Adam

Adam (Paradise Lost) Paradise Lost is widely considered to be one of the most important and beautiful works in English literature. Written by the blind poet John Milton and published in 1667, it purports to tell the story of the conflict between God and Satan and the fall of Man, embodied in the creations of Adam and Eve as personified in the Christian biblical tradition. As drawn by Milton, Adam is, while certainly larger than life, very much of life. Set against the celestially overbearing figures of Good and Evil, God and Satan, Adam and Eve are touchingly, well, human. They live in the Garden of Earthly Delights and presumably have everything they could possibly want, including a personal relationship with God. They are warned against only one thing: eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Naturally, setting a standard for us lowly humans for millennia to come, they eat the apple and suffer the consequences. It is in this action of disobedience, however, where Adam shows himself to be a truly good Man. While Eve succumbs to the temptations of the Devil who preys upon her vanity, Adam joins her in sin simply because she is the Woman he loves. Many lessons to be learned here (perhaps not all of which Milton would approve).

Adam Bede (Adam Bede) Adam Bede is George Eliot’s first novel, published in 1859, written under the pen name used by Mary Ann Evans. The protagonist, Adam Bede, is almost too good to be true. He is an upright, moral and popular young carpenter, who is in love with the vain and shallow Hetty Sorrel. She, of course, loves the dashing squire, Arthur Donnitthorne, and conducts a clandestine affair with him, resulting in her pregnancy and his (albeit unknowing) abandonment. Young Bede appears to have his eyes permanently closed, believing Hetty to be repentant of even thinking of Donnitthorne, not knowing quite how far the affair has gone beyond thinking, and he still wishes to marry her. Such falls from grace as Hetty’s may not go unpunished, of course, so after killing her infant daughter and trying unsuccessfully to summon up the courage to commit suicide, Hetty is arrested, tried and condemned to death. Enter the pious and lovely Dinah Morris, a cousin of Hetty’s and a kind of lay preacher. She persuades Hetty to repent; Captain Donnitthorne returns and learns her fate and her sentence is commuted. What could possibly complete this pretty, tidy picture? Why of course – good Adam marries good Dinah who retires from the ministry circuit and they live happily ever after with their children, conceived within wedlock.

“Adam’s Curse” (A Poem by William Butler Yeats) In this beautiful poem by William Butler Yeats, published in his 1904 collection, In The Seven Woods, the poet touchingly decries the sin of the First Man which resulted in the curse of the separation of pleasure and labor being imposed upon mankind. Henceforward from that sin, nothing, no poem, could be brought to fruition except through toil and torture. “A line will take us hours maybe; Yet if it does not seem a moment's thought, Our stitching and unstitching has been naught”. No thing of beauty is without its laborious origin, no love without its wearying, disheartening let-down. This is Adam’s Curse, and yet we labor on.

Adam and Eve - a song by Ani DiFranco

Adam and Eve - a song by Bob Marley

Adam and Eve - a song by Paul Anka

Adam at the Window - a song by Mary Black

Adam in Chains - a song by Billy Idol

Adam Lives in Theory - a song by Lauryn Hill

Adam Raised a Cain - a song by Bruce Springsteen

Adam's Apple - a song by Aerosmith

Adam's Song - a song by Blink 182

Song for Adam - a song by Jackson Browne

The fall of Adam - a song for Marilyn Manson

Adam and Eve in the Garden (Kelly Pulley) - A beginners guide to the Bible for young children. From the creation of day and night through Adam and Eve in the garden, emergent readers will learn the Bible's first story. Children can read the simple text by themselves---and enjoy the vibrant Beginner's Bible artwork. Recommended for ages 4-8.

Adam Joshua Capers: The Monster in the Third Dresser Drawer (Janice Smith) - In six funny episodes, a small boy with spunk copes with moving, a new baby sister, loose teeth, monsters in the night and more. Recommended for ages 6-10.

Adam of the Road (Elizabeth Janet Gray) - Eleven-year-old Adam loved to travel throughout 13th century England with his father, a wandering minstrel, and his dog, Nick. But when Nick is stolen and his father disappears, Adam suddenly finds himself alone. He searches the same roads he traveled with his father, meeting various people along the way. But will Adam ever find his father and dog and end his desperate search? Recommended for ages 9-12.

Adam Strange: Planet Heist (Andy Diggle) - Heroic adventurer Adam Strange was ready to abandon Earth and join his wife and daughter on his adopted home world of Rann forever, but the newly perfected Zeta-Beam that was to transport him there never came. Now he's trapped on Earth, desperate with worry that something terrible may have happened to his world and his family. But the truth is far worse than even his darkest imaginings. Something terrible is coming. And an ordinary Earthman may be the only thing that stands in the way of universal Armageddon! Recommended for ages 13+

Did Adam and Eve Have Belly Buttons?: And 199 Other Questions from Catholic Teenagers (Matthew J. Pi - This book is the #1 book teens turn to for answers on their Catholic Faith. It inspires, informs and challenges teens. Each year, literally hundreds of parishes and schools use “Did Adam & Eve?” with their teens. Recommended for ages young adult.

Don't Be Afraid, Amanda (Lilian Moore) - Adam the country mouse has already visited Amanda in the city for one day. Now, Amanda must overcome her own fears about the country and visit Adam. Little does she know that she will float across the pond on a leaf — that is, until she is rescued by a friendly turtle. Or that she will climb all the way to the top of a scarecrow to watch the clouds. By the end of the day, she has eaten a pumpkin seed and even hidden from a frightening hawk. This is one visit Amanda will never forget! Recommended for ages 6-10.

Red Dog (Bill Wallace) - Living with his family in the rugged, often dangerous, Wyoming mountains in the 1860's, twelve-year-old Adam finds his courage put to the test when he is left in charge of the household during his stepfather's absence. Recommended for ages 9-12.

Famous People Named Adam - Adam Ant (singer); Adam Baldwin (actor); Adam Beach (actor); Adam Brody (actor); Adam Carolla (TV personality); Adam Clayton (musician); Adam Curry (original MTV VJ); Adam Duritz (musician); Adam Goldberg (actor); Adam Green (musician); Adam Horovitz (musician); Adam Jones (guitarist); Adam Lambert (singer); Adam Levine (musician); Adam Sandler (actor/comic); Adam West (actor); Adam Yauch (musician); Adam Smith (economist)

Famous People who Named their Son Adam - Alan Arkin (actor); Audrey Landers (actress); Jack Klugman (actor); John Walsh (TV personality/crime fighter); Leonard Nimoy (actor); Maurice Gibb (musician); Saul Bellow (Nobel Prize winning writer)