Like any normal person, I was up really late at night contemplating the nature of vampires. I was examining this Twilight phenomenon. See, to me at least, there are some certain defining characteristics about vampires. I am not talking about a weakness for garlic (debatable) or that the only way to kill them is a stake to the heart (head removal kills most things). No, the curse of the vampire is that while enjoying superior strength, speed and immortality it must give up a good deal of what it means to be human. They cannot enjoy the warmth of the sun, they cannot have casual interaction with the populace, and they must subside by the life-force of another. You see, a vampire's ultimate weakness lies in its dependency on humankind. It might be stronger, faster, and much more experienced in life but vampires are nothing without us.
This creates a circular problem for vampires. The only meaningful contact they could sustain is with another immortal. While certainly possible, there are factors that might mitigate this. One, centuries with the same person could become trying. Two, they are competing predators in a very specific process. Three, even having a meaningful connection with one single entity seems psychotic still. This problem creates two significant situations. Either the vampire has no meaningful contact with anyone, ever, or it tries to create ones with the rather transient human race.
Fitting in is a survival skill that, once a person has significantly more strength and speed, becomes superfluous. Once a vampire has divorced emotion out of interactions with humans, using its abilities to forcefully take sustenance, it further deviates from emotionality. After all, what purpose do emotions serve at that point? In this scenario, the vampire literally turns into a humanoid beast. It has the face of a man and the survival skills of a predator. Nothing more defines it.
A more common motif, certainly in recent years, is the vampire with a heart. He or she inexplicably interacts with the human population. The downside to this is that humans are not immortal. The vampire exchanges the semblance of love and an emotional stability with the impending doom of the human with which he or she is enamored. To experience an almost wholly human act vampires become vulnerable. Both in a physical (safety) manner and in a figurative (emotional) manner.
Vampires cannot feel the sun. Be it because of unholiness, the frailty of the magic animating them, or "just cause"; this weakness further emphasizes the bleakness of their existence. No vampire can look upon the sun, be comforted by its warmth, or enjoy the light of day. As a night creature, the daytime is an inherently dangerous time. This is their time of rest and is the apex of human advantage. Entering a relationship with a human means that a vampire gives up autonomy but especially during his or her weakest moments.
Further, most humans exist within a web of other humans. Co-workers, family, and neighbors are all part of their daily life. A vampire boyfriend is hard to explain to these people. Unless willing to risk exposure by 'coming out' to a large population a vampire has to avoid this normal part of the relationship experience. After all, he or she cannot meet anyone during the day, partake of food or drink, and wants to eat pretty much anyone he or she comes across. This, feasibly, includes the person of their affection.
This is where the thought of a vampire dating a human becomes dicey. The vampire cannot casually treat humans as food (to retain the love of a human and to be capable of loving one). Maybe they fight the desire to feed, maybe feeding does not have to result in death, or they could have to eat with less regularity than humans. However, the whole point of a vampire is that it feeds off the life-force of that which it once was - human. This makes the entire relationship bleak. Either the vampire continually fights off the literal desire to devour the person and/or puts that human in the position of having to be okay with a lover who occasionally murders someone throughout their lifetime together.
This opens the vampire up for emotional pain. Like anyone in a relationship, they are vulnerable to judgment and the waning affection of the other party. There is a conflict between their natural sense (hunt, feed, prey) and their desire for the comfort of a helpmate. This is in addition to the fact that this relationship, however perfect, has an expiration date. For the vampire 'in love' with a human, there are two choices. One, let this person die by old age, human nature, or by feeding off them. Two, change them into a vampire.
The prior is an issue any human risks in a relationship. Your loved one could always die before you do. Generally, though, there is the comfort of the other people you interact with and possibly the knowledge that you can meet them in the next life. Neither of these comforts exists for a vampire. They face an eternity of remembering that they once loved and either never having that again or to always be seeking it again. This is the ultimate curse of the vampire: not to be part of the human existence but to be entirely dependent upon it.
Unless they take the second option and turn their loved one into a vampire. This returns us to the very first caveat of being a vampire. Even someone you love can become hard to face after two centuries. Especially if you are competing for the same food sources, in the same area, while avoiding detection. If this was the route they were going to end up with why bother spending a few years denying your inherent nature by dating him or her as a human in the first place?
This, then, is the issue I take with Twilight. Edward can walk in the sun, he feeds off of animals and does well with this, plus he has a loving family and support structure. He eats animals for sustenance like any other human. He just happens to be faster, stronger, and will live forever. I see no downsides to this existence. Edward faces no challenges, the earmark of humanity, nor is he dependent upon humans for existence. He has no curse.
There are pretend markers for this, as his relationship with Bella seems fraught with tension. Yet there is no downside to turning her into a vampire as well because there are no downsides to his life. They do not compete for food. With the exception of Jasper, who can blame his upbringing, there is little to fear in mixing with the human populace. The only downside to the daytime is that if it is too sunny they sparkle as if a thousand crushed diamonds were embedded in Adonis. There are no vulnerabilities because they never sleep nor have susceptibility to the sun. Given his powers and lack of flaws, Edward indicates 'the perfect man' and resembles no one more so than a religious icon. Who dates the clumsy girl? I am willing to take on faith an existence with vampires and I do not buy that.
