The vampires in Twilight have powers unique to each of them, and some of them were surprised to learn their abilities had no effect on mortal Bella Swan, especially those involving mind tricks. However, Jasper Cullen could affect Bella with his peculiar talent – and here’s why. In 2005, Stephenie Meyer introduced readers to a world where vampires, humans, and werewolves coexist in Twilight, the first entry in a series of four novels. The core of the series was the (often problematic) romance between mortal Bella Swan and vampire Edward Cullen, who came across with different obstacles even after Bella was turned into a vampire.
Edward’s interest in Bella began when her “scent” was too irresistible for him, to the point where he considered killing her and their classmates, and when he realized that she was the only person whose mind he couldn’t read. In the final book of the series, Breaking Dawn, Bella finally became a vampire, and then, it was revealed why Edward couldn’t read her mind: Bella had the ability to shield herself from any powers that affected the mind. Once she fully transformed into a vampire, this ability became her power, and she was not only able to protect herself but also those around her, and by the end of the book, she finally let Edward access her mind. However, before this was explained, there was a Cullen sibling who was able to affect Bella with his power: Jasper.
Jasper’s power is one of the most interesting ones in the Twilight universe as he can sense and change the emotions of those around him, which came in handy many times, especially while in the middle of a conflict. Jasper has to be careful with this ability as to not create a false reality by making others feel what he wants them to rather than what they are truly experiencing. Jasper could actually use his power on Bella when she was a human, and it’s even mentioned a couple of times through the books how she noticed his influence in the mood of wherever they were. This has raised some questions about how Jasper’s powers work as well as Bella’s shield, as he can easily affect her, yet many others, like Edward and Jane, had no effect on her.
Stephenie Meyer tried to explain this on her website, but the answer didn’t convince Twilight fans. According to Meyer, what Jasper does is not an illusion, and his power focuses on the physical body, “slowing the pulse and upping the endorphin levels to calm someone” or raising the pulse and pumping out the adrenalin for the opposite effect. Some fans are not fully ok with Meyer’s explanation, pointing out that, in that case, Jane could also manipulate the body (for example, the nerve endings to cause pain), though Meyer also insists that Jane’s power is all about the mind, thus why Bella could block her.
Surely, many things in the Twilight world don’t make sense (as pointed out many times by Robert Pattinson and other cast members of The Twilight Saga), and in some cases, it seems like Meyer forgot how her own world of vampires, humans , and werewolves works. Although Jasper’s powers affecting Bella is not something that could change their arcs completely, it is certainly a detail that has bothered fans for a while, and many are still not fully on board with Meyer’s reasoning for it.
