What does being a rebel mean? | Teen Ink

What does being a rebel mean?

June 18, 2009
By vivian78 GOLD, San Jose, California
vivian78 GOLD, San Jose, California
10 articles 0 photos 12 comments

A few days ago, I saw a poster of Twilight with Edward Cullen in the very center. I was immediately struck by the sheer beauty of his face and immediately posted as my Facebook status: "I believe that such gorgeousness as seen in Edward Cullen's face ought to be outlawed."

In less than a day, there were several people commenting, saying things like "Not you, too" and "Aww, I never knew you were obsessed as well." One girl asked me the next day, "You too?" with what I imagined to be a tragic "Et tu, Brute?" expression.

The people who commented on my status were all girls. Now, I know they were half-joking, but with every joke there is a grain of truth. But what struck me as most strange is that nowadays, the moment someone, especially a girl, says, "I like Twilight" there are various assumptions made within half a second.
1.) You must be obsessed with Twilight.
2.) You are obsessed because it is a romance story and all teen girls are obssessed with romance stories.
3.) You probably watched the movie as well, and only watched it because you think Edward Cullen is handsome.
4.) You have a poster of Edward Cullen in your room, and you spend a lot of time drooling over it.

And all because I said three simple words: "I like Twilight." People claim they are tired of the fuss people make over Twilight. Well guess what? I'm tired of the fuss people make over the fuss people make over Twilight. Try to figure that out :)

But I wasn't all that surprised with the response to Twilight. Many of us are so anxious to not be accused of being obsessed fans that we swing to the other extreme. We become haters. We join Facebook groups like "The group that hates Miley Cyrus." We make a disgusted face whenever Britney Spears' name is mentioned.

But is all that really necessary? We are so determined to prove we don't follow every "typical trend" that we have actually made a "typical trend" of our own: the hate-the-popular-people trend. However, that backfires. In the attempt to prove we DON'T care about those things we prove we DO care. Why else would we go to such lengths to prove that we don't care?

The worst way you could treat someone is with apathy. If we love someone, we care about them deeply. If we hate someone, we also care about them deeply. Love and hate are both deep feelings, after all; that is what makes them so close and so similar. So actually, to prove that we are "not like that," we should just let people who love Twilight love it without bashing them and making all these crazy and ridiculous assumptions.

I remember me finally getting fed up one day and saying, "I think Edward Cullen is hot and I'm going to think he's hot as much as I please." I also remember a girl telling me (and not in any mean way, of course), "Well, that's just lame." And I laughed. I laughed because I thought it was lame that she thought she could bring me down by saying that I was lame.

So this just brings me to think, "What exactly does rebel mean?" In my opinion, and my opinion only, a rebel is someone who just let's people talk, who doesn't become a hater or laugh at people who like something that happens to be popular at the moment.

I am a nerd who thinks Edward Cullen is hot, who thinks Miley Cyrus is a good singer, and who still respects Britney Spears. I am a dork who believes that getting good grades doesn't prevent me from admiring beautiful boys and admitting that I think they're amazing looking. Thinking a guy is hot doesn't mean I'm being superficial. It just means I'm being a girl.

And I don't see anything wrong with what I do and don't admire.

So let's not become a hater of Twilight. To prove you don't care, let people love, and let people hate. It's ironic but true.
And as for the title of this entry – what does being a rebel mean? A true rebel is so respectful and courteous that they don’t turn people off, and a true rebel never says no for the sake of saying no. Sometimes a true rebel has to say yes.


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This article has 48 comments.


on Dec. 3 2015 at 10:31 pm
ColdplayForever BRONZE, San Jose, California
1 article 0 photos 62 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Coldplay fans are the best in the world. If you like Coldplay, then you&#039;re obviously very intelligent, good-looking, and all-around brilliant.&quot;<br /> ~Chris Martin

Yes! Thank you so much for this! I like Twilight too, and I really don't see why people hate on it so much. This was very well written, and I'm hoping it can convince the haters to not look at everything that has to do with the thing they are hating like that. Awesome article :)

LeJonBramez said...
on Oct. 27 2015 at 2:47 pm
LeJonBramez,
0 articles 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
&quot;When the going gets tough, quit&quot; - my friend Jake

Umm you make a status that is totally weird and obsessive then say all you said was I like twilight. These are completely different

libby said...
on Feb. 24 2015 at 5:16 pm
I dont understand how this explains what rebel means

talhaak GOLD said...
on Apr. 9 2014 at 11:38 am
talhaak GOLD, Lahore, Other
13 articles 0 photos 9 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.&rdquo; - Maya Angelou

Well written! You provided some very thought provoking information here!

on Jan. 16 2012 at 4:11 pm
Alex_Durham GOLD, Vineland, New Jersey
14 articles 1 photo 234 comments

Favorite Quote:
Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

This is amazing! GREAT JOB! I love this so much that I'm favoriting it!

on Jul. 24 2011 at 6:51 am
ThisBreRulezYouSonnn BRONZE, Wake Forest, North Carolina
4 articles 0 photos 24 comments

Favorite Quote:
Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;<br /> Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;<br /> Thy fate is the common fate of all--<br /> Into each life some rain must fall,<br /> some days must be dark and dreary.<br /> --Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)

A true rebel is so respectful and courteous that they don’t turn people off, and a true rebel never says no for the sake of saying no? Sometimes a true rebel has to say yes? That's not a rebel!!

A rebel is someone who goes against the status quo. A rebel is a revolutionary. A rebel is someone with a different idea. A rebels isn't always polite about it. And sometimes they say "no" to say "no", like everyone else.

The definition of this type of person you found isn't a rebel. It's a way of life, not a type of person. 


XXXXXXXX said...
on Apr. 28 2011 at 7:03 pm
XXXXXXXX, Grand Rapids, Michigan
0 articles 0 photos 8 comments
Exactly. Time and energy. I don't like his music or his looks either, but I respect that he's an aspiring artist and has a somewhat genuine personality. I'm glad we could find some common ground. :P

Lysergia said...
on Apr. 28 2011 at 6:53 pm
Lysergia, Washougal, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 12 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;Look down at me and you see a fool; <br /> look up at me and you see a god; <br /> look straight at me and you see yourself&rdquo;

Ah, well I hate his music and I HATE all the fangirls going "OMG I LOVE JUSTIN BEIBER" just because of his looks, not his music. Other than that I just strongly dislike him as a human being. Hating him would take to much time and energy.

XXXXXXXX said...
on Apr. 27 2011 at 6:59 pm
XXXXXXXX, Grand Rapids, Michigan
0 articles 0 photos 8 comments
I'm talking about the people who HATE Justin Bieber. You know - the ones who put him down every chance they get. Disliking his music is no reason to hate him. If that's the only reason some people claim to hate him, then they need to find some perspective. And hobbies.

Lysergia said...
on Apr. 27 2011 at 5:00 pm
Lysergia, Washougal, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 12 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;Look down at me and you see a fool; <br /> look up at me and you see a god; <br /> look straight at me and you see yourself&rdquo;

Is it so hard to believe some people hate Justin Bieber because we simply dislike his music??

XXXXXXXX said...
on Apr. 17 2011 at 7:46 am
XXXXXXXX, Grand Rapids, Michigan
0 articles 0 photos 8 comments
I love this. You're totally right : the new trend is to deviate from the trend. It's the same reason so many people hate Justin Bieber.

Daydreamish said...
on Feb. 14 2011 at 8:54 pm

This was actually really well-written. Thought-provoking. If you think about it, there really is no such thing as a rebel past a certain point.

If a rebel says, "no," to something that is popular, then he is obviously protesting against something that already exists, right? If many join him, none of them are rebels any more because they are conforming to the rebels.

If you like the thing that the "rebels" are protesting, well, that could make you a true rebel, but if that something is already popular, like Twilight, then are you really a rebel? Or are you just conforming? Or are we all conforming, just to different sides? Does being a rebel in fact mean rebelling against the old by creating something new? Does this make artists the only true rebels?

O_o yeesh, sorry that that was so confusing. ;) anyway, great job!


on Jan. 17 2011 at 10:02 am
awesomeaugust GOLD, Boston, Massachusetts
10 articles 0 photos 176 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground&quot;<br /> ~Theordore Roosevelt

This opnion was rally well written. Somehow, you dont come across as sounding like a defensive, twilight obsessed tween. (that's a compliment :)) I liked the twist at the end, about being a rebel, and how it brought the topic away from the tension over Twilgiht, etc. So, this was really well done and I think is worothy of being published!

Also, a quick confession: I've read all of the Twilgiht books (once!) and seen all of the movies in theatre. I plan to see the midnight premiere of Breakign Dawn. I think Taylor Lautner has great abs. And, I have not one but two Miley Cyrus/Hana Montana cd's which i still lsiten to once in a blue moon. if that makes me a dork? Call me a rebel.


on Dec. 16 2010 at 5:01 pm
ZombieDanceWithMe SILVER, Rockford, Illinois
7 articles 1 photo 98 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;To die is nothing; but it is terrible not to live&rdquo;<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> -Victor Hugo

i saw the movie and was discusted. I mean, I thought the movie itself was good but GERARD WAY WOULD HAVE BEEN SO MUTCH BETTER. He was supposed to be edward, i would be so much more obsessed if he was in it

on Nov. 2 2010 at 1:23 pm
bennyB PLATINUM, Memphis, Tennessee
26 articles 0 photos 63 comments
what is the point of this topic??

LexiB SILVER said...
on Nov. 2 2010 at 8:06 am
LexiB SILVER, Tallassee, Alabama
7 articles 0 photos 34 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous, do not be terrified, do not be discouraged. For the Lord your God will be with you where ever you go.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> Joshua 1:9

I like that you don't let people get you down and care about what they think even if I don't care for Edward Cullen, Miley Cyrus, or Britney Spears.

on Oct. 11 2010 at 4:28 pm
Internal-Love PLATINUM, Queens, New York
33 articles 3 photos 310 comments

Favorite Quote:
Nothing&#039;s black or white, its all just a shade of gray---<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> TI &quot;Live your Life&quot; ft Rihanna

???????????????????

vivian78 GOLD said...
on Sep. 18 2010 at 1:06 am
vivian78 GOLD, San Jose, California
10 articles 0 photos 12 comments
I can't post the website here but Google vivianladadah and you'll find my tumblr site :)

vivian78 GOLD said...
on Sep. 7 2010 at 9:58 pm
vivian78 GOLD, San Jose, California
10 articles 0 photos 12 comments

Hey you guys! Glad you liked the article :)

If you would like to see more blogs, join the Facebook group: The Book That Was Born On Facebook. The book is basically a compilation of my blogs, and the group links to my website. Again, thanks so much for checking out my work!


lechatnoir said...
on Aug. 28 2010 at 2:18 am
lechatnoir, San Francisco, California
0 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Dream as if you&#039;ll live forever. Live as if you&#039;ll die today.&quot;<br /> -James Dean

I agree also. For some people, following trends is second nature. Then there are the people who think going against (and disrespecting) the trends are unique and an individual. Although in some cases, it does mean they are an individual, but not while disrespecting someone else's interests. Those are the people who are true.