Mary, Eve and Lilith in King Lear, Othello and MacbethFeminist criticism often explores the symbolic or archetypal use of the biblical figures of Mary and Eve in criticism literary. One figure that seems appropriate to such discussions, but seems thus far overlooked, is the figure of Lilith. Indeed, in the case of Shakespearean criticism, Lilith sometimes seems an appropriate model for characters such as Goneril, Regan, Lady Macbeth and so on. Accordingly, it is my intention to explore this lost archetype and connect it to three of Shakespeare's tragedies: King Lear, Othello and Macbeth. For starters, Lilith is an enigma in many circles, with several tales and legends attributed to her. In some aspects of Jewish folklore, Lilith is believed to be the original wife of Adam who was exiled from Eden and replaced with the better known Eve because she refused to submit to Adam's male authority (Grolier "Lilith"). According to one version, she slept with Adam after the Fall and gave birth to evil spirits and presumably also the devil and gave birth to jinn (Arabic demons of legend, sometimes attributed as genies). Later in legend, she was identified as a succubus who caused "nocturnal emissions [associated with 'wet dreams in men'] and the birth of witches and demons called lilim." Spells were created to protect her from his influence and she was believed to have stolen and killed children (Grolier "Lilith"). It is mentioned in the Talmud in several places. These references include: Rabbi Jerimia ben Eleazar further stated: "In those years, after his expulsion from the Garden of Eden, in which Adam..., was under the ban, he fathered male and female ghosts and demons... half of the sheet ... Rev. ed. Baltimore: Penguin, 1021-1057. Available address: http://lark.cc. ukans.edu/~rrosen/lilith/lilit.html [Link no longer active]"The Story of Lilith." -B. Ed. Michael Abrahams. Available address: http://www.ed .ac.uk/~p92002/lilith.html no longer active]Vanita, Ruth. "'Proper' Men and 'Fallen' Women: Wives' Lack of Protection in 'Othello.'" Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 Spring 1994: 341-356 InfoTrac EF Extended Academic ASAP 1993 -April 1996. CD-ROM Access to Information 1996. Zender, Karl F. "The Humiliation of Iago." Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900, Spring 1994: 323 -339. InfoTrac EF Extended Academic ASAP 1993-April 1996. CD-ROM. Access to information. April 1996.