Setting aside Twilight<\/em> (which I feel is sort of unsalvageable plot-wise and character development-wise\u2026sorry Twilight<\/em> fans), I think the love triangle plot device hasn\u2019t been executed correctly even by well written books. For the uninitiated, the run-of-the mill love triangle nowadays has a girl with poor self-esteem, guy 1 (her best friend from childhood who has worshipped her ground but somehow never manages to confess this before guy 2 comes along), and finally guy 2 (a \u201cbad boy\u201d who honestly in my book sets off alarms for stalker\/abusive tendencies). SPOILER: the girl usually ends up with guy 2. But what\u2019s baffling is that this concept isn\u2019t even new; most of these books are simply reinventing the wheel of a long gone era with more angst. Ever heard of Wuthering Heights<\/em> or Sense and Sensibility<\/em>?<\/p>\n Why then does this type of romance hold so much appeal? I think the answer lies in the reader\u2019s need for wish-fulfillment through the heroine. The idea of a whirlwind romance with two (or even more suitors) seems to answer the universal need to feel wanted and sought after. But what irks me about these romances is that this romance comes at the cost of an intelligent heroine. Often, the minute she interacts with any of the guys involved in the triangle, the authors feel the need to make the girl into a damsel in distress or make the guys involved in the triangle into cavemen. Take The Hunger Games <\/em>as an example. Katniss is pretty kickass and can launch a pretty nice projectile into the throat of an enemy. In fact, she saves Peeta from certain death in the Games. However, when Peeta or Gale (the 2nd leg) has the opportunity to interact with Katniss, they both seem to revert to big lengths to \u201cprotect\u201d Katniss at the cost of actually asking her opinion or treating her as an equal. My qualm does not only lie with this book.<\/p>\n The girl\u2019s independence often only lasts as long as the male lead is not in the scene, at which point the desirability of the girl seems to arise from her docility towards this character. Even if the heroine is shown being abrasive to guy 2 and calls him out on their unhealthy relationship, it often gets swept under once the \u201cangst\u201d is introduced and chemistry starts. This sets up a very poor example for the readers of YA \u2013 presumably teenagers who are just beginning to explore and start relationships. Letting these girls believe that this is the norm for relationships allows them to feel that behavior that may be demeaning or inappropriate might be socially acceptable. This innately disempowers these girls and sends them a message to accept what shouldn\u2019t be accepted. What further irks me is that most of these books are written by women. Why would women write stories that harkens these heroines back to an era of merely being a shadow of men? Sure, they are writing about female protagonists, but I don\u2019t see any truly independent females. That said, I am mainly referring to the mainstream YA books that reaches a wide audience, as I have read plenty of gems that don\u2019t fall into this trap. But I dream of a YA genre when I don\u2019t have to dig for these books and the heroine doesn\u2019t have to choose between two guys who don\u2019t really understand her needs or true personality.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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