In the popular television series ‘Killing Eve’, Eve Polastri is the main character and MI5 spy agent whose work is not filled with as much excitement as she would have expected. In the initial episodes of the series, Eve spends most of her time at her desk and does not get the chance to engage in exciting missions as she would want. Nonetheless, a new assassin takes her out of her desk into the spying field as she would want. Villanelle, the assassin, engages in a series of murders that intrigue Eve. She also develops a sexual attraction towards Eve and communicates and sends her gifts in a manner to suggest her interest. Eve, who is married to Niko Polastri, gradually develops sexual feelings and desires towards Villanelle. Even when she does not pursue her desires towards Villanelle, the feelings she develops make her seek sexual gratification from her co-worker Hugo and her husband. Eve’s character holds sexual desires towards the female assassin Villanelle even when she is married to a man; she fulfills these desires by seeking sexual gratification from her co-worker and her husband. To a great extent, Eve does not represent a sexually healthy adult as she does not admit her sexual orientation, engages in exploitative and risky sexual activity but does show respect for other people’s sexual orientation.
SIECUS Analysis
In Human Development
Eve demonstrates an individual who may not be sexually healthy when considering the human development aspects. A sexually healthy adult is one who appreciates aspects of his or her body and affirms personal sexual orientation and that of others (Braeken & Cardinal, 2008). Eve exhibits behavior that does not fulfill these underpinnings of human development. The audience can identify that she is somewhat withdrawn from how she looks and she does not exert much effort into it. She buys and dresses in clothes that are too big for her body which may indicate that she has an aspect of her physicality that she wants to hide. It is why when she loses her back while in the hunt for Villanelle, she receives it days later with new clothes that are more fitting and accentuate her physical features. Eve is also exhibiting a certain level of sexual denial. Throughout the film, she develops sexual desire and arousal towards Villanelle. One would conclude that she develops a certain romantic attraction towards the Villain she is chasing. By the end of the series, Eve does not act on these desires as Villanelle’s attempts to leave with Eve are not fruitful. Eve does not fulfill the sexual desires she develops by engaging with the object of these desires who is Villanelle. She, however, uses her husband Niko and co-worker Hugo to address them. This is demonstrative of the unhealthy sexual adult she exhibits.
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In relationships
During the initial episodes of the series, Eve seems to be happily married to her husband Niko. They both show their affection towards one another in how they talk to one another, the concern they have for each other’s well-being, and through numerous romantic gestures. Their relationship is founded on love and the care they have for one another. Nonetheless, her interaction with Villanelle gradually taints this relationship. For an individual to be considered a sexually healthy adult, he or she would need to express love and intimacy appropriately and ensure that he or she does not develop manipulative and exploitative relationships (SIECUS, 2005). Eve’s actions do not show a sexually healthy individual.
One can identify how she gradually loses touch with her husband Niko. It could be that she is extremely busy at work but even when she gets time with him, she is not as connected intimately to him as she was before. Therefore her demonstration of love and intimacy for Niko gradually deteriorates as she continues to engage with Villanelle. She also chooses to abandon her husband and chooses to hunt for Villanelle. Her choice is indicative of the limited skills she has towards enhancing personal relationships. Further, Eve eventually becomes exploitative of the people around her while she tries to fulfill the sexual desires fueled by Villanelle. Her sexual encounter with Hugo shows how she exploits him to fulfill these desires.
In personal skills
A sexually healthy adult would identify and abide by personal values and would ensure to engage in effective decision making (SIECUS, 2005). As an MI5 spy agent Eve understands the importance of effective decision making. She knows that for her job to the efficient, she needs to make sound decisions. Nonetheless, her interaction with Villanelle clouds her judgment. She gradually loses the ability to make sound decisions the more she interacts with the assassin. Her decisions are mainly clouded by the sexual feelings she has developed towards Villanelle and this makes it somewhat difficult for her to think straight. One instance that her judgment is clouded and her decision making is ineffective, is when she finds Villanelle fighting with someone sent to kill her. Even though the killer is subdued by Villanelle, Eve resorts to killing him by hacking him to death with an axe. Villanelle convinces Eve that she is a killer like her and the desire to kill the man is inside her. This pushes her to kill the assailant even when it was not necessary. It is clear that she engages in the crime after being pushed by Villanelle and does not implement effective decision making.
In sexual behavior
Eve does not demonstrate health in her sexual behavior. The sexual behavior criterion requires that one is free to enjoy and express their sexuality (SIECUS, 2005). Throughout the series, one cannot tell where Eve’s feelings are; she is sexually aroused by Villanelle but also engages sexually with her husband and her workmate. Even when she experiences arousal from Villanelle, she does not react to these feelings with the source of her arousal but turns them to her workmate. To a great extent, it seems like she is afraid to admit the feelings she has towards Villanelle. This may be because they are both women and Eve may not view it as appropriate. At the end of the series, Villanelle offers Eve the chance to escape with her to a place where they would both live happily with no one disturbing them. It seems like both women are aware of how they feel about one another. Nonetheless, Eve turns down this offer and is ready to die than move away with Villanelle. Throughout the film, one can recognize the outright sexual connection between the two women. Villanelle seems to be acting on them to a certain extent but Eve continually pushes them down.
In sexual health
Eve’s character demonstrates an individual who is not cautious in her sexual encounters. A sexually healthy person would ensure to avoid contracting or transmitting any sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) (SIECUS, 2005). This would be demonstrated in how the individual takes caution before engaging sexually with someone they have not been intimate with before. Nonetheless, Eve is somewhat careless in how she engages at an intimate level. She has sex with her workmate Hugo and from the scene; they both do not use any protection. Since the encounter is impromptu, one would conclude that they did not test for STDs before getting intimate. She does not show concern for the possibility of getting these infections as she does not use protection nor does she know the sexual health of her partner Hugo. These two have never been intimate before and their current interaction poses the risk for sexually transmitted diseases for both of them. After the encounter, it is difficult for one to tell whether Eve uses contraception to avoid unintended pregnancy. Nonetheless, this conclusion would be countered by the fact that she is forty and already in menopause. It is why the film depicts her as having no children even when she is married.
In society and culture
Eve demonstrates respect for the sexual orientation of other individuals. Throughout her encounter with Villanelle, she discovers that the assassin does not necessarily recognize the traditional heterosexuality. Villanelle likes and is fascinated by other women. It is why while she was in prison, she was in a relationship with another woman and when she starts hunting Eve down she gradually develops feelings for her. Eve becomes aware of this and does not let it cloud her judgment nor does it play into her overall perception of Villanelle. It could be why she eventually develops somewhat similar feelings towards Villanelle.
Eve Polastri from the television series “Killing Eve” demonstrates aspects of the SIECUS guidelines for sexual health. To some extent, she is not appreciative of her body and does not affirm her sexual orientation. She does not express love and intimacy appropriately and engages in exploitative relationships. She does not demonstrate effective decision making in some instances of the film and demonstrates somewhat risky sexual behavior. Even when she demonstrates respect for other people’s sexual orientation, she is afraid to act on her preferred sexuality.
References
Braeken, D., & Cardinal, M. (2008). Comprehensive sexuality education as a means of promoting sexual health. International Journal of Sexual Health , 20 (1-2), 50-62.
SIECUS (2005). Guidelines for Comprehensive Sexuality Education: Kindergarten -12th Grade, 3rd Ed. New York, NY: SIECUS.
