Wow, Suzanne, thank you, that was amazing!
I am absolutely floored by those questions, in the best way possible. Those are AWESOME questions, which I can't begin to answer at the present moment. I will, however, say the few things that come straight to mind.
I think Adam's name is 100% intentional. He does have forbidden knowledge, he does have power. He also remakes the universe, as subtly as it may be, but he is the first "man" in this new world, the only one with knowledge of what happened and how to do it and how to twist that new world as he pleases, for good or bad. You're right, Suzanne, we don't know whether or not he's going to continue to use his persuasive powers, or how long his innocence will last, as suggested by the wording of his ending that he knows his escape under the fence to follow Dog will be his last one as just a normal boy, and so his future is left ambiguous and open, which makes it that much more fascinating.
As for the "Antichrist," Suzanne, again, this is a fabulous question! What does it mean to be an Antichrist? Why should it be looked at as something bad? If we break the word down just from a linguistic standpoint, anti Christ would just mean "against Christ," or more leniently, "opposite of Christ." If we look at the latter definition, what would it mean to be the opposite of Christ? To be Christ, it would mean to be a chosen human by a divine being meant to serve a purpose and be a message to other humans, fulfilling specific expectations and actions with no choice in the matter, no free will. The Antichrist, on the other hand, will be chosen by a divine being* to serve a purpose, but to be able to choose what he does with his time on Earth. As we see in Adam, he HAS free will, and can choose what to do with his divine power, with his forbidden knowledge, even if that is to resurrect/create the city of Atlantis, create tunneling Tibetan monks, and aliens who stop by to tell you to have a nice day. He will have followers, yes, but the morality of those followers is up in the air, and may even be a mixed crowd depending on what the Antichrist chooses to persuade his followers to do.
So where does that lead us?
Does society, in general, frown upon the idea of choice, of being able to think for oneself without following any dogma, on "free thinkers?" That answer will vary depending on who you are, but I would argue that the answer is "Yes." Does society look down on someone with power who thinks for themselves and doesn't cater to "party lines" or pander to the group that will give him/her the most amount of followers? Again, I would argue that the answer is "Yes." If this is what defines an "Antichrist," and this is what society frowns upon/is afraid of, then of course the Antichrist is seen in a negative light. How dare you question these beliefs I've been taught that have been brought down from generations of believers who never once questioned what the purpose of the beliefs were or what they meant and why they have them? How dare you tell me to think for myself! What are you up to?
It really makes you think. It makes me think, anyway.
That's as far as I can go in my thinking right now, but these are wonderfully thought provoking questions. Thank you again, Suzanne, for the delicious brain candy! I hope others will jump into this discussion, as well.
*Let's not say it has to be a particular divine being, or if you must, we can say that the Antichrist is also sent by God, if not because it says so in Revelation, then because God let Satan stay in Hell after the Fall and did not destroy him, thereby allowing Satan to create an Antichrist. Either way, there is an Antichrist.