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March 19, 2006
Changes in critical essay
From the books of Genesis 1-3, “God created man in his own likeness,” whereas women such as Eve (and in this instance, Cleopatra), were disobedient and led men into temptation. Cleopatra, as a seductress and a manipulator, put Antony under her spell and like Eve, she died by means of a serpent (Witcombe 2).
Cleopatra shows striking similar characteristics of Eve throughout the text as well as Antony, who falls in love with her and gives up his life because of her. The snake or “asp” killed her just as the serpent killed Eve whereas Adam, following a female down the path of destruction just as Antony did in Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra.
"The plethora of accounts is confusing but the consistent presence of the serpent, an age-old symbol of healing as well as of evil, has ensured popular preference for this most powerful version. The Clown even says a woman is "a dish for the gods, if the devil dress her not.” (Levin?) The dress part of this may sound like Yoda-talk, but the general idea of Eve and Cleopatra’s similarities has been debated on several occasions without quite saying it. This establishes that indeed the serpent was a symbol and Eve seduced Adam in the way that the Clown speaks for Antony saying basically that Cleopatra is an evil temptress.
On the other hand, Antony had many faults of his own before he even began an affair with Cleopatra.
“If you believe Plutarch, Antony was simple, generous and easygoing, though a bit of a slob. Cicero says his orgies made him "odious," and there's a story that, after an all-night party, he rose to give a speech and threw up into the skirt of his toga while a kindly friend held it for him. Still, he was doing all right until Cleopatra came along, when he was, as Dryden laments, ‘unbent, unsinewed, made a woman's toy.’ ” This shows that Antony had been into “fishing” and “drinking” (Antony and Cleopatra) long before he had met her. Then again, he wasn’t known for being into adultery until her married Octavia and began a torrid affair with Cleopatra (Holland 6).
Money is said to be the root of all evil and a great source of power. In this case, isn’t lust used to establish power? Cleopatra used her body even to seduce Julius Caesar from the beginning when she first had herself shipped in a package of bedding to him. Historian Will Durant once wrote it wasn’t impossible that “she whispered to him the pleasant thoughts of making himself king, marrying her, and uniting the Mediterranean under one bed.” (Frost 2).
It seems that Cleopatra did what many women do daily, but on a larger scale. She wanted to marry for security, peace, and wealth which may not be far from what some women are doing in the present. There was also more to the seduction than just the sexual nature as well. Like Adam and Eve, they were in lust, but they also did “everyday things” that may have contributed to their attraction as well. They had some similar hobbies, unlike Antony and Octavia, his wife.
“She drank and gambled and hunted and fished with him. Sometimes they dressed as servants and roamed the town teasing the natives. “Anyone was buried in delicacies who stood by their kitchen door according to Frost because of Antony demanded a fresh banquet after each round of drinks (Frost 6). Besides their camaraderie, they had similar minds when it came to politics. Plutarch noted her as scholarly, spoke several languages, and was “lustful” in his two versions of her biography. He did find that she was a highly educated queen. Even Cicero, who detested her, admits she was literary and historian Al-Masudi said she was well-versed in sciences and philosophy (Frost 3). Although Cleopatra is like Eve in the way of lust, she is different in the way that she had a greater interest in politics. Yet, both Eve and Cleopatra are both intelligent in the ways that their feminine power was strong enough to steer their men off course.
Of course, as Adam was influenced, so was Antony. Cleopatra felt that Antony should have final responsibility of decision-making and that with a Greek-Roman influence; she could be a co-ruler (Holland 7). Eve wanted to exert power as well and urged Adam to eat the apple. Antony took a defeat instead of an apple for her. Like Eve again, Cleopatra had deserted him at a moment when he needed her most. If she and Eve would have stood by their lovers, perhaps this may not have happened.
Plutarch takes away some of this feeling of similarity when he suggests that the story of the asps may have been a rumor. He said she carried poison in a hollow comb and that there was no poison found on her body according to medical records or an asp seen within the monument (Holland 7).
Then again, Antony still followed her seduction by waging a war in the first place and living a corrupt life. Like Adam, he died with more honor than Eve because although he was a willing participant, he was also simply following the actions of his lover.
Overall, power can be attained on many levels, but women who have the power of seduction are just as able to survive as the men with political power.
“The men may be the head of the house but the women are the neck and they can turn the head anyway they want,” according to a character in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.” As cheesy as it is to quote movies, it seems to be fitting when best trying to describe the correlation between women and the true amount of power they have over men simply for being how women were since “creation.”
Posted by ErinWaite at March 19, 2006 10:32 PM