Final Thoughts on The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood has many powerful messages. One of the main themes presented in the story is that governments use women’s bodies to make political decisions. Because of Gilead’s declining birth rate, the government makes the decision to strip away all of women’s power and use them solely as reproductive beings to raise the birth rate. This theme relates to current day society as well. Like I mentioned in my third blog post, this novel exaggerates issues that exist in the today’s world. These connections between the two societies force readers to think about the policies and societal norms that benefit us and those that harm us. Today, the government makes political decisions about women’s bodies including laws about health care’s birth control coverage as well as rights about whether or not a woman can make the decision to get an abortion. Another theme that I saw emerge is the idea that abusive power trickles down in society. Similar to Hitler’s rule, in The Handmaid’s Tale, the people with the most power are not the only ones acting abusively. Complacency is a major issue; the Handmaids do not stand up for themselves or attempt to retaliate. Even worse, the women with a little bit of power, such as the Commander’s wife Serena, do not stand up to help the abused women. Serena became a part of the tyrannical social structure and abuses the women who have a low societal rank. This shows that when a government abuses its people, the abuse has a domino effect, changing the morals of many involved parties. This theme became evident to me later in the book. When I started reading, I was mainly upset at the people with the most power, but then I began to realize that there are many people to blame.

Through my reading, I tried to use the close reading techniques described by Nabokov, Prose, and Foster. Nabokov teaches us that it is important to view the world of the story as its own world, separate from the world in which we live. I used this technique to immerse myself in the story. Later, I analyzed similarities between our society and the story’s society, but while I read, I remained present in the text. I also used Foster’s strategy of not reading with my own eyes, but from the eyes of the characters within the context of their society. I tried to refrain from vilifying characters such as Serena, who from my own perspective, seems like a horrible woman. However, from the context of her society, her actions are expected. When one of the Handmaid’s has a baby, which Serena takes, she “looks down at the baby as if it’s a bouquet of flowers: something she’s won, a tribute”(126). This seems like a distorted reaction from my perspective, but in Gilead, this attitude towards birth is typical. I’ve also applied Prose’s lesson of paying attention to the language and analyzing the text word-by-word to my reading of The Handmaid’s Tale. For example, at the story’s end, as the government takes Offred away in a van, Atwood writes, “The two of them… take me by the elbow to help me in. Whether this is my end or a new beginning I have no way of knowing: I have given myself over into the hands of strangers, because it can’t be helped”(295). Paying close attention to language, I notice the use of the word “help” in opposing ways. She uses “help” in a positive context as they aid her when entering the van. She also uses it in a negative context because she has no control over the situation. I think that these differing uses of the word show Offred’s internal conflict and uncertainty as she enters a new chapter of her life.

I highly recommend this book to any teen or adult reader, male or female. I think that this is an important book for women to read because it reminds us that we need to stand up for ourselves and maintain control over our bodies. It sends a message that women should be aware of the injustice surrounding our sexual political rights, but also the unspoken laws surrounding sex, such as the double standard that I mentioned in my third blog post. I also think that this is an important book for men to read because it would open their eyes to the injustice that women often face in society and might remind them to view women as equals and treat them and their bodies with respect. This is a book that prompts serious thought about the role of government and gender in everyday life. It is also beautifully-written with poetic language and a writing style unlike any story I’ve read before. Atwood uses flashbacks throughout the story to tie Ofred’s past to the woman she has become in the present. Not only is the novel well-written stylistically speaking, but it also has an intense plot that keeps readers on their toes. I thoroughly enjoyed it and plan on reading more books by Atwood in the future. I’m thinking of reading Cat’s Eye next!

Independent Reading Blog: Post #3

As I continue reading The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, I have started looking at issues presented in the text and how those issues relate to issues that our current society faces. The main issues addressed in this novel relate to gender roles, religion, and politics. Although the novel takes issues to the extreme, sadly, I haven’t found it too difficult to imagine our current society transforming into the horrific dystopia which Atwood creates. One issue that our current society faces is the stigma surrounding rape. Some individuals, including high-powered politicians, argue that rape is somehow the victim’s fault. The Handmaid’s Tale exaggerates this mindset. Aunt Helena, a woman who oversee the Handmaids, chastises a woman for being raped. She leads the Handmaids in a chant: “But whose fault was it? Aunt Helena says… Her fault, her fault, her fault, we chant in unison. Who led them on? Aunt Helena beams, pleased with us. She did. She did. She did”(72). This scene depicts a society that brainwashes women through humiliation and skewed values, not too far off from today’s rape stigma. The novel also showcases other issues relating to gender and sex including a commentary on the “double-standard” that society emphasizes today. Today, men have more sexual freedom than women. If a woman has sex with many men, others will likely label her as a “slut.” However, if a man has sex with many women, others will likely applaud him. In the novel, society expects women to remain chaste; men, on the other hand, are allowed much freedom. The Commander defends this by saying, “Nature demands variety, for men. It stands to reason, it’s part of the procreational strategy. It’s Nature’s plan”(237). The society in the novel uses this flawed logic to defend men’s sexual freedom.

Another issue presented in the novel is that governments and individuals often use religion to defend unjust acts. During a ceremony, the Commander says, “But I suffer not a woman to teach, not to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve”(221). This Commander and this dystopian society as a whole uses religion frequently as their reasoning for male supremacy. Although in the novel, this sort of “evidence” appears ridiculous, people use often religion to justify injustice in today’s society. I picked up a brochure at a Wisconsin county fair on homosexuality, printed from the Catholic church. The brochure says, “The rejection of homosexual behavior that is found in the Old Testament is well known”(Catholic Answers). The brochure then creates an argument that gay people are sinners, almost entirely based upon the words of the Bible. This type of argument against gay rights and the argument presented in the novel share similarities.

Blog Post #2: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

While reading the Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, I have paid close attention to the emotions and actions of Offred, the protagonist, and the ways in which Atwood develops Offred’s identity. To refresh, Offred is a “Handmaid,” whose duty is to make babies for the Commander and his wife, to whom she has been assigned. The main element of Offred’s identity that I have observed is her desire to have ownership over something. Everything that was once her’s has been stripped from her: her husband, her child, her home, her material possessions. Because she is now living as a person with little control or power in her life, she lacks a sense of who she is and what belongs to her. As the Commander approaches her room she says, “Was he invading? Was he in my room? I called it mine”(49). Here, Offred reveals her conflicted view on ownership. She says her room belongs to her, but inside, she doesn’t feel like it’s hers. She feels more like a temporary guest, or a tenant who could be evicted at a moment’s notice. Because nothing in the household of the Commander is truly hers, as she lies in bed at night she thinks, “I want to steal something”(97). She then creeps out of her room and thinks, “What I would like to steal is a knife, from the kitchen, but I’m not ready for that”(97). Because Offred can’t cling to her own belongings and loved ones from the past, she has the urge to steal something so that she can gain control over her life.

Offred doesn’t even feel in control of her own body: “I used to think of my body as an instrument, of pleasure, or a means of transportation, or an implement for the accomplishment of my will… now the flesh arranges itself differently. I’m a cloud”(73). A healthy person has a connected mind and body, but Offred does not feel connected with her body. I find it very interesting that she compares herself to a “cloud.” It reminds me of the poem we read in class, “I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud” by William Wordsworth; in class we talked about how Wordsworth’s choice to compare himself to a cloud is fitting because a cloud is neither on the ground nor in space, but rather floating in between. Offred, too, feels a disconnect between herself and the world around her.

In addition to a desire for ownership, I’ve also noticed Offred’s desire for interpersonal connections. She highly valued her relationship with her husband Luke, and now that he is gone, she can’t stop thinking about him. She says, “I want Luke here so badly. I want to be held and told my name. I want to be valued, in ways that I am not; I want to be more than valuable”(97). Offred feels lost and lonely without her husband, and in losing him, has lost her sense of self-worth. Similarly, she desires friendship. She says, “It’s hard to imagine now, having a friend”(25). One of the only significant and meaningful group dynamics that remains for Offred is the group of Handmaids who join together and help each other give birth. When they are a part of a birthing ceremony, they share pain, even if they aren’t the one physically giving birth. “Each of us holds in our lap a phantom, a ghost baby… You wanted a woman’s culture. Well, now there is one”(127). The community aspect of these birthing ceremonies is at least some sort of connection for Offred to latch onto, but it’s not a healthy, interpersonal connection which she desires.

Blog Post #1: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

I am reading The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, a novel depicting a future dystopia set in the Republic of Gilead, in which women of a certain class are solely valued if they have working ovaries. The protagonist, Offred, is a Handmaid in this dystopia, whose job is to become pregnant for the Commander and his wife, to whom she has been assigned. Women in this society used to live like women in our society today; Offred clearly remembers the past with her husband Luke and her daughter. Now, however, the government has taken her family from her, and she is forced into the cruel customs of her new, restricted life. One aspect of the novel that I find really interesting is the author’s style. Attwood tells the story through Offred’s eyes in the present moment, but she also seamlessly integrates Offred’s memories of the past into the novel. She does so without introducing the flashback; she goes directly into it. For example, Offred starts out in a conversation: “Don’t think it’s easy for me either, said Aunt Lydia,” and then without any introduction she begins depicting a memory: “Moira, breezing into my room, dropping her denim jacket on the floor. Got any cigs, she said”(56). This style helps blur together Offred’s longing for the past with her present reality, showing the reader that Offred’s life is confusing and muddled. I think this also helps to indicate that Offred is unclear about her identity: is she still the woman she used to be?

Another interesting stylistic choice is that Atwood writes as if the thoughts are pouring directly from Offred’s head to the page, making Offred’s thoughts and actions develop organically. Her sentence structure and punctuation use also reflect the nature of Offred’s thoughts. As she describes the Commander approaching her room, she says, “The hall is dusky, this is a man, his back to me; he’s looking into the room, dark against its light… He hears me coming, turns, hesitates, walks forward. Towards me”(49). This sentence is not completely grammatically correct, but its structure mirrors Offred’s emotions in this moment. Here, she writes in a choppy manner, reflecting the fear that Offred feels. Perhaps she can’t articulate her thoughts in a streamlined way because of the fear that overtakes her in this moment. Atwood writes in a choppy style throughout most of the novel, yet her writing still remains poetic with the use of vivid imagery and other poetic devices such as similes. Here, Offred describes seeing herself in the mirror: “I can see it as I go down the stairs, round, convex, a pier glass, like the eye of a fish, and myself in it like a distorted shadow, a parody of something, some fairy-tale figure in a red cloak”(9). Atwood uses this beautifully descriptive writing style throughout the novel, drawing readers in and letting them create a clear picture in their head. The picturesque language in combination with the choppy sentence structure and organic sentence development creates an emotionally-charged, captivating writing style.