Paradise Lost Gender Roles Analysis

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John Milton’s Paradise Lost illustrates clear gender roles between men and women focusing primarily on the first man and woman: Adam and Eve. Throughout the epic poem the roles that women play are clearly subordinate to that of men. The theme that women are inferior to men is most easily recognized when observing that Eve is made from Adam, Eve is under Adam’s rule and authority, and Eve is the one who is punished and viewed as the first “sinner.”

Milton starts the story of Adam and Eve by reiterating the biblical story and emphasizing that the first woman was created from the rib of the first man. The basic creation of the first woman instantly establishes the infamous ideology that women are inferior to men. Eve’s entire being and self was wholly dependent on Adam. “Return, fair Eve;Whom fliest thou? Whom thou fliest, of him thou art,/ His flesh, his bone, to give thee being I lent Out of my side to thee, nearest my heart,/Substantial life, to have thee by my side Henceforth an individual solace dear:/ Part of my soul I seek thee, and thee claim my other half.’” (IV 480-484). This quote describes the literal formation of Eve and shows how she is a subsidiary of Adam. In contrast to Adam who was created by God, Eve was created not only by Adam but for Adam. Due to this fact, Eve also feels indebted to Adam as she is only alive because of him. This adds to the already present hierarchy in the poem where Adam is clearly above Eve.

This quote shows how Eve is grateful for Adam and even if she doesn’t realize it, she looks up to Adam, placing him above her. By making Eve literally originate from Adam, Milton reveals clear gender roles where females are undoubtedly inferior to men.

After the creation of Eve, she lives under ...

... middle of paper ...

...am and his pureness. According to Milton, it wasn’t Adam’s fault because he also ate the fruit, but Eve’s for convincing him.

The fact that Eve’s existence was dependent on Adam, she lived under Adam’s authority, and was fully blamed for committing the “original sin” undoubtedly show the distinct female inferiority demonstrated in Paradise Lost. Even though many of the gender roles for females are easily identified by observing the relationship between Adam and Eve, even if you were to take Adam out of the story, the strong idea of male superiority would still be present. Eve is living in a man’s world created for men by a “father-figure type” God. There is no winning for Eve. In any scenario Eve would always be inferior to man, her secondary status clearly illustrating the gender roles between man and woman in both Paradise Lost and Milton’s time period.

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