The Treatment of Women in John Milton's Paradise Lost
And Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market"
In literary history, the theme of the apparent female inability to curb curiosity has been a reoccurring one. In Greek mythology, Psyche's curiosity proved her undoing, when she fetched a lamp to see her husband's features that had been proscribed to behold. In Perrault's "Bluebeard", the fatal effects of curiosity are again depicted, with his new bride succumbing to the temptation to open the one door that was forbidden to her, with disastrous results. It would seem that the image of `woman' through the ages is somewhat unfavourable, suggesting that she is often weak, untrustworthy and is the harbinger of ill events. There is evidence of this doctrine of thought in both Paradise Lost and "Goblin Market", and yet it is manifested in dissimilar ways, influenced greatly by the fact that one author is male, the other female. It is arguably this factor which generates such differences in tone between two pieces which thematically are similar.
Both texts concern temptation - of which in each instance is symbolised by fruit - and the moral `fall' of a female character. Yet the approach to this theme in each piece differs, being inherently influenced by the period and social contexts at the time of writing, as well as the personal values of the respective authors. In Paradise Lost the only two female characters, Sin and Eve, are portrayed in a poor light. Sin is immediately introduced as `fallen', being the daughter and lover of Satan. Initially beautiful, being ."..a goddess armed/Out of thy head I sprung..." (2:766-767), she is borne out of the head of Satan. Her enamouring beauty...
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...o Adam having to actually work for his food, and yet seems to be explained as a fair judgment by Milton. It also is the embodiment of the misogynistic reason why women should `know their place'. As a modern reader of his epic, one can see how his language and lexical style, as well as the rich soup of allusions and descriptions, adds weight to the biblical message of morality. On a more profound level, it would have effectively helped seal the fate of woman's credibility at a time of prevailing misogyny.
Works Cited
Harrison, A. Christina Rossetti in Context. Brighton: The Harvester Press Limited, 1988.
Marsh, J. Christina Rossetti - a Literary Biography. London: Random House, 1994.
Milton, J. Paradise Lost. Ed. S. Elledge. New York: W.W. Norton & Company Inc, 1993.
Rossetti, C. " Goblin Market." Selected Poems. Manchester: Carcanet Press Ltd, 1984.
Milton, John. Paradise Lost. 1674. Ed. Scott Elledge. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1993.
Paradise Lost is John Milton’s epic poem about the battle between Satan and God. The poem is quite controversial due to the fact that this was written during the time period that the Catholic Church was facing major corruption. People were already having concerns about God and what was right from the Catholic Church; because of this and many other textual reasons Paradise Lost has a very controversial relationship with Christianity.
For centuries women have been perceived as overshadowed figures who remain in a separate sphere from men. The term “separate spheres” refers to the distinct, conventional characteristics associated with gender differences. The public sphere of men is associated with commerce whereas the domestic sphere for women is linked with the household. However, there is more than just one perspective on feminism. The feminist view is influenced by three main voices: the French, American, and British. French feminists focus their attention on language; American feminists analyze the literary aspects; and British feminists examine the historical processes (Murfin 296-299). Using these perspectives, we can see the oppression of women conveyed in many different texts throughout literature and in history. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, for instance, exhibits not only a feminist view in the text, but also in society during Shelley’s time period as displayed by her negotiations with the separate spheres. Voltaire’s Candide also conveys powerful gender differences and reveals the oppression of women throughout the novel. Therefore, a correlation can be seen between the view of women in the two novels and how it reflects the culture and time period in which the novels were written.
In Paradise Lost, Milton displays the Christian worldview by integrating truths and values of his faith in place of humanistic values. Key elements such as the nature of the protagonist, the setting in which the epic takes place, and rudiments of the plot convey the fundamental aspects of Christianity. Milton took his worldview and applied it to a worldly genre, revolutionizing the epic
This epic simile portrays shockingly disgusting imagery of war and death, which are both consequences of eating the fruit of knowledge. Sin and Death, Satan’s daughter and son (who is also his Grandson) take full advantage of the Fall of Man and construct a bridge between Hell and Earth through Chaos, constructed of anything ‘Solid or slimy’. This allowed death, sin and disease to enter the world, similar to the great Greek Myth of Pandora’s box, where a woman named Pandora unleashed all the negative emotions from their captivity inside a box. Thus, showing both Milton’s classical influences and education at Christs College, Cambridge and how attitudes to women have remained constant through many centuries, from the period of the Ancient Greeks to the 1600s. Man’s disobedience would be the sole point of blame for all the wrongs in the world to Milton’s audience, not only was this a story but the events transpired. This was an easy way for the Church to explain the mass destruction caused by the Great Plague from 1665
Doloff, Steven. "Aspects of Milton's 'Paradise Lost' in James Joyce's 'Araby'.," James Joyce Quarterly, vol. 33, (1995) : Fall, pp. 113(3).
Milton claims his epic poem Paradise Lost exceeds the work of his accomplished predecessors. He argues that he tackles the most difficult task of recounting the history of not just one hero, but the entire human race. However, he does not appear to follow the conventional rules of an epic when he introduces an allegory into Paradise Lost through his portrayal of Sin and Death in Book II. Some readers denounce his work for this inconsistency, but others justify his action and uncover extremely important symbolism from this "forbidden" literal device.
...t, Stephen, gen. ed. “Paradise Lost.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 9th ed. Vol. 1. New York: Norton, 2012. Print. 36-39.
Milton, John. Paradise Lost. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8th ed. Vol. A. gen
Adam and Eve are the parents of all. They started off perfect, but that all changed with the single bite of a forbidden fruit. That one bite changed the world forever. In Milton’s “Paradise Lost” he fills in the literary and theological gaps of Genesis chapter three. Milton’s job in Book IV is to separate Adam and Eve whenever Eve gets tempted. He does so by making them have a debate about splitting up to tend to the garden. Eve argues that she will be okay while Adam argues that she should stay with him so he can protect her.
Loewenstein, David A Student Guide: Milton-Paradise Lost, 2nd Edition Cambridge University Press, 1993, Second Edition 2004.
In Book IX of Milton’s Paradise Lost, Eve makes a very important and revealing speech to the tree of knowledge. In it, she demonstrates the effect that the forbidden fruit has had on her. Eve’s language becomes as shameful as the nakedness that Adam and Eve would later try to cover up with fig leaves. After eating the forbidden apple, Eve’s speech is riddled with blasphemy, self-exaltation, and egocentrism.
The. “Paradise Lost.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M.H. Abrams.
Milton. New York: Norton, 1957. Elledge, Scott, ed., pp. 113-117. Paradise Lost: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources.
In Book IV, Eve recalls awakening to consciousness but she is uncertain of her identity and of her place in the Garden of Eden. Eve's first thoughts are of “where and what [she] was, whence thither brought, and how” (Paradise Lost, IV.451-52), and it is this curiosity about her identity that leads Eve to disobey God eventually. From the moment of her conception, Eve is already distant from God because she awakens in the shade and not in God’s light. Throughout Paradise Lost, Eve is identified with reflections, shadows, and dreams. Representing the “otherness” of Eden, Eve is an outcast and she seeks to find meaning in her life. At the moment of her awakening, Eve is engrossed by her reflection in the water, which she thinks is another being. This watery, wavering image of Eve extends throughout Milton’s poem, and this further puts Eve in a weak position, for Eve is merely a ref...