Tainted Eve

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how John Milton depicts the fall of man in his epic work, "Paradise Lost". In particular, it looks at how, after Eve eats the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, Milton gives her a symbolic speech that manifests her flawed, sinful thoughts. It analyzes how the narrative descriptions preceding and following Eve's speech serve three functions. They contrast with Eve's initial happiness, compare with her depressed voice towards the end of her speech, and remind the reader that Eve's sin is the cause of all of the misery in the world.

From the Paper:

"Eve's natural curiosity during her first exchange with the serpent is understandable because of Eve's naive innocence; this is the first time that she has ever heard another creature speak except for Adam and the angels. However, after the serpent leads Eve to the tree, Eve immediately expresses that she will not sin, manifesting the fact that there is no immediate thought in her mind of doing anything forbidden. Unfortunately, Satan's arguments, which are based on logic and reason, convince Eve to eat the apples. Satan uses God's hierarchy to prove to Eve that she will be granted a Goddess's mind if she eats the fruit just as he, an animal, ate the tree's apples and was granted a human mind. Satan flatters and praises Eve, explaining that Eve looks like a Goddess, and Eve finally eats from the tree, driven by both her hunger and Satan's use of reason. In Milton's epistemology, reason, like Satan, is a deceiver."

More papers on Tainted Eve:

• Essay # 90267 : "Adam and Eve's Sin"
• Essay # 84991 : "Eve" by Auguste Rodin"
• Analytical Essay # 118441 : "As the Serpent Charmed Eve"

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