The biblical Eve is regarded as the temptress, the mythical whore who created sin. As “the inventor of female sexuality,” she is responsible for the world’s first sexual acts (Tumanov, 507). Well-known from Genesis, she ate the “pleasing… and also desirable” fruit giving into the “obvious phallic” serpents’ seductions (Genesis 3.6) (Tumanov, 513). This created sin. After being punished and outcast from Eden, Adam “made love to his wife” and “made love to his wife again” populating the Earth (Genesis 4.1, 4.25). What makes sexual acts in Eden ‘bad’ and those afterward ‘good’? Eve is expected to be the “mother of all the living,” and yet is also considered the “embodiment of the whore” (Genesis 3.20) (Tumanov, 507). Why? The sin in the garden is not sex in and of itself, but specifically the sin of woman’s sexual agency and desire. “Because she is the first one to disobey the divine interdiction, Eve represents not just female sexuality but specifically female sexual choice—the real source of masculine anxiety” (Tumanov, 512).
The erotica poem “The Origin Species” uses the characters Adam and Eve to imagine the first sexual encounters. In a deviation from the times sexual norms, the poem depicts Eve not as the recognized sinner; instead, it supports her sexuality and depicts her as Adam’s equal.
In the poem, Eve is the first to engage in a sexual act, with Adam following immediately after (line 9-10). He does not have more authority than she does. The first time they have sex happens before they both eat the fruit, which occurs in the fourth stanza. Any actions prior to eating the fruit would be considered innocent and pure; they are not yet able to sin. The poem presents pleasurable, non-penetrative sex as something that is sinless. This goes against the Victorian and Biblical ideals of ‘good’ sex, as previously mentioned. The Victorians would see the only good sex as “productive” sex. Bluntly, penetrative intercourse for the purpose of pregnancy. The final stanza again positions men and women as sexual equals. All Eve’s children are “filled with desire” for men (line 25-26). Adam’s sons have a similar lust: “For where is the man who can live without cunt” (line 28). Typical of the genre, the sexuality of the characters is supported. In perhaps the poem’s most notable alteration, Adam is described as being made for Eve. Genesis tells the story of Eve’s origin, where she is created to be an ideal companion for Adam. “The Origin Species” modifies this story, adding that “Adam’s thing was just formed any maiden to please,” (line 7). Additionally, his penis is referred to in the poem as “Adam’s root” (line 14). This word choice links Adam’s penis to his origin or source (Root). Just as Eve was created for Adam, Adam was created for Eve. The poem presents Eve’s autonomy and sexuality as equally valued.
“The Origin Species” frames pleasure and women’s autonomy positively, deviating from the sexual norms of the time. With the use of well-known characters and stories from Genesis, this deviance is brought to the forefront of the reader’s attention. Because the poem exists in the pornographic genre, these deviant ideas can be discussed. Works of this genre do not have to meet the same standards as something more mainstream; it is already condemned. But this also condemns any content discussed. Including concepts of women’s autonomy in pornography associates these ideas with the perverse or obscene.
Works Cited
NIV The Holy Bible. New International Version, 2011 Edition.
“Root.” Merriam Webster Dictionary, 30 Apr. 2025, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/root.
“The Origin Species.” The Pearl, July 1879.
Tumanov, Vladimir. “Mary Versus Eve: Paternal Uncertainty and the Christian View of Women.” Neophilologus, vol. 95, no. 4, 2011, pp. 507–21, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11061-011-9253-5.
When I grew up in Catholic school, the question of original sin was one that little Gev struggled with constantly. All sins can be forgiven, and all is possible through God, except for original sin? It never made sense to little Gev and she was unhappy with the answer that she continuously got from too many pastors who were all slightly indignant was that it was the discovery of sin. The discovery of sin, the discovery of female sexuality, both are something that humans cannot return from.