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Jacob Black

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Jacob Black
Twilight series character
File:Jacob Black.jpg
Jacob Black as portrayed by Taylor Lautner in the Twilight film.
First appearanceTwilight
Last appearanceBreaking Dawn
Created byStephenie Meyer
Portrayed byTaylor Lautner
In-universe information
NicknameJake
SpeciesHuman/Shape-shifter (or "werewolf")
GenderMale
TitleAlpha (Breaking Dawn)
OccupationHigh school student
FamilyBilly Black (father),
Sarah Black (mother, deceased),
Rachel and Rebecca (older twin sisters),
Ephraim Black (great-grandfather, deceased)

Jacob Black is a fictional character in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. He is described as a Native American of the Quileute (pronounced Quil-yoot) tribe in La Push, near Forks, Washington. During New Moon, he undergoes a transformation that enables him to phase into a wolf at will. In the films Twilight and New Moon, Jacob is played by Taylor Lautner.

Concept and creation

According to Stephenie Meyer, Jacob was originally meant to simply be a device through which Bella could learn Edward's secret in Twilight. However, Meyer, her agent, and her editor all liked the character so much that they decided to give him a larger role in the following book, New Moon, with Meyer calling his character, "my favorite gift that New Moon gave to me."[1]

"Jacob was my first experience with a character taking over—a minor character developing such roundness and life that I couldn't keep him locked inside a tiny role....From the very beginning, even when Jacob only appeared in chapter six of Twilight, he was so alive. I liked him. More than I should for such a small part."

Meyer wrote on her official site that after Jacob started emerging as a prominent character in New Moon, she went back to Twilight, which she was editing at the time, to "weave Jacob and [his father] throughout Twilight more centrally."[1]

Role in the books

Twilight

Jacob has a small role in the first book of the series. He is the son of Bella Swan's father's friend, Billy Black. When Bella uses him to get information on Edward Cullen and his family, Jacob tells her Quileute legends and introduces her to the idea that Edward is a vampire. Bella comes to like Jacob very much and he develops a crush on her.[2]

New Moon

After months of depression over Edward's leaving, Bella finds friendship with Jacob and slowly begins to come out of her depression. Their friendship becomes very strong, and Jacob also develops romantic feelings for Bella that she does not reciprocate. Jacob is one of an ancient line of werewolves, a member of the Quileute tribe that has forever been the mortal enemy of vampires. Jacob undergoes his first transformation into a wolf in response to a new vampire threat, and he becomes busy patrolling the forest with his pack, searching for vampires in the area. When Bella is caught by the vampire Laurent alone in a clearing, she is saved by Jacob and the pack, who manage to destroy Laurent.

Bella impulsively jumps off a cliff and almost drowns, but Jacob saves her life. After Edward mistakenly believes Bella to have died, she and his sister, Alice, rush to Italy to stop Edward from killing himself, leaving Jacob hurt and angry. Jacob is disgusted by Edward's return and by Bella's willingness to take him back after he left her; he is also outraged when he learns of Bella's desire to become a vampire. Jacob reminds Edward of his tribe's treaty with the Cullen family, which states that the Cullens are not allowed to create new vampires. [3]

Eclipse

Jacob attempts to distance himself from Bella by not returning her phone calls and refusing to see her, enraged by the fact that Bella plans to become a vampire. Later, Jacob visits Bella and Edward to discuss the vampire Victoria's return, and he tells Bella that he misses her and wishes that they can remain friends. With Edward's approval, Bella begins to visit Jacob on a regular basis. On one of these visits, Jacob tells Bella that he is in love with her and that he wants her to choose him over Edward. Bella is caught off guard by his confession and tells him she only thinks of him as a friend. He forcibly kisses her, much to her displeasure, and she reacts by punching him in the jaw and breaking her hand.

Jacob's pack of werewolves and the Cullen family join forces to defeat Victoria and the army of vampires she has created. Before the battle, Jacob overhears Edward and Bella discussing their engagement, angering him greatly. Jacob threatens suicide and Bella, in an attempt to stop him, asks him to kiss her. Afterward, she comes to the realization that she is in love with Jacob, but her love for Edward is greater. The epilogue is written from Jacob's point of view; angry and hurt at Bella's decision to become a vampire, he runs away in his wolf form to escape his pain.[4]

Breaking Dawn

Jacob returns after an absence to attend Bella and Edward's wedding; though still visibly pained by her decisions, he tells Bella that he wants her to be happy. He is outraged when Bella inadvertently informs him that she and Edward plan to make love before she becomes a vampire, because he knows that Edward's strength could kill her. When Bella and Edward return from their honeymoon, Jacob learns that she is pregnant with her and Edward's half-vampire, half-human child and that she has become desperately weak. When he informs his wolf pack of Bella's pregnancy, their leader Sam plans to attack the Cullens and kill Bella and the baby because of the threat he believes the child presents. Jacob, who feels that the Cullens are innocent, disobeys Sam's command and separates himself from the pack, fulfilling his birthright as an Alpha wolf. He is joined in his new pack by Leah and Seth Clearwater, and they aid the Cullens in protecting Bella.

After the birth of Renesmee, Bella and Edward's daughter, Jacob finds his soul mate in her. He thus becomes extremely protective of Renesmee, whom he nicknames Nessie. As she grows, the two of them become very close, and Jacob acts as an older-brother figure to her. Jacob becomes a part of the Cullen family and the enmity between him, Edward, and the other Cullens is dispelled; he and Edward come to view each other as brothers instead of rivals.[5]

Characterization

Physical appearance

Jacob has russet skin, black hair and dark eyes. In Twilight, he is described as a lanky 6'2" fifteen-year-old with a long black ponytail. By Eclipse, Jacob stands at 6'7" and has a toned and muscular build. In New Moon, after discovering that he is a werewolf, he cuts off his long hair. He later grows it out in Eclipse because he thinks Bella prefers it long. This makes his fur as a wolf shaggier and longer than that of his brothers. He is said to be quite handsome, often being described by Bella as beautiful. He tends to wear only cut-off style jeans and shorts, since clothes are often ruined during his transformations into a wolf. As a wolf, Jacob's fur is a russet color.

Personality and abilities

Bella describes Jacob as a "happy person" who extends this happiness to the people around him. As Jacob's character emerges in New Moon, he is shown to be cheery, passionate, adventurous, but quick in temper. Jacob is also able to phase at will into a giant wolf. His body temperature is warmer than a human's, reaching about 108.9 °F (42.7 °C), which allows him to withstand very cold weather. His body also heals quickly, he can communicate with his werewolf pack telepathically when in wolf form, and he is physically stronger and faster. Werewolves do not age if they regularly turn into their wolf form, with Jacob's body physically grown to the equivalent of a 25-year-old. Once they begin phasing, a werewolf may "imprint"—a method of finding one's soul-mate—on someone, and will act as a close family member if the imprintee is not yet old enough to be their lover. Jacob imprints on Edward and Bella's daughter Renesmee in Breaking Dawn, and acts as an older brother figure to her.

Film portrayal

Taylor Lautner played the part of Jacob Black in the film adaptation of Twilight.[6] Due to major physical changes in the character of Jacob between Twilight and New Moon, director Chris Weitz considered replacing Lautner in the sequel with an actor who could more accurately portray "the new, larger Jacob Black."[7] In an attempt to keep the role, Lautner stated, "I have been working out. I've been working out since the day we finished filming Twilight. I just weighed myself today; I've put on 19 pounds...[and] I'm guaranteeing Weitz 10 more [pounds] by filming."[8] In January 2009, Weitz and Summit Entertainment announced that Lautner would continue to play the role of Jacob in New Moon.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b StephenieMeyer.com "New Moon Story". Stepheniemeyer.com. Retrieved 2008-09-14. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  2. ^ Meyer, Stephenie (2005). Twilight. Twilight series . Park Avenue, New York: Little, Brown. p. 498. ISBN 978-0-316-01584-4. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help)
  3. ^ Meyer, Stephenie (2006). New Moon. Twilight series . Park Avenue, New York: Little, Brown. p. 563. ISBN 978-0-316-16019-3. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help)
  4. ^ Meyer, Stephenie (2007). Eclipse. Twilight series . Park Avenue, New York: Little, Brown. p. 629. ISBN 978-0-316-16020-9. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help)
  5. ^ Meyer, Stephenie (2008). Breaking Dawn. Twilight series . Park Avenue, New York: Little, Brown. p. 756. ISBN 978-0-316-06792-8. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |month= (help)
  6. ^ "'Twilight' to film one or two days in LaPush". Peninsula Daily News. 2008-03-09. Retrieved 2008-03-10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); External link in |work= (help)
  7. ^ Larry Carroll (2008-12-15). "'New Moon' Casting News: Michael Copon, Ben Barnes Push For Roles In 'Twilight' Sequel". MTV. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
  8. ^ Larry Carroll (2008-12-18). "'Twilight' Exclusive: Taylor Lautner Talks About His Campaign To Stay On 'New Moon'". MTV. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
  9. ^ "Taylor Lautner to Reprise His Role as Jacob in New Moon" (Press release). Summit Entertainment. 2009-01-07. Retrieved 2009-01-08.

External links

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