Infamous Eve: A History: May Sinclair

For those raised in a Judeo-Christian belief system, Eve has always been a somewhat maligned figure. Even though she is considered the mother of all of humanity, she is also the one that, for lack of a better term, screwed all of us. Her curiosity led her to listen to the serpent and eat from the Tree of Knowledge, thus leading to Adam and her being cast of the paradisical garden. This mistake also led to the pain of childbirth that women must suffer and the eventual death that all human beings will experience. In Infamous Eve, May Sinclair puts forth the idea that perhaps this myth may not have been so straight forward as we originally thought.

In order for her audience to truly understand the depth of what has occurred the author takes us back to the beginning of humanity's relationship with their gods and each other. She explains the physical and genetic responses that women and men have to each other and how it relates to reproduction. She then goes on to describe the early spritiual beliefs of the Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons. Her research spreads out to encompass the whole of the Semitic basin, covering the Sumerians, Akkadians, Ammorites, Egyptians, and Hittites. We are told of the early Goddess-based religions and the subsequent usurpation by warrior cults who wanted to place kingship higher then the priestess-hood.

It wasn't until the worshipers of Yahweh came into play though that things really began to change. The scribes of the early biblical texts needed to construct a history for their people that was believable and that gave them a direct line of descent back to the beginning. Studies of the texts have shown them to be a stitched together construct of several documents, written at different times, and possibly for different political reasons. Evidence of Persian influence is obvious throughout the text, from the creation narrative to the Great Flood. It's possible that this material was even taken directly from them.

Through all of the history that Sinclair lays out up through the birth of Christianity and into the modern era, it is apparent that Eve was used as a psychological and motivational tool. As cultures stepped away from matrilocal and matrilineal roles and became more patriarchal, Eve was a prime example of the folly of women. Her sin led to all the pains women must suffer, as a constant reminder of how we are not to be trusted. This was very effective in the middle ages but began to lose hold as women became more aware of themselves and more literate.

The wealth of information that May Sinclair offers up in her book is nothing short of remarkable. This isn't a flaming feminist manifesto though. It's simply another look at the history, another look at the woman whose name has been smeared for so long. Did she even exist? Were her actions sinful? My suggestion is to read this book with your eyes and mind wide-open.
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Paperback: 356 pages
Publisher: Wheatmark (April 15, 2007)
ISBN-10: 1587367157
ISBN-13: 978-1587367151
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