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I just finished Eve’s Diary by Mark Twain. It is a short, journal-like excerpt of Eve’s experience as an “experiment” in the Garden of Eden. Eve’s engaging disposition and unapologetic vitality animates her spirit. She is the woman of our species. All women look to her as the object of their inspiration, her attribution the Medal of Honor to be bestowed upon those who romanticize the world in all aspects.
She is young and lively and judicious. What is fascinating to her has become ordinary for us, and this entry was like a breath of fresh air. It encourages us to envy the world around us for its beauty. She is so enveloped in the delicacies of life and discovery so much so as to lead us all back to the Garden of Eden itself.
Beauty is notably a hefty topic that Eve revolves around and in doing so embodies. The “embodiment” part is revealed best through a separate frame of reference: Adam’s. He, to her, was cold and uninterested. I found that attribution agreeable; unromantic men plague our lives on all levels.
It is through her innocence, inexperience, and curiosity that she takes the audience through a journey of firsts. Her firsts are steadfast and assertive nonetheless. This facet of her recollection is apparent in her ability to put a name to everything she comes across, even if it is for the first time. This sort of isolates her from the modern macro culture; we have become slightly numb in our senses in comparison to Eve’s. I found myself arguing that “discovery” is not as easy for me in self-aggrandizing hopes of justifying my inexperienced life with her idyllic one.
“For I feel like an experiment, I feel exactly like an experiment; it would be impossible for a person to feel more like an experiment than I do, and so I am coming to feel convinced that that is what I AM—an experiment; just an experiment, and nothing more.”
Overlooking the simplicity of nature is exactly what distances the average, generic person from the eye-opening attitude of Eve. She doesn’t just observe the animals and plants that exist around her, she feels and speaks to them.
Lately I’ve felt as though I haven’t been reading challenging texts so to speak, and wanted to read a book that was short and powerful. In this effort I have found reflection and solace in Eve’s Diary and it has revitalized the creative ingenious that accompanies a good book. Its prose is very simple and at face-value can seem to reflect a rather juvenile story, but beneath its surface lies a breadth of allegory and modern reflection. She encompasses my thoughts, feelings, intellectual curiosity, and wonder…a classic piece of feminist essentialism.
Totally unsolicited but equally relevant: the eating culture. She lounges on apples ALL day. It is obviously an allegorical reference to the fall from Eden, but I also saw it as commentary on this age’s gluttony. She survived, and more than that…thrived, off of apples. Which I would love to revert to, but alas the post-industrial commercial food mart has other plans…and sometimes for the better.