Elena Gilbert: Women Love Fest (Bonus Post)
There are many other things I'm supposed to be doing right now, and I wasn't even going to write anything about Elena for womenlovefest, but I can't help it, I need it out of my system ;).
The only argument I ever had about Elena took place a couple of months ago during some episode discussion on 2x20 The Last Day and I still strongly belive in everything I said back then, so I might as well make it into a short yet proper meta.
The Awesome Thing Elena Gilbert Did In TVD 2x20 The Last Day
I'm pretty sure you all remember this dialogue:
Elena: Didn't stop Damon.
Stefan: He shouldn't have done what he did. He did it because he loves you.
Elena: But he did this to me, Stefan, which means he doesn't really know what love is. And to be honest, I don't know if I do. I'm 17 years old. How am I supposed to know any of this yet? I know that I love you, Stefan. I know that. But my future? Our lives together? Those were things I was supposed to deal with as they came along. I was supposed to grow up. Decide if I want to have kids and start a family. Grow old. I was supposed to have a lifetime of those choices, and... now? That's all gone.
Stefan: Elena, say it. Please.
Elena: I don't want to be a vampire, Stefan.
Now, I might have a soft spot for vamp!Elena fanfiction, but I think this was one of the top Elena scenes ever. This one short dialogue shows that she is a wonderful, smart, mature woman who can make conscious decisions about her own life.
I have this theory that every teenage girl should watch The Vampire Diaries, because Elena Gilbert is one of the healthiest role models possible (of course she is not the only one; there is no such thing as a universal role model that would agree with any personality), especially when it comes to romantic relationships. Of course she loves her boyfriend. Hell, she is head over heels for him, and their relationship is good and intense (my inner Delena shipper doesn't belive that I've just said that in public). But Stefan is not and will never be her entire life; no matter how much Elena loves him, she will always be her own person, have individual plans and dreams, care for her friends and family. So even though she truly loves him, she might not choose to give up her life for him. Which leads us to...
Choice. Elena wants to make her own choices, and I love the way she reacted when she thought all of her decisions were taken away from her. Imagine that you're seventeen years old and full of plans, you want to go to college, meet new people, see the world and live a little before you decide how do you want to live your life. And than one day someone suddenly says that your entire life is fixed; you're going to be with the guy you love, and you will live happily ever after, that's all, and you have nothing to say, it is just going to happen tommorow. I don't know about you, but I would feel so trapped I'd freak out and start yelling at people. No matter how much I loved the guy.
So when I saw people critisizing Elena for that scene, saying that she is indecisive and doesn't really love Stefan if she doesn't want to be turned for him, I couldn't belive it. And from that day on I feel this urge to tell people about the awesomeness of Elena Who Didn't Want To Become a Vampire. Not because she couldn't make up her mind on whether or not she loved Stefan, but because, even at seventeen, she is a responsible, smart young woman and I admire her for that.
The only argument I ever had about Elena took place a couple of months ago during some episode discussion on 2x20 The Last Day and I still strongly belive in everything I said back then, so I might as well make it into a short yet proper meta.
The Awesome Thing Elena Gilbert Did In TVD 2x20 The Last Day
I'm pretty sure you all remember this dialogue:
Elena: Didn't stop Damon.
Stefan: He shouldn't have done what he did. He did it because he loves you.
Elena: But he did this to me, Stefan, which means he doesn't really know what love is. And to be honest, I don't know if I do. I'm 17 years old. How am I supposed to know any of this yet? I know that I love you, Stefan. I know that. But my future? Our lives together? Those were things I was supposed to deal with as they came along. I was supposed to grow up. Decide if I want to have kids and start a family. Grow old. I was supposed to have a lifetime of those choices, and... now? That's all gone.
Stefan: Elena, say it. Please.
Elena: I don't want to be a vampire, Stefan.
Now, I might have a soft spot for vamp!Elena fanfiction, but I think this was one of the top Elena scenes ever. This one short dialogue shows that she is a wonderful, smart, mature woman who can make conscious decisions about her own life.
I have this theory that every teenage girl should watch The Vampire Diaries, because Elena Gilbert is one of the healthiest role models possible (of course she is not the only one; there is no such thing as a universal role model that would agree with any personality), especially when it comes to romantic relationships. Of course she loves her boyfriend. Hell, she is head over heels for him, and their relationship is good and intense (my inner Delena shipper doesn't belive that I've just said that in public). But Stefan is not and will never be her entire life; no matter how much Elena loves him, she will always be her own person, have individual plans and dreams, care for her friends and family. So even though she truly loves him, she might not choose to give up her life for him. Which leads us to...
Choice. Elena wants to make her own choices, and I love the way she reacted when she thought all of her decisions were taken away from her. Imagine that you're seventeen years old and full of plans, you want to go to college, meet new people, see the world and live a little before you decide how do you want to live your life. And than one day someone suddenly says that your entire life is fixed; you're going to be with the guy you love, and you will live happily ever after, that's all, and you have nothing to say, it is just going to happen tommorow. I don't know about you, but I would feel so trapped I'd freak out and start yelling at people. No matter how much I loved the guy.
So when I saw people critisizing Elena for that scene, saying that she is indecisive and doesn't really love Stefan if she doesn't want to be turned for him, I couldn't belive it. And from that day on I feel this urge to tell people about the awesomeness of Elena Who Didn't Want To Become a Vampire. Not because she couldn't make up her mind on whether or not she loved Stefan, but because, even at seventeen, she is a responsible, smart young woman and I admire her for that.