Such thoughtful posts! I'm honored to throw in MHO.
Do you think Edward no longer seems himself as the “monster”? Has he resolved his own personal demons like Nahuel? Why or why not?
I don't think he will ever get totally over this. Personality frozen at the time of transformation, and then 1917 had really, really different ideas about morality than 2010, even if you were a Chicago boy from an upper-class family. But I think it has gotten better for the same reasons others have pointed out: loving Bella and sacraficing for her, loving his daughter, overcoming his huge jealousy of Jacob, making new friends like Charlie, Jacob, Seth, protecting other humans and doing nice things for them; and then also being loved by these people, especially by non-vampires. So he may not completely get over this, but now, whenever he thinks of himself as a monster, he has all these reasons to think that maybe he's not a monster. And then, how could he ever think that Bella would not go to heaven, vampire or not?
What do you think Edward means when he says “When will you ever see yourself clearly?” to Bella? He has said this before in Twilight. Has the meaning changed between from the first book to the last book?
Nope, don't think it's changed much at all. Bella does not see herself as others see her, and not at all the way Edward sees her. She fails to appreciate her positive qualities - she doesn't see her bravery at all, comparing herself to supernatural creatures; she thinks of her endurance and persistance as merely the ability to survive. She sees inner conviction as stubbornness (of course, she's pretty stubborn, too). Even in Twilight, it's not just about physical qualities. Don't think it will change - again, frozen personalities.
Why does Edward seem so surprised to “hear” Bella from the first time considering they both have participated in the same conflicts from the beginning of the saga?
I think he's surprised by the fact of hearing her, not the content. He has really gotten used to not being able to hear her and believing that she does not want him to hear her. To hear her human memories is really sweet; to hear her vampire memories is reassuring, that she really is happy; to hear her memories of their "private time" ... well I'm not surprised he kissed her! Can't say more -- PG site ....
Are you satisfied with the happy ending to Bella and Edward’s story? Why or why not?
I'm really happy for them. I think it is realistically (within the Twilight world) done, even the anticlimatic confrontation -- diplomatic negotiation between reasonable, strong parties. But the anticlimatic confrontation leaves me without a feeling of catharsis and resolution -- you know that Aro's going to keep trying to acquire some Cullen. And I feel like Bella and Edward are riding off into the sunset and leaving me behind, so lately I've been very sad and discouraged when I finish BD (7 read-throughs so far). I don't want a different ending for them -- I guess I just want to think they might respond to my emails.