Man was given one command while in Eden, to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. At first, they follow God’s command and do not even think about going to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. However, Satan entices Eve and she falls for his deception. Upon eating, she takes the fruit to Adam as well. She asks him to eat of it as well and gives elation of mind and spirit as evidence of its goodness, despite its being forbidden by God.
Adam, debating with himself whether he ought to obey God or join Eve in her fallen state, chooses to be with Eve. In a beautiful speech of his decision, he says, “if death / Consort with thee, death is to me as life; / So forcible within my heart I feel / The bond of nature draw me to my own, / My one in thee, for what thou art is mine; / Our state cannot be severed, we are one, / One flesh; to lose thee were to lose myself,” (IX.953-59). He feels so deeply a part of Eve that he cannot bring himself to be severed from her, even if it means going against God. He would rather face death together than continue on alone. To me, this was one of the most beautiful scenes in the whole epic. I will not say that his choice was founded well, however it does appeal to my romantic, till-death-do-us-part fantasy.
Yet, it all goes to pieces after the fall. After tasting the fruit, “carnal desire inflaming; he on Eve / Began to cast lascivious eyes, she him / As wantonly repaid; in lust they burn,” (IX.1013-15). Where once had been a sacrificial love, now self-gratifying lust reigns. After having given such a beautiful speech about desiring death to living alone, Adam falls from that height of love to its basest perversion of no longer seeing Eve as someone to be cherished but as something to be taken. How tragic.
No comments:
Post a Comment