When children are younger parents watch what they read. They may even read everything their child reads to make sure the material is appropriate.
As they grow adults may decide that their teen is old enough to make their own choices when it comes to reading. Perhaps parents of teens should reconsider.
...for many girls in similar positions, Twilight was not just light reading, it was a way of life. They obeyed this book as if it were their Bible. They viewed Edward Cullen as their perfect man, and put themselves in the place of Bella Swan, the leading lady.-How Far is Too Far? Navigating the World of Young Adult Fiction by Beth Greaves
I began to worry about girls I knew nothing about. I feared the reality of the world would be an unequivocal shock to them. Teen pregnancy statistics are alarmingly high. While I am not necessarily interested in discussing the pros and cons of abstinence, I cannot help but feel that books such as Meyer’s promote a dangerous naïveté. They prepare many girls for a world they will never know.
Novels such as Twilight explore issues such as teenage relationships and sexuality by not exploring them at all. This don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy provides many students with skewed and narrow views of their society.
How can they deal with hormones and deep emotions if such things are implied to be almost taboo? It is a dark world that we live in, and while I do not believe that teenagers should either be exposed to or protected completely from this, I believe that it is crucial to prepare them.
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