本論文旨在將全球暢銷小說《暮光之城》系列（The Twilight series）中的吸血鬼敘事，放入後九一一美國盛行的國家主義及反恐文化中進行探討。自史蒂芬妮梅爾（Stephenie Meyer)的第一本小說《暮光之城》(Twilight )於2005年問世後，其作品逐漸得到廣大迴響，同系列後續出版的《暮光之城：新月》（New Moon）、《暮光之城：蝕》（Eclipse）及《暮光之城：破曉》（Breaking Dawn）皆被翻譯成數十種語言，並最終被翻拍成好萊塢電影，熱銷全球。值得注意的是，此系列商業成功所帶動的吸血鬼熱潮（被譽為『暮光之城現象』），也使得梅爾的作品受到廣泛的討論和檢視。除了她筆下的吸血鬼庫倫家族（the Cullens）引發許多文化解讀，故事中男主角吸血鬼愛德華庫倫（Edward Cullen）對人類女友貝拉史旺（Bella Swan）無微不至的保護，以及兩人的形影不離的交往模式，更使梅爾的性別政治遭受嚴厲的批判。
本文將故事中呈現的焦慮情感和保護議題視為後九一一國家主義意識形態的癥候，並將梅爾看似非政治化的純愛小說敘事與後九一一美國政府強調保護主義的帝國敘事接軌。在我的解讀中，庫倫吸血鬼家族是超人化的現代主體和國家疆界的守護者，梅爾以成為吸血鬼為目標的成長小說敘事則再現了美國文化中追求極度國家安全和將國家武力正當化的想妄。此外，本文也將探討梅爾作品中對疆界的定義，並置疑作者將『人血』作為劃分敵我、保護者與侵略者身份的敘事標準。故事中，不嗜人血的庫倫家族看似良善的人類守護者，默默地監視／監聽人類社群的動態，甚至追殺危害人類社會安全的『壞』吸血鬼。實際上，他們是美國國家霸權侵略國界和私人領域的象徵，及其任意裁劃、跨越疆界的行動者。

This thesis reads Stephenie Meyer’s popular vampire novels, the Twilight series, a post-9/11 text that reflects the prevailing U.S. nationalist sentiment in correspondence to the counter-terrorism climate. While most critical concern regarding the series focus on Meyer’s sexual politics, my project explores the underlying political messages in Meyer’s romantic take on vampirism as well as her portraits of fantastic creatures as super protective beings. Concentrating on the motif of protection, I argue that vampirism is a form of empowerment in Meyer’s representation, through which the modern individual is strengthened and mobilized as powerful guardians of the family and the nation. By displaying the contrasts between the series and literary predecessors, such as Dracula and Jane Eyre, I will also look into the way boundaries, as bodily and national borders, are constructed in Meyer’s work.
The human blood, in Meyer’s case, symbolizes the division between the self and the other as well as the act of penetration and protection. As the story draws a seemingly distinct line between the righteous protectionism and its ever-invasive enemies, I will point to the essential fluidity of such distinction, and the arbitrary and imperial nature of this narrative logic.

Chinese Abstract i
English Abstract ii
Acknowledgments iii
Chapter one Introduction
It’s Dangerous to be Safe: The Vampires that Protect Their Prey 1
Chapter Two
All about Protection: The Vampiric Modern Individual and Boundaries of Power 20
Chapter Three
It’s a Family Thing: The Violence of Muteness for the Mad Terrorists 54
Chapter Four
The Happliy Ever After and Its Unthinkable Alternative 78
Works Cited 84

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