The Angel and Monster in Paradise Lost

The character of Eve within John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost plays the role of both angel and monster. Eve is the only woman present in the play and finds herself lacking power that all of the male characters seem to have. According to Irigaray, “the feminine finds itself defined as lack, deficiency, or as imitation and negative image of the subject” (796). Eve is unable to compare her situation to others not only because she is the lone female within the narrative, but also because she is first female and there is no way for her to define herself. She is the ultimate feminine character because her whole existence is a deficiancy and she sees herself as a poorly rendered imitation of Adam.

Eve is a smart character within the poem, but she is not allowed to use her intellect because that is not her role in the narrative. Gilbert and Gubar argue that the feminine “intellect is not for invention or creation, but for sweet orderings of domesticity” (816). While the male angel and Adam are having a discussion about the world in general, Eve leaves because she doesn’t feel that she has the intellect to grasp the conversation. It unknown what she does while the males are speaking, but it can be inferred that she is doing something domestically related. The fall of the humans happens in part because Eve feels there is a lot of domestic work to do. Her suggestion is for her and Adam to split the work so more can be done and she won’t distract him.

After the fall, Eve is seen as a monster because she inadvertantely caused the disgrace that befell them. Eve was seduced by Satan because he knew she would take Adam down with her. Eve was the first of the two to taste the fruit that would bring their ruin. Instead of warning Adam, she used her “arts of deception to entrap and destroy” (820) him. Eve didn’t want Adam to have happiness with another woman, so she decieved him into eating the fruit by telling him there were no consequences.

Irigaray, Luce. "Women on the Market." Literary Theory: An Anthology. Ed. Julie Rivkin and Michael Ryan. Blackwell: MA. 799-811.

Gilbert, Sandra and Gubar, Susan. "The Madwoman in the Attic." Literary Theory: An Anthology. Ed. Julie Rivkin and Michael Ryan. Blackwell: MA. 2004. 812-825.