Eve's Agency in The Fall in "Paradise Lost"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Lost

I found Milton's depiction of The Fall intriguing and unlike what I had always pictured in my head. It seems to me that Milton gave Eve much more agency than I expected and gave Adam much less. The way that I've always heard this story told is that the serpent easily convinced Eve to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and Eve shared that fruit with Adam unknowingly; I have always been under the impression that Adam did not know what Eve had done until after he had eaten the fruit she brought him. I was surprised at the portrayal of Eve as questioning and reluctant because she tends to be looked upon as a naive woman who fell for Satan's trickery. I perceive Eve's questioning not as a commitment to her relationship with God, but as another way in which she demonstrates her humanness; I perceive her as being more concerned with her own death- which has been threatened by God for eating from the Tree of Knowledge- and not so concerned with upsetting God. Milton illustrates Eve in much the same way that he does the character of Sin, except that Sin is outwardly grotesque and Eve is inwardly so because of her selfish desires to be like God, as Satan suggests she will be if she eats the forbidden fruit. This even links back to Satan himself, who was the beloved Lucifer prior to his thinking that he could be like God. At first I found the similarities between Satan, Sin, and Eve (human nature) a surprising revelation but then I realized that it makes sense; Eve's likeness to Satan and Sin alludes to the fact that human nature becomes innately sinful from this point on. Milton writes Paradise Lost without any consideration of time therefore including information from humanity after The Fall which makes this portrayal accurate and cunning on Milton's part.

The Parallels between Sin and Eve in "Paradise Lost"

We discussed briefly in class the relationship between the allegorical character Sin and Eve, but I want to further elaborate on the similarities between these two characters and discuss the reasoning behind Milton's personification of Sin as a woman of power.

For starters, Sin is characterized in Book 2 as a monstrous "woman to the waist, and fair,/ But ended foul in many a scaly fold/ Voluminous and vast, a serpent armed/ With mortal sting" (650-653). She serves as yet another embodiment of female sexuality as disgusting. Likewise, Eve is credited by society as being the cause for female sexuality becoming dirty- many people say that Eve's decision to eat of the Tree of Knowledge is the reason why women have to deal with menstruation, the pain of childbirth, and why sex became a pastime instead of a means to repopulate. These consequences and aspects of the female body are often viewed as revolting.

Both female characters are granted power by God accompanied by the free will to make their own decisions. Eve is granted the entire Garden of Eden and influence over her counterpart, Adam, in exchange for refusing to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Her amount of free will is described in Book 4 when the narrator tells us of Eve's creation; she tells Adam, "Till I espied thee, fair indeed and tall,/...Less winning soft, less amiably mild,/ Than that smooth wat'ry image; back I turned" (478-480).  The narrator continues to describe how Eve had to be coaxed into giving Adam her hand and submitting, proving that Eve was independent and had her own agenda prior to being explained her situation. While there are some who believe that Satan is responsible for The Fall, I think it is important to note that Eve had the capability to make her own decision but failed to follow God's command. Sin, also, was given power and instructions by God and she also failed of her own free will. Sin tells Satan in Book 2, "The key of this infernal pit by due,/ And by command of Heav'n's all-powerful King/ I keep, by him forbidden to unlock/ These adamantine gates" (850-853). This coincides with the instruction that God gave Eve. Almost immediately, Sin expresses her freedom of choice by stating: "But what owe I to his commands above" (856). Again, the female character refuse to obey the commands of the greater male-oriented power in their lives.

The story of Eve is a well-known one, but Milton's decision to orient Sin as a woman- a woman pregnant with hounds and scaly as a snake- and give that woman power is a curious one. I think it is plausible that Milton was playing with gender; a female Sin juxtaposes nicely with the male Satan and God. However, I also think that the depiction of the grotesque figure as womanly was also influenced by Milton's personal experiences in the society in which he lived as well as the other writers he mimicked his work after.

The Disconnect of Language and Behavior in "The Roaring Girl"

http://www.tech.org/~cleary/roar.html

Throughout past pieces of literature read in this class, we have seen that the language used to refer to women is grotesque, rude, and degrading.  This language is used as a tool to defend and protect each play's respective patriarchal society through its belittling of female characters- a tactic that seemingly uplifts the male characters (and the patriarchy), regardless of how blatantly evil those men are.  In The Roaring Girl, however, we see a different result from the same tactic: Moll Cutpurse is revered throughout the play as a heroine, sexually desired by the men around her, even though they use foul language when discussing her.  An excellent example of this hypocrisy comes from Laxton in Act 2 Scene 1: he joins in a condemning conversation of Moll in the marketplace while continuously stating his admiration and attraction to her on the side.  When Goshawk says, "[Moll] 'Tis the maddest, fantastical'st girl!" (2.1.211), Laxton replies, "She slips from one company to another like a fat eel/ between a Dutchman's fingers" (213-214), a response that seemingly agrees with Goshawk's negative opinion of Moll by it's calling attention to Moll's instability in gender. In response to a comment made by Mrs. Gallipot, Laxton states, "[Moll] might first cuckold the hus-/ band and then make him do as much for the wife" (218-219), again commenting on Moll's ability to fool both men and women.  This negative language ("fat eel," "cuckold") is something familiar in early modern literature in regard to women as sexual beings, but the hypocrisy which accompanies these statements is not.  In one aside, Laxton lays out his plan to win Moll as a lover: "Heart, I would give but too much money to/ be nibbling with that wench... I'll lay/ hard siege to her. Money is that aqua fortis that eats into/ many a maidenhead" (2.1.193-194, 200-202).  This demonstrates that although the majority of the community believe Moll is an unnatural being because of her cross-dressing tendencies, she is also viewed as exotic, which makes her the perfect image of sexual desire.

I believe it is important to note the way in which Moll is dealt with by male characters, such as Laxton, because it simultaneously represents the threat that men feel by Moll (sparking negative language and ill behavior) and the admiration they feel for her (resulting in a sexual attraction for the woman). In this way, the play does an excellent job of illustrating the double-standards in early modern society; while the play focuses particularly on the unequal treatment of the sexes in the realm of sexuality, I think it also opens the door for the audience to question other areas in which men and women were viewed as opposites.

"The Witch of Edmonton"

The language used to discuss women was what I found interesting in The Witch of Edmonton. The women in the play are continuously referred to by their fellow male characters with degrading terms and titles, providing the reader with a strong sense of the status women had in early modern society. The use of unfavorable language towards women in the play establishes the different gender roles that were prevalent during this time period and also distinguishes the relationship between women and the maternal-and sexualized- female as evil while Frank Thorney is only punished for murdering, not for marrying two women and thus committing adultery.

http://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2007/10/witch-of-edmonton.html

One particular passage that stood out to me regarding degrading language and female gender roles occurs in Act 1 Scene 1 in the conversation between Winnifride and Sir Arthur. The two are discussing the affair they engaged in prior to Win's relationship with Frank Thorney; Sir Arthur is trying to convince Win to set up a meeting time for them to continue the affair, and she attempts to put an end to the entire relationship with him. She states, "I will change my life/ From a loose whore to a repentant wife" (191-192). This line caused a mixture of feelings in me. On the one hand, I applauded Win for putting her foot down and taking control of her own life; it is obvious that she genuinely cares for Frank Thorney and is fully content with having his child and spending the rest of her life with him, and I found myself cheering her on throughout this conversation with Sir Arthur because she refused to let him continue to take advantage of her, ultimately ruining her happiness. On the other hand, however, I struggled with the fact that Win referred to herself as a whore, making the positive opposite of a whore being "a repentant wife".  This use of language to set up a good and bad type of woman was unsettling, but it clearly exemplifies what the ideal woman is in early modern society. By negatively referring to herself as a whore, Win demonstrates that her affair with Sir Arthur was an extremely foul act; this, in turn, suggests that Winnifride as a sexual being is considered foul.

The scene continues with Sir Arthur reacting to this rejection by Winnifride. In response to the above line, he states, "Wilt though turn monster now? Art not ashamed/ After so many months to be honest at last?" (193-194). This line further troubled me because it seems to shame Win not just for being a sexual being (with the man that is shaming her) but also for taking control of her own life and not giving Arthur what he wants from her. The text does not say how long the two engaged in an affair, but it is made clear that both parties were active participants in it, with little to no complaints up until this particular conversation. Sir Arthur enjoyed her being a "loose whore" because he was being sexually satisfied by her behavior, but the moment she tells him no, he calls her a monster and suggests that she should be ashamed to try and live an honest life after the things she has done with him during their affair. Again, the language used demonstrates what her place is thought to be in this society.

This type of rude language towards women- from both male and female characters- is used throughout the play, and just as the above example demonstrates the desired roles of both men and women of this time, so do other examples throughout the play. It is important to note that evil is imposed on the women in The Witch of Edmonton by the use of language; not even Mother Elizabeth Sawyer is evil without the forced title of witch that the male characters give her. In her defense, she states, "I am none. None but base curs so bark at me. I am none. Or would I were! If every poor old woman be trod on thus by slaves...she, to be revenged, had need turn witch" (4.1.76-79).  She takes the name they give her simply because it is forced on her by those around her, again serving as another woman in the play who is kept- or put- in her place.