because of her mother's memories and her own miniscule dislike for a place that has no sun most of the time.

i think kissa01 makes a good point: bella remembers things that were significant to her and her life and since the story is in her narrative she probably didnt really think of her old life because there was nothing to really reminisce about unless it is relevant to whats going on around her for example her ballet classes: she only remembered because she saw alice's drawing of her vision and thats where james decided to finish his little sick game of a hunt. im sure if someone made an impact on her life edward and his family did, she would remember them and even think about them once in awhile. but from her first day in forks high school a mystery was brought forth to her: a hot guy who acted like he hated her and she was drawn to him. honestly...if that happened to me, i would forget my friends if something like that occured. especially if his name is edward anthony masen cullen....*sigh* although embry, jared, and jasper kind of own me more.

**by the way this is bella link to her myspace account: http://www.myspace.com/bella91388

[Kissa]

thanks for adding the link: I was going to ask about that!