Clement 1

Alaina Clement
Professor Yolanda Franklin
English 1102 10:10AM
Paper 2
03 November 2014

From Genesis to the South: How the Snake Slithered from Creation to Murica
The snake has played a very significant role in the shaping of our universe. The serpent is
one of the few animals mentioned in the Bible. Even so, the serpent is the only animal to have
carried the weight of the world on its shoulders. The very first introduction of the snake to
mankind was religiously significant and highly skeptical. From this introduction between man
and snake there has been tension between the serpent and the human since time evolved. As
humanity progressed into the American south, the fear and respect for the snake turned many
people and cultures to embrace the clever beast in effort to become feared and respected
themselves; almost to become god-like and worthy in the eyes of all who fear the slithering
reptile.
I want to research how the snake has affected The United States Southern Culture. I will
attempt to answer the overall question, What does the snake really symbolize to the south? I
will research where the serpentine symbol arose from by exploring ancient cultures. I will
research what those symbols mean and how they correlate to the modern American southern
culture.
In the beginning. Are the first three words that resound all of creation for believers
around the globe but the word that represents the snake in Christian beliefs is, deception. The

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American south is known for being deeply religious so their sympathy for the snake is very much
due to the connotation that the Bible puts the serpent in. For example, the snake deceived the
woman. The definition of deception according to Merriam Webster online dictionary is an act or
statement intended to make people believe something that is not true (Webster).
Deception is a key symbol in which snakes are held in high regard. For example, in the
tale of the Garden of Eden the manipulation and trickery on the part of the serpent was what
caused the fall of mankind into this world of hatred and evil. Ironically, that hatred and evil is
exactly what categorizes the feelings that people have toward snakes today. I know, my
grandmother who was born and raised in rural southern Arkansas has two fears: cotton worms
and snakes. The fear of snakes and the fear of worms most likely go hand in hand because the
shape and locomotion is very similar. In regards to the serpent abundance in the south, the reason
is that snakes and just reptiles in general are ectoderms, meaning that they take on the
temperature of their surroundings. Therefore, due to the warmer southern climate, snakes and
worms have a tendency to thrive in the warmer conditions. In the minds of many southerners
there are two types of snakes that live in their minds: poisonous and non-poisonous. However, a
garden snake is harmless, yet people are afraid of them. The fear of snakes in my opinion has
been instilled by generations before us who have taken the negative religious bias and associated
it with fear. Our ancestors avoided snakes and that mentality was passed down to the later
generations who have provoked the serpent paranoia that lives in the hearts of most humans.
Serpent paranoia is vexed by making shows and movies that showcase the danger, the violence,
and the evil intent that supposedly all snakes in the wild have. Notice that fear only lives in the
heart of a human being. Fear is not real; it is defined as an unpleasantly strong emotion caused

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by the awareness of danger. (Webster). Fear in other words is not tangible, or provable but it
only exists in our minds which makes the fear of snakes all psychological.
The psychological fear of snakes was put in place by our culture. For example, think of
what the media did to the image of the shark. Shows such as, Shark Week, on Discovery Channel
always causes paranoia among viewers (Discovery). Shows like these graphically depict shark
attacks and the survivors. The survivors on the show describe their vicious attackers in such a
way that makes them too apologetic. Thence, the viewers are hypnotized by shark danger and
beach attendance during Shark Week always goes down. Overall, the media and television shows
of this kind spread fear and plant seeds of anxiety in people. Even though statistics say that the
amount of shark attacks are very small and usually non-fatal, people are still afraid (Oceana).
The fear instilled by culture of sharks is similar to the instilled fear of snakes. In the same way
with snakes there is an almost instinctual fear of the reptile from birth. Coincidentally, from the
birth of the universe snakes have become symbols of all sin, wealth, fear, deception, power,
respect, and divinity. Ironically, all of these symbolic relationships to the snake are the root of all
the problems in the American South. On a biblical account, at the birth of the universe the Bible
says that God saw all he had made and He called it very good (Gen. 1:31). Later on in the New
Testament the Bible warns us that, ...the whole world lieth in wickedness" (1 John. 5:19). So the
world turned from very good and perfect into wickedness and evil. This claim is very significant
and relevant to the snake. For instance, the woman in the garden blamed her sin on the serpent
for manipulating and deceiving her, while the man blamed the woman who gave the fruit unto
him (Gen. 3:13). Both the man and the woman were trying to find a scapegoat but God was the
ultimate judge and he faulted the snake and then man then the woman, then their descendants
which was all of humanity. Fast-forwarding to the south serpents represent pests and therefore,

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are killed for sport. The significance of the snake being blamed in the Garden and the snakes
being a burden to southern culture is the irony. First the snake was deception but in the southern
culture snakes are a number of things like: fashion, art, prey, or bounties. The world fell into
wickedness after mankind rebelled against God and following humanity into different cultures
there seems to be link between this particular snake and sin.
In Ancient Egypt, Pharaoh wore a crown that was adorned with blue and white fabric
which was plated with gold and a golden serpent was mounted in the middle. Pharaohs
headdress was by no coincidence a snake. The shape of the headdress was to mimic the hood of
the cobra and Pharaohs beard was to mimic the under belly of the snake which was highly
significant since snakes crawl on their bellys. Likewise in the American south there is
Snakes represent divinity, serpents have been used countless times in the Bible to make a
divine point. For illustration, the snake on Pharaohs crown represented the divinity of pharaoh.
Understanding the culture of ancient Egypt, Pharaoh, to the people of Egypt and to himself was
more than just a king. He was a god-king. Similarly, in the American south there are many who
believe themselves to be god as the Bible belt thunder is coming to an end.
The symbol of the

serpent was carried through the

generations and through

different cultures but all ended

up meaning the same thing.

It is no coincidence that, dare I

say, the same snake seems

to have slithered through

completely different

cultures at completely different

timelines and cause the

same result which was to trick

mighty kings like Pharaoh

Figure 1 Pharaoh's burial headdress that

mimicked the hood of a King Cobra.
Pharaoh was divine in the eyes of all. He
was believed to be the son of the highest
sun god (Tut).

into believing that they were

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gods. Just as the snake deceived the woman and man into believing that they too would be
like gods, knowing good and evil if they would bow down to his manipulative wishes and
eat the forbidden fruit (Gen. 3:5). The repercussions of mankind bowing to their serpent gods has
always been destruction of a civilization or of the world as they knew it. Adam and Eve were
banned from the garden and were cursed to work and pain for the rest of their lives, Egypt
suffered plagues and ultimately were swept into the depths of the sea during battle. The
American south is renowned for their religious endurance but the destruction of their religious
world in coming to an end very soon.
Snake symbolism was actually used by God Almighty. For example, in the Exodus of
the Israelites from Egypt, God gave Moses a serpent staff. The first thing that Moses did when he
saw the snake was to flee, so when Moses went before Pharaoh, the arrogant god-king, who had
a cobra on the forefront of his high headdress and demanded that Pharaoh let Gods people go.
However, Moses needed a sign that would impress Pharaoh. So after Pharaoh declined, Moses
showed the Egyptians the first sign from God which was Moses staff turning into a serpent. This
wonder baffled the Egyptians but Pharaohs magicians copied the sign with enchantments (Ex.
7:22). The snake in southern culture, instead of being transformed into a staff, southerners
transform the snake into industry. Now, Gods first sign to Pharaoh was a snake because Pharaoh
was believed to be this ultimate god-like ruler but God wanted to show Pharaoh that only He was
the ultimate ruler of the universe so He allowed Moses to use a snake which was the symbol of a
god to the Egyptians. The staff turning into a serpent was used to outshine Pharaoh and all of his
majesty. In southern culture the snake is symbolized as greed which also has transformed into
wealth.

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The snake is a symbol. It is so much of a symbol that even God himself used it to show
off His power. In fact another time in the Bible God used the snake for symbolism. Back to the
Garden of Eden, after the fall of mankind in the garden, God cursed the snake by putting
enmity between you and the woman. Even more symbolism here regarding the birth of Jesus
through Mary, the woman, her seed will bruise your head talking about how Jesus would
ultimately defeat Satan in taking back the salvation of humanity. Another time in the Bible in the
Book of Numbers Chapter 21, one can read about the Bronze Snake that the Israelites had to
build to look upon and be cured of the snake bites that they faced after snakes got into their
camps. Thrice God used a serpent to get a point across. God cursed the serpent to crawl on his
belly and to eat dust for the rest of eternity. The same snake has slithered through humanity in its
creepy S pattern with each curve touching the remnants of completely different cultures at
completely different times and destroying whoever it bites in very similar ways.
People are afraid of snakes, as research suggest that, such fear has been shaped by
evolution even if a snake is non-poisonous most people are still afraid of snakes. Our ancestors
had to protect themselves from a world dominated by reptiles so the fear of snakes was inbred in
our ancestors (Roach).
Now, the South has strong ties to Christianity which is probably why southerners do not
sympathize too much with the killings of snakes. Florida especially has an overpopulation of
snakes in the Everglades. Snakes have become part of southern culture as Universities have
venomous snakes as their mascots and bounties being put on snakes in the Everglades, Florida.
When Floridians kill snakes and serpents, are they killing away the symbolism? Or are
they killing the snake in hopes of obtaining the symbolic prejudices discussed such as wealth,
respect, or power which all bring fame that is a god-like quality. For example, a snake bounty

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hunter kills snakes in order to get paid. That dead snake will be put to use by some leather
company which will then be sold to some designer who pays big bucks for exotic leather in
hopes of selling his or her design to the wealthy. Snake skin clothes are ever so ironic and very
significant. Back in the garden when man wore no clothes and was deceived by a snake are
generations later in the United States south people are indeed clothing themselves in snake skin
as a sign of wealth. Wealth, being one of the symbols of the snake always comes with power
which is another symbol of the snake. The wealthy wear snake skin because the snake is seen in
southern culture as rare, exotic and beautiful but the fact that there is an overpopulation of
snakes, entails that snakes are not rare. Yet, people still enjoy wearing snake skin because snakes
definitely represent power and beastliness. When one kills a snake he or she has just
overpowered the wild beast that is feared amongst most of the population. This is the same
reason why the ancient people of Egypt used to worship Pharaoh. For people to wear the snake
skin is not just because it is considered rare, exotic leather but because it symbolizes wealth,
superiority, and power. This is indeed the same snake psychology that has always existed in
humanity and why Pharaoh believed himself to be a god.
For example, the wealthy and successful fashion designer company, Versace, has a logo
with a Medusa head on it. The

Medusa was a Greek goddess

that could seduce men and when

they looked her in the eyes they

would turn to stone. Seductively

is also a characteristic of the

snake. Medusa had hair that was

composed of serpents this is

significant because the serpent

seduced the woman in the garden

and tempted her with the

Figure 2 Versace Medusa. Medusa

could seduce men even though she
was not that attractive (notice the
deception/trickery).

forbidden fruit. The Medusa

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would seduce men and tempt them with sex. Men lusted after Medusa as the woman in the
garden lusted after the fruit. Similarly, greed and lust in the south today are often characterized
wrong doing. Desire was Medusa's weapon so Versace uses the same approach. Versace makes
appealing things that people want to buy to the point of spending money they do not have. Lust
and desire are sins associated with the serpent which are only a few reasons why snakes are worn
as clothing in some parts of the south because it does represent status or class which makes
others feel inferior.
Another example of snake symbolism are the two serpents on the Pharmaceutical
industry. The caduceus is a rod with wings and two serpents wrapped around it. Big Pharma
makes billions of dollars off of

sick people by exploitation. Big

Pharma capitalizes off of the

welfare of sick people (Big Pharma).

In many places like the

American south, food plays an

important role in culture;

however, food is like medicine to the

body so if the food is not

detrimental to the body which

Figure 3 The caduceus

(Caduceus). The common
pharmaceutical symbol.

nutritious then it could be

makes the Pharmaceutical Industry

more money a year. This relates to the wealth symbols of the snake and the power symbolism
because the snake in history has been known to take advantage and exploit the ignorance of
people. For example, in the south people suffer from sicknesses like obesity, diabetes, or high
blood pressure and sometimes all three. People like this depend on Big Pharma for medication.
These medications are often taken by people who know nothing about how to cure their own
diseases or how they got the disease in the first place. These people are ignorant on how to care
for their bodies. So instead of exploiting health regimes and teaching people how to eat healthy
in order to prevent chronic diseases Big Pharma depends on the ignorance of usually the very

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poor to fund their capitalist companies. Many of the organizations/companies today are
representing snakes and are acting in such a way that is very sneakily deceptive.
Sin, wealth, desire, deceit, respect, seduction, power, lust, and divinity are symbols that
characterize the snake. In ancient societies and in the modern societies one can see that wherever
the snake is represented those symbols are manifested. From the beginning of time the serpent
existed as a deceitful, seductive creature then it slithered to Egyptian culture to represent divinity
and power. One can see that the snake was used as a symbol multiple times in the Bible by God
to make a divine point. Next the serpent slithered to modern southern culture to represent desire
and lust where luxury brands market their products to society in order to evoke desire and lust
for fancy clothes or materials. Finally, the snake has slithered to the south in excess which the
snake has come to represent wealth and social status.
When American southerners wear rare, exotic snake skin leather it is not particularly rare
as there is an overpopulation of snakes in the south but rather it is to make a point of social class
or rank. With the mindless killings of snakes in Floridas south people are getting wealthy and
companies are obtaining wealth by making money off of wealthy consumers who desire to be
respected. Yet those wealthy consumers who clothe themselves in snake skin is very ironic as it
is the inverse of what happened in the garden. Instead of being naked and being overtaken by the
manipulations of the serpent, the wealthy are clothing themselves in serpent skin while making
money off of killing snakes. As the serpent is flexible, the trickery of the serpent can come in
many different shapes and those who bow to their serpent gods will witness the destruction of
their world as they know it.

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Works Cited
"1 John 5:19." Bible Gateway. Public Domain, n.d. Book. 22 Oct. 2014
"Bible Gateway Passage: Genesis 1 - King James Version." Bible Gateway. Public Domain,
n.d. Book. 22 Oct. 2014.
"Big Pharma Pockets $711 Billion in Profits by Price-Gouging Taxpayers and Seniors |
Health Care for America Now." Health Care for America Now. N.p., 08 Apr. 2013. Article. 02
Nov. 2014.
"Deception." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.
"Fear." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2014.

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Roach, John. "Fear of Snakes, Spiders Rooted in Evolution, Study Finds."National
Geographic News. National Geographic, 04 Oct. 2001. Article. 30 Oct. 2014.
"Shark Attack Statistics." Oceana. N.p., n.d. Article. 21 Oct. 2014.
"Shark Week 2014 : Discovery Channel." Discovery Channel. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2014.
"Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of Pharaohs Review (Melbourne Australia 2011) Www.impulsegamer.com -." Www.impulsegamer.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.