Analysis: I chose to base my Reading Week Creative Project on the two types of narcissism in Paradise Lost: Satan's futile one and God's fruitful advancement, specifically through Eve's journey of escaping selfish and prideful narcissism (tempted by Satan) and her reflection through Adam. I began the photograph by staring into the mirror as Eve, representing Eve's first vain encounter with her own reflection: "There I had fixed mine eyes till now and pined with vain desire" (4.465-466). This was also the first time God reminded her of her role in choosing the right kind of narcissism: “What Thou seest , What Thoust seest, fair creature, is thyself / with thee it came and goes..But follow me..To him shall bear multitudes like thyself and / thence be called the Mother of human race." (4.467-469, .474). God introduces Adam as her other half, as he's her superior and her temperance, where together, they will carry out God's productive narcissism. This contrasts against Satan's narcissism, as his stubborness against God's authority creates a cyclical trap that just results in increasing misery: “how dearly I abide that boast so vain / Under what torments inwardly I groan / while they adore me on the throne of Hell” (4.087-89). However, he never repents and instead continues to ignore his guilt until he's in too deep to go back: “For never can true reconcilement grow where wounds of deadly hate have already pierced so deep / Farewell remorse!” (4.098-99, 109). Similarly, Eve falls into this trap of Satan's selfish pride where she allows herself to be tempted and falls by eating the apple, represented by the layered mirrors growing darker and duller. The infinity mirror effect (which I created through layering and editing the same picture on PicsArt) represents her fall into Satan's destructive narcissism, where she splits from Adam (as her partner in God's glory) and eats the apple in an attempt to increase her own vain knowledge to be more on par with Adam's: "in female sex, the more to draw his love / and render me more equal / for inferior who is free?" (9.822-23, .825). As represented by the darkening reflections of only Eve's image (on the left), her fall heavily revolved around her own selfish vanity, which is unfruitful (as why the infinity mirror's reflections are a static repetition only of her) like Satan's narcissism (darkening, static, never ending cyclical trap). However, Eve, unlike Satan, is able to escape this trap before it becomes too late because Adam, as her reflection, is able to help remind her of their free will in returning back to God's image of them through repentance :“self destruction therefore sought refutes / That excellence thought in thee” (10.1016-1017). Ultimately, it's their reflection as God's image of each other that allows them escape Satan's narcissistic "infinite mirror". This is why Adam's reflection staring back at Eve in the photograph stops the infinite mirror from darkening and continuing any longer. The bright colors of Adam also starkly contrast against the dull mirror frames, as God's will and grace always overpowers any of Satan's tactics, guiding Eve back on track. Eve no longer only sees herself, but God's fruitful and productive narcissism through Adam. The bright lens flare that emits a rainbow tint around Eve is also supposed to represent God's guidance and will throughout, as even through mankind's fall, God is able to bring greater grace and advancement. After all, this event is what allowed Him to bestow the greatest gift of all: Jesus Christ, represented by the rainbows coming out of the infinity mirror. The dullest and darkest colors within Satan's trap in the infinity mirror are also meant to represent the contrast of Satan's narcissism even further, as following him blinds you to the color around you until you're able to finally notice it when you break free. Though this adaptation doesn't represent Eve's narcissistic journey with Adam fully (as Adam also chose to fall into narcissism), the overall extent of Eve's role in Paradise Lost is now better able to be understood through this photograph.
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My creative interpretation of Adam’s Fall in Paradise Lost was influenced both by Milton’s work and also by C.S. Lewis’ subsequent analysis of it. Within Paradise Lost, Eve at first wants to keep the apple and its knowledge from Adam, but later leads Adam to Fall, predominantly out of worry that she will be punished and left all alone. She thinks to herself “But what if God have seen / And death ensue? Then I shall be no more / And Adam wedded to another Eve… Confirmed then I resolve / Adam shall share with me in bliss or woe” (Milton 9.825-30). Eve ultimately now understands this concept of fear of death and resolves not to go through it alone. This is what sparks her desire to share her Fall with Adam. However, Lewis takes Eve’s decision even further, writing “I am not sure that critics always notice the precise sin which Eve is now committing, yet there is no mystery about it. Its name in English is Murder. If the fruit is to produce deity Adam shall have none of it…But if it means death, then he must be made to eat it” (125). My creative project aims to take Lewis’ accusation against Eve literally. What if she did truly murder Adam? In my photo, Eve is in a position of mourning Adam — she is hunched over his shrouded body with flowers in tow. But the flowers both on Adam’s body and in Eve's hair are dead, she had already Fallen prior to this moment and she can never return. Furthermore, Eve’s hands are covered in blood, the same hands that hold the bitten apple. Despite this posture of mourning, there seems to be no remorse within Eve as she holds the eye contact of the viewer. The new ‘Fallen’ Eve instead almost appears hostile. In the end, no matter the “sin” she has committed, Eve is no longer alone.
I enjoyed being able to adapt Eve in this way, although I still do not agree with C.S. Lewis’ interpretation and, by extent, the portrait of Eve I depicted. Through my adaptation I leaned into this idea of Eve being in control of Adam's actions ever since her Fall (blending with Adam’s “uxoriousness”) and this kind of grim determination that propels her to pull Adam down with her. However, with this, I chose to lose the idea of Eve that is truly in love with and cares for Adam. I believe, unlike Lewis, that Eve’s only so called crime here was to fear being alone. In a world where Eden is possible and yet instead you are suddenly faced with the prospect of eternal sin with no one to fight by your side I find that fear to be very very rational. In the end, Adam made his own decisions (even if they were ‘uxorious’) and he and Eve enter their new world hand in hand, still by each other’s side. Despite both this photograph and C.S. Lewis, I do not believe that is a sin. Thank you to my mother for being such a patient Adam (i.e. cadaver). I decided to create an optical illusion that represents Eve’s view of herself in the latter half of John Milton’s Paradise Lost based on the argument that Adam and Eve are meant to be equals. After eating from the Tree of Knowledge, Eve wonders if the fruit will “render [her] more equal … for inferior who is free?” (9.823, 9.825). Eve’s comments imply that she views herself as unequal and inferior to Adam. Part of her reasoning behind this perspective is Adam’s reinforcement of these ideas by saying that Eve is “[s]afest and seemliest” when she is with him (9.268). Adam paints himself in a stronger light, so Eve develops the attitude that she must “prove” her worth to make up for her inferiority. However, Eve is not inferior to Adam; the two of them are a team where Adam is the “head” (logical and cautious), and Eve is the “heart” (instinctual and ambitious) (8.562, 4.484). They both have their strengths and weaknesses, but those traits do not put one over the other. I chose to use an illusion because it intentionally warps the audience’s perception of the world, which is how I see this epic; on the surface, it may seem that Adam and Eve are on different hierarchal levels, but a closer examination reveals that they are equal. This illusion uses forced perspective to make it seem as if two objects of the same size are actually different sizes. In this case, Eve can only see herself as smaller/inferior while Adam is bigger/superior. Since Eve does not believe herself to be equal to Adam without eating from the Tree of Knowledge, she is “trapped” in the illusion, reflecting her question, “[F]or inferior who is free?” (9.825). However, the audience can see the illusion the way it is presented to them, or they can step back to see the reality that both figures are the same size. They can choose the interpretation that they think Milton is presenting, unlike Eve. My choice was to make a “modernized” adaptation of Eve’s relation of the first moments of her consciousness.
One of my main choices in recreating this scene from “Paradise Lost” was to replace the idyllic and natural environment of Eden with an indoor space that is more plain, less serene. I leave the camera (for the most part) unmoving, with a shot of the empty room, to highlight how the movements of nature described by Eve contribute to creating a sort of dreamlike tableau in which she then appears…I find that as the Genesis is based so significantly on metaphor that it becomes very ambiguous, and that within the context of Eden, what the characters say may consequently appear hard to grasp. My recreation of the scene, outside of the magical environment, brings out its more pragmatic aspect as a warning against vanity. My choice of the mirror instead of water is an extension of my attempt to “defamiliarize” this episode. Eve’s retelling begins by a description of her environs, which she describes as “Pure” and “as the expanse of heav’n” (Book 4, 456). By staring into the water and seeing herself, she is witnessing another one of nature’s wonders. Yet in my version, there is a mirror, which was created for the very purpose of humans contemplating themselves. As Eve in the epic “bends down to look,” I get closer to the mirror, and similarly move away when Eve “starts back” (Book 4, 462). The choice of the mirror may render Eve more two-dimensional than she actually is, in that I keep the idea that Eve falls in love with herself, but leave out the fact that she is still discovering nature and adapting to it. One way or another, I find this passage to hold a very down-to-earth message on the threat of pride, and a reminder that even within the garden, Adam and Eve are still exposed to sin.
Father I am on my knees If you’re up there watching still then please take sympathy I was blind but now I see We are trapped inside our sin, no way to set us free But can you lay his burden down upon my head We have wronged you but he followed in the way i led If I can give my being as a sacrifice Can you give him still the gift of life Father I am on my knees (sun is coming up a brand new day is here) If you’re up there watching still then please take sympathy (can you give your special light) I was blind but now I see (powerless in light of their machines) We are trapped inside our sin, no way to set us free But can you lay his burden down upon my head (But can you lay her burden down upon my head) We have wronged you but he followed in the way i led (I have wronged you but she didn’t know a thing I said) And if I can give my being as a sacrifice Can you give him still the gift of life (Can you give her still the gift of life) I don’t mind if it all ends here, If my life will start dwindling I know you’re always silent I ask but don’t demand But if you’re somewhere out there And if you’re somehow listening In the light through the overcast I beg your healing hand (THE SON) Can you lay their burdens down upon my head They have wronged you but they followed in the way I led And if I can give my being as a sacrifice Can you give them still the gift of life Link to lyrics and annotations Analysis:
In “Redemption”, I explore an interesting phenomenon apparent in multiple AP Lit texts – the heroism that comes with self-sacrifice and humility. Both Eve in Paradise Lost and Klara in Klara and the Sun present themselves as self-sacrificial figures for a greater good, exemplifying a “Christ-like heroism” that Barbara K. Lewis describes in her essay “Higher Argument”. In Paradise Lost, this heroic sentiment eventually changes Eve’s position in a perceived “hierarchy” and turns her into the hero and protagonist of the novel. Interestingly, a similar phenomenon happens with Klara – her self-sacrificial spirit reveals her to have an element of selflessness and kindness, and makes her seem slightly more “human”, thus moving her up in the hierarchy of characters in Klara and the Sun as well. Both characters offer a sacrifice in order to act as a ‘saviour’ to those they care about. Eve proposes to “abstain / from love’s due rites” (10.993-4) and “seek Death” (10.1001) in order to protect future generations from sin, and Klara is willing to “extract the solution” in her head despite “great fear” (233) in an attempt to save Josie. In the final verse, this sacrifice is exemplified to be specifically Christ-like, in the same way that the Son proposes that his “Death shall pay” (11.36) for the sins of mankind. However, there is also a more subtle element of heroism that can be found in both characters – the humility that enables them to make these sacrifices. Klara always presents herself in service for others. She claims that her purpose is to “save Josie, to make her well” (211), and even her attempt to replace Josie is only in service of others and not for any semblance of self-interest. In this sense, by not holding much priority for herself, she is regarded as ‘selfless’ in a way. Similarly, Eve is able to be the first to apologise, and put herself in a serviceable position to Adam. Although these acts seem like they “lower” themselves on the hierarchy, Eve and Klara actually are able to heighten their perceived heroism. Interestingly, the role of God/The Sun is the same in both Klara and the Sun and Paradise Lost. In Eve’s storyline, God (and the angels) are largely “silent” figures except during her creation. While Michael leads Adam to a mountain to talk to him about the future of the earth, Eve is put to sleep (“Let Eve (for I have drenched her eyes) / Here sleep below while thou to foresight wak’st” (11.367-8). Instead of receiving the word of God directly, she must experience it through dreams and visions. Similarly, Klara’s experience with the sun is purely through indirect contact, where she can only offer her prayers to an inanimate object and hope for a response. This possibly makes the pleading of redemption more heroic – they are pleading forgiveness and making requests where they will never receive a direct answer. A final perspective that is offered by the song is commentary on the nature of redemption and humanity. The act of pleading for mercy is something that seems to be intrinsically human – Eve only pleads for mercy and forgiveness following her fall, and the Son (the only human figure in heaven) is the one to plead for mercy on behalf of Adam and Eve. This, then, subconsciously puts Klara in a uniquely human position. By having her ties to the sun and pleading for his grace, she seems to be involved in something uniquely human that the other characters have no connection to. When she is viewed in this light, she ‘ascends’ the hierarchy of Klara and the Sun, becoming slightly more human and appeasing even though the acts she performs for her humility (putting herself in eternal servitude for the sake of Josie) seems distinctively unhuman at first glance. The fruit
Such a deep red, glistening in the sunlight While the leaves shimmer with nonexistent breeze And the gleaming green serpent whispers from his place wound up in the trees So high up, but I’d be higher still And if only I reach out my hand, the hills Would grow out of the ground beneath my feet And elevate me until I would be amongst the gods And never would I feel That my decisions are not real That someone else has made them for me, That my fate rests in the hands Of man So I reach out my shaking hand And grasp my future in my palm My ears still ringing with the serpent’s hiss I kiss the skin of the ruby red fruit And then I sink my teeth Beneath And bite hard into the flesh of the apple And for one glorious moment the world is still Until the forest floor under me is no more And if I am flying high, why do I feel so low? Why does my stomach seem to have been left behind And my mind is racing to unforeseen places But this cannot be what a god sees, what a god dreams And suddenly I know That I am falling, falling fast and far And I curse the moment that fruit touched my lips And time skips And I was six years old, almost seven I was sitting in the waiting room chair And all I could do was stare At the magazine in my hands That told me that I would not land That I would keep falling And falling so fast and far And even though I was not even seven years old I was aging before my eyes as I feel down in space and up in time Until I was my Aunt Consuelo I could not stop my fate from falling Like raindrops on my face As I realized my place In this world No matter how hard I clawed and scraped I could not escape I was always destined to fall into my aunt And I feel myself slip And time skips And suddenly I am standing in the Freelands’ apartment Listening to the useless talk of the party And I vaguely heard the door burst open Vaguely heard my husband shouting at me And out of the corner of my eye I see Irene coming towards me And she will not let me be free And neither will the others coming towards me But the window behind promises a quick escape A quick solution to a problem with no answer So I do the only thing that I know how to do I fall And when I am falling I am finally free I am finally in control Until I meet the ground And I am gone, but I can hear the sound Of debating men Questioning if I was pushed or not And deciding that it must have been An accident Because how could I have thought To fall? No, they could not see that it was not my choice And I wanted to use my voice To say that I chose to go this way But I could not speak from the depths to which I dipped And time skipped And I am frozen in the act of falling I do not know if I am ever to reach the ground But I wait here In perpetual motion, standing still With my arms outstretched Ready to go in case The real Josie is erased And I must take her place But even then I do not have a choice Because my voice Is given to me on a loan By the humans, who I cannot contradict And I will be Josie, not me Her life will be forced inside This metallic shell And I will abide By the rules which I am programmed to obey But of course this is all in the case that Josie dies Until then, I hang here Falling Analytical Component: I was very interested in the theme of falling, which came up in several of the books and poems that we read this semester. In looking back on this common concept of falling, I noticed that the characters who experienced this sensation were all female. I believe that “the fall” is applied exclusively to female characters because of the lack of control that women often feel, so I decided to connect the stories of falling from “The Waiting Room,” “Passing,” and “Klara and the Sun” to Eve’s story in “Paradise Lost.” After the fall, Eve loses control of her life. Her punishment is that she must submit to her husband. In my adaptation, I attempted to highlight her desire to determine her own fate, which motivated Eve to eat the fruit in the first place. Even in Paradise, Eve was not treated as an equal to Adam. When the serpent offers her the chance to for once be dominant and have power over her own fate, she is eager to become godly. However, after she eats the fruit, her power is only diminished. I wrote Eve as a universal character for all of the women in the other stories that I looked at as well, since all follow a similar pattern. In my poem, Eve is skipping through time and falling into different stories which share the same ending. After “Paradise Lost,” I moved on to “The Waiting Room” to reflect how Eve’s perceived fall and consequential sub-ordinance limits the possibilities for women. In Bishop’s poem, Elizabeth realizes that “without thinking at all, [she] was [her] foolish aunt,” and feels that she is “falling, falling” (Bishop 49-50). She sees her future ahead of her and witnesses herself becoming “one of them” (62). In that moment of epiphany, she understands that her life is laid out before her and there is no way out. In my poem, I wrote, “I realized my place / In this world / No matter how hard I clawed and scraped / I could not escape” to replicate Elizabeth’s sense of becoming her aunt. From there, I went to “Passing,” where my narrator was taking on the role of Clare. I was particularly intrigued by Irene’s thought that she “couldn’t have [Clare] free” (Larsen 79). Although in the book it is left ambiguous whether Clare fainted and fell by accident, Irene pushed her, or Clare fell on purpose, I decided to write from the angle of Clare ending her own life. This way, the fall was her choice and the only way for her to hold on to some of her own freedom and control. The character gains agency from the fall, but also loses agency when those who witness her death refuse to contemplate the possibility of suicide. Instead, they decide that she suffered a “death by misadventure,” failing to consider her as a person capable of choosing to take her own life (82). After examining “Passing,” I considered the fake Josie AF which was hung as if falling from the ceiling in “Klara and the Sun.” This AF is another representation of the vulnerability that is associated with falling. Her fate rests entirely in the hands of Mr. Capaldi and Josie’s parents, and until there is use for her, she is left hanging “in perpetual motion,” but not going anywhere (Daley). July 1
I can’t remember how I got here. I just woke up and there was this guy, Adam here too. All my stuff is here which is nice, so at least I have something. I’ll try to write down something everyday, so I can try to figure out how to get out of here. July 3 Ok, so not quite everyday, but I’m trying. We aren’t the only ones here. There’s other people, but I can never seem to see their faces. Adam talks to them, so I’m just gonna say they’re all shy or something. But, there is something weird about them. They’re always in the corner of my eye, and it’s getting a little creepy. July 6 Adam’s nice. He’s kind of funny and he always wants to help me out, but he doesn’t know what’s going on either. He doesn’t seem too bothered by that though. I’ve been walking around for the past couple days, trying to figure out where we are, but I can’t figure it out. There’s palm trees next to pine trees, and I’m no botanist but that’s not quite right. I just can’t figure out why he doesn’t want to leave. July 9 Adam made me dinner last night. It was pretty good, it definitely wasn’t the best thing ever but I really appreciated it. I’m still looking for a way out, but Adam seems pretty content here and doesn’t really want to talk about leaving. I think he thinks that we’d go our separate ways, but I wouldn’t do that to him. I just hope he wouldn’t do that to me. July 14 There’s something so disgusting about being stuck here with just Adam to talk to. Ever since I got to this “Paradise”, I’ve just been miserable. It’s not like I thought I was going on vacation or anything, I just didn’t know I’d end up here. What’s worse is that no one but Adam directly talks to me. It really feels sexist and I’m tired of it. I want to know what’s going on, but every time I try to figure it out, everyone just hovers out of sight and doesn’t talk to me. At least Adam’s nice, he really does try his best. July 15 I finally convinced Adam we should get some space, so that I can write in this journal more regularly. Ok, that’s not quite the whole story, we got into a fight. I think it’s been a long time brewing. I might have insinuated that this whole place is sexist, and that I’m not lesser than him. He didn’t think that was true, but he doesn’t know what it’s like. So, I told him to go away, and walked off. What else was I supposed to do? No one wants to talk to me except Adam and I’m the only woman here. So, I guess that’s similar to home, an unequal gender ratio, but I’m TIRED of it. I just want someone to talk to and for someone to listen to me. July 16 Adam and I are still fighting. We didn’t talk all of yesterday and I feel a little bad but I don’t know what to do. When I left, I saw him open his mouth like he was gonna say something, so I turned around but he just shook his head and apologized. Whatever. There’s a new guy here. Like someone I can actually talk to. He said his name is Serpo? Or something like that. Kind of a weird name, but whatever. He’s pretty nice. I think he knows a way out of this place. I really want to go, but I need to find Adam first. I can’t leave him. I know we’re fighting, but he’s the closest thing I have to a real friend. I’m not going to leave without Adam. July 17 Serpo’s way out is real. I didn’t really believe him at first but it works. Adam came with me which I’m really happy about. I got really nervous that he wouldn’t, and for a second it seemed like he wouldn’t but we did it. We had to sneak out late last night, as I write this we’re currently on a bus to a place called Topeka. I haven’t heard of it, but Adam seems to have recognized the name so that’s good. I think we’re going to stick together from now on. Analysis: For my creative piece I decided to write a short piece from the perspective of Eve. In my story Adam and Eve are stuck in an unknown place and I chose to write in the form of diary entries sporadically written. I chose to write it this way because I think writing from the perspective of Eve is really interesting and gives a really different perspective especially as Milton was a man and did not have the same understanding of the struggles of women. I wrote in the diary entry form as I wanted to explore writing a piece where the majority of the plot takes place offscreen. Additionally I wanted to try and write in a modern way, giving new insights into the thought process of Eve and her feelings towards the world. Something I really wanted to capture was the fact that Eve was a woman in a male dominated environment and while the tone of my piece is largely comedic I wanted it to be known that this apparent gender inequality is not overlooked or ignored by Eve. I was inspired by two main phrases which I based my writing on. “Let us divide our labors, thou where choice / Leads thee or where most needs” (9.214-15). This line is an obvious one, as it clearly indicates Eve’s desire for separation. I decided to take this line and it served as my main inspiration when I began writing. My other main phrase was “Of fellowship I speak / Such as I seek, fit to participate / All rational delight wherein the brute/ Cannot be human consort” (8.389-392). This one I chose as it showcased the inherently unequal power structure that plagues the world of Adam and Eve. I especially liked it as it came from Adam and doesn’t include Eve’s perspective on it. This allowed for me to create Eve’s response organically without having to mold the words, rather just simple creation. Overall this allowed for me to see the words of Milton in a different perspective and made me truly appreciate the opportunity to see multiple perspectives in writing. While making this sculpture, I wanted to reference the idea that man, though created perfect within, feels that he is fundamentally lacking. Specifically, I was referencing the conversation Adam has with God in Book 8, when he describes his need for a companion whom he can call his equal, unlike the creatures around him whom he asserts dominance over. By himself--that is, by his god-created and supposedly perfect self--Adam feels "solitude" (8.369), a solitude that cannot be erased by the animals over which he rules (as God jokingly asked), but only by someone who is equal to him ("Among unequals what society / Can sort, what harmony, or true delight? / Which must be mutual" [8.383-385]). To depict this, I wanted to show each part of the sand sculpture as not being whole or complete, and as instead having holes, chips, missing parts, etc.--to resemble the notion of incompleteness or fundamental lacking. But equally as important is the fact that the sculpture can only stand as a result of the two pieces being linked together. If it weren't for this link, neither piece could stand on its own (it's slightly hard to see in the angle, but the I curved off the ends and made the weight of each piece very imbalanced, so neither piece can stand by itself). This represents the idea that Adam and Eve can make up for each other's flaws only in union with each other, not while separate. To this end, I started to think whether post-fallen Adam or Eve could ever be considered "complete," even with each supporting one another and "making up for" each of their supposed flaws. I hoped to show this idea by creating two holes in one piece, and having the other piece only fill one of those holes.
In one sense, I wanted to depict the contrast between how God intended Adam and Eve's relationship to be, and how Adam and Eve's relationship actually turned out to be, immediately before the Fall and after. While both are intended to have a harmonious relationship with one another and are made to sync with one another perfectly, we know it's not perfect. There are holes, gaps, mistrust, deception, etc. For example, as I made this sculpture, I had in mind the chaos that slowly started to build after Adam and Eve ate the fruit--when both began vigorously accusing each other ("Thus they in mutual accusation spent / The fruitless hours" [9.1187-1188]). I tried to visually show Adam and Eve's individual imperfections by representing them as two, separate parts of the sculptures (though, it's up to the viewer to decide which is Adam and Eve). In the left part of the sculpture, the most obvious imperfections are the holes, and in the right, it is the odd, "incomplete" shape. Still, despite these imperfections, the sculpture is able to stand, because both lean on one another, signifying the idea at the poem's end that only in union can Adam and Eve overcome their imperfections ("They, hand in hand, with wandering steps and slow, / Through Eden took their solitary way" [12.648-649]). Through the positioning of the sculptures, I wanted to also raise the question of whether or not Adam and Eve are truly equal. From certain angles, both pieces seem at the same height; however, this view can easily be distorted if the viewer were to stand to one side of the sculpture. In that case, we would only one how one piece lies on top of the other; we couldn't see how, on the other side, it's actually the other way around. While adding these aspects to the sculpture, I had in mind the following lines: "Though both / Not equal, as their sex not equal seemed; / For contemplation he and velour formed; / For softness she and sweet attractive grace; / He for God only, she for God in him" (4.293-297). Although Adam and Eve are supposed to be equal (as Adam's loneliness couldn't be alleviated otherwise), it is clear that they are not equal in many ways, from the extent to which they reflect God's image to the supposed amount of reason both innately have. This, generally, is an ambiguous and contentious theme throughout the play, and accordingly, I wanted to make this aspect of my sculpture ambiguous as well--that is, dependent on the viewer's perspective. Finally, by making my sculpture relatively abstract and avoiding any explicit human depictions, there is one key feature about Adam and Eve's relationship that is lost in my depiction: all of the gender politics. It's impossible to say with 100% confidence which one is Adam or Eve. As a result, the association between gender and one's position in the natural hierarchy of things--an association that can readily be made when reading the text--cannot be made using my sculpture. In other words, both characters lose the contribution their gender potentially makes to their position on the hierarchy of life. Thus, this sort of inhuman adaptation allows us to see past gender, and view Adam and Eve for their true qualities irrespective of gender--which also raises the implicit question of whether it is possible, in Paradise Lost, to separate gender from status and power. I chose to illustrate the passages taken, or potentially taken, by Eve throughout the poem. The top half (sky) is intended to represent the Heavens, full of bright colors; the bottom, Hell, is simply drawn with gray/black pencil and red, a color excluded in the Heavens. The color choices for the bottom are intended to illustrate Paradise Lost’s notion that evil is not a concept in itself, but simply the absence of all that is good.
In the Garden of Eden (starting at the left), the first “downward slope” drawn is the lake, where Eve first sees herself in Book 4. Though Eve may be part of paradise and created sufficient to stand, she shows signs of fallen qualities–those of our own–from the first time we see her. In Eve’s very first presence she has “unexperienced thought” (4.457) and becomes attracted to her own reflection in the lack by “vain desire” (4.466). She describes her reflection to have “returnd as soon with answering looks” (4.464, emphasis added) where this experience gives her answers of knowledge. Attributing this desire and curiosity of herself should not be characterized as narcissism; unlike Satan, upon the instruction that her “vain desire”(4.66) is unrighteous, she walks away. However, it is worthy to note that her curiosity leads her to conventionally sinful behavior. Her instincts are not to follow good, but to follow knowledge of herself. Even in paradise, she feels incomplete as the limits on her self-exploration limit her knowledge and understanding of the universe. Following this in the picture, Eve comes across the apple, as stems from Satan at the bottom left. Eating the apple evokes in Eve the sense that she is knowledgeable and superior, no longer fearing death and now with “opened eyes, new hopes, [and] new joys” (IX.985). However, the apple does not provide her any new sense of knowledge besides the experience of doing evil. As she has been tricked by Satan, she has no choice but to follow the pathway downward. The staircase here consists of seven steps, each representing the seven deadly sins Eve follows directly after eating the apple. In the drawing, the passage then forks into two options: the ability to recognize sins and work toward a new sort of paradise, or continuing following Satan’s path in hell. In Book 3, God decrees how the fallen are to be reprimanded—justice for the fallen was not an afterthought, it was built into God’s original creation of humanity. The fallen are, as God says, “[a]uthors to themselves in all / Both what they judge and what they choose” (3.122-3). For humanity, “[m]an falls deceived / By th’ other first: Man therefore shall find grace, the other none” (12.130-2). Unlike the reprobation of Satan, they can choose to find grace. In the image, Satan does not have any pathway to travel back upwards, he is permanently outcast from Heaven. The humans, in contrast, remain free to choose their fate (they were “formed … free and free they must remain” [12.124]), and so they are given the opportunity to “leave this Paradise, … possess[ing] a Paradise within thee, happier far” (12.586-7). This fall may not have been necessary for them to reach Heaven, but ultimately it was beneficial and they’re “happier farr” (12.587) than before. They now have this Tree of Knowledge to guide them, and they can use this spiritual transformation to choose their path: either continuing down the dark, black pathway and follow Satan (traced along the bottom of the page), or to work their way upwards. While she may reach a different sort of paradise than before, it is far more colorful and she is more in tune, knowledgeable, and satisfied with her surroundings than before. Sammie Staudinger For my creative project of two side-side drawings depicting Satan and Eve, I attempted to explore the distinction between their narcissisms, and through it, the distinction between Satan’s duplication of death and Eve’s creation of life in Paradise Lost. In particular, I wanted to portray the concept of the effects of doubling — both duplication of oneself and others — through both its presence in Satan and its absence from Eve, ultimately arguing duplication is antithetical to life, and is thus akin to death.
For Eve, the image on the left, I drew inspiration from the scene of Eve recounting her earliest memories to Adam, namely when Eve hears God saying that she “shalt bear multitude like thyself, and thence be called / Mother of human race,” and Eve listens by stating “What could I do / But follow straight, invisibly thus led?” (IV.474-476). Here, I interpret Eve’s narcissism as an expansion of herself that includes not only “[her]self” but also Adam, whom she encounters later in the scene, and, ultimately, the entire “human race.” In this way, Eve mimics the cliché claiming that one must oneself before one loves others. Thus, one could argue that Eve’s narcissism is not a sin, as her self-love ultimately serves as growth for herself and others, eventually leading to the genesis of all human life. In my artistic representation, I specifically wanted to emphasize Eve’s support of others’ growth through her creation of life. The hand I drew not only represents Eve reaching to grab the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, but can also represent God’s hand, rescuing Eve from doubling in the reflection scene. In this way, the hand has double signifiers as a hand sign, but its two signifieds are distinct from each other instead of exact reflections of the same person. Moreover, the woody texture of the hand and the flowers reaching from said hand represents Eve’s, and through hers, God’s ability to expand the growth of His creations. On the other hand, my interpretation of Satan stems from his scene when meeting his progeny. I was specifically inspired by the lines where Satan’s initially reacts to them as “What thing thou art, thus double-formed, and why,” claiming to his daughter Sin he has never seen a “Sight more detestable than him [their son Death] and thee” (II.741-745). I interpret this scene as Satan’s inability to recognize himself as a result of his narcissism: the fact that Satan cannot acknowledge, and even hates, his “double-formed” progeny suggests self-replication without reflection - the exact opposite of Eve, who reflects and gives life, but does not clone herself. Hence, in contrast to Eve’s narcissism as an expansion of herself, and through it, the Other, Satan’s narcissism exists within and for himself and himself alone, as indicated by his exact duplication: Sin is his clone, and Death is their child together. So, for my creative project, I wanted to highlight this distinction of Satan’s doubling of exact copies versus Eve’s ability to create new life. For instance, the bright color palette for Eve represents her ability of growth while Satan's black and white tone symbolizes his cyclic, deadly effects of replication. Moreover, I sought to emphasize the effects of Satan’s narcissism insofar as it causes him to not recognize himself in his progeny of exact duplication, as shown in the repeated blurred images of Satan’s face. Also, the fact that the images are set in a square suggests the closed circuit of Satan’s narcissism -- one of his faces will always lead to another, never a deeper meaning beyond the copy of the image itself. Hence, Satan loses any deeper significance he has in the original text, in order to fully bring the folly of his doubling to the surface. |
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