Eve's Choice

Eve's decision to eat the apple is the crucial to understanding Milton's idea of free will, an essential theme to Paradise Lost. God gives humans the choice to commit sin, and might even desire them to do so. The choice to commit sin combined with curiosity is the powerful force that made Eve eat the apple. However, why does Eve choose to eat the apple, and how does Milton use this act to comment on feminism during the Restoration period.

Eve uses rhetoric to convince Adam to eat from the tree and therefore commit original sin. This power of persuasion amongst female characters is prevalent throughout Restoration writing as women couldn't hold political office, they were often seen as conniving, and able to assert their will through men. This depiction of Eve coincides with many other depictions of women and instead of showing her as a methodical negative influence on Adam, she should be seen as a strong character, able to assert herself through argumentation. After all, it was God's will for the apple to eventually be eaten.