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Compare And Contrast American War And The Handmaid's Tale

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While both Omar El Akkad's "American War" and Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale" portray dystopian societies, the characters' responses to their oppressive environments reveal distinct coping mechanisms and psychological impacts, reflecting the authors' nuanced explorations of power, resistance, and survival. In “American War” we see various characters show struggles of a dystopian life after a societal collapse, while “Handmaid’s Tale” focuses on the resilience and struggles of characters in a dystopian society where there is one ruler and women are treated as objects only good for babies and sexual acts. In "American War," Sarat Chestnut clearly displays resilience and defiance in the face of a societal collapse, while Offred in “Handmaid’s …show more content…

While Serena Joy in “Handmaid's Tale” shows what conforming to society’s expectations can do to someone and the internal violence it causes. Benjamin Chestnut, Sarat's brother in "American War," overflows with the sorrow and moral uncertainty of warfare in a dystopian version of what America could be. As a soldier in the Southern troops, Benjamin confronts the brutal realities of war and the ethical compromises necessary for survival. Reflecting on his experiences, Benjamin dwells on the nature of violence and what the world has come to. As stated in Benjamin the book, "It's war, they say, everything's permitted" (El Akkad 214). Benjamin's journey from idealism to the disruption of society undermines the dehumanizing effects of war and the moral complexities of violence in a society taken over by conflict. Similarly, Serena Joy, a prominent figure in "The Handmaid's Tale," embodies the consequences of complicity and betrayal in Gilead's patriarchal regime. Once a firm advocate for traditional gender roles, Serena Joy becomes disconnected with the oppressive society she helped create. In one scene, Offred reflects on Serena's transformation in disbelief, "She doesn't make speeches anymore. She has become speechless. She stays in her home, but it doesn't seem to agree with her" (Atwood 132). Serena's drastic change and decline from an influential figure in …show more content…

Albert Gaines, a former prisoner and mentor to Sarat in "The American War," embodies the struggle for justice and redemption in a world torn apart by civil strife. Despite facing discrimination and persecution as a Black man in a divided America, Albert remains committed to fighting for a better future. Reflecting on his motivations, Albert declares, "Somebody's got to do it. Somebody's got to tell the truth" (El Akkad 274). Albert's commitment to truth and justice reflects his refusal to be silenced by the injustices of his dystopian society, embodying the resilience of the human spirit in the face of oppression. In contrast, Aunt Lydia, a key figure in "The Handmaid's Tale," represents the internalization of oppression and the betrayal of feminist ideas for personal gain. As a member of the Aunts, Lydia plays a central role in indoctrinating and controlling the Handmaids of Gilead. Despite her complicity in the subjugation of women, Lydia is overwhelmed with feelings of guilt and self-justification. Reflecting on her role in shaping Gilead's society, Lydia rationalizes her actions by saying, "We only wanted to do good. We only wanted to help" (Atwood 309). Lydia's justification of her role in Gilead's oppressive regime highlights the moral compromises individuals make in pursuit of power

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Throughout the novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, the protagonist Offred expresses how exposed beliefs and practices by the Gilead government affect the lives of Handmaids, relaying

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In the novel The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, the protagonist, Offred, expresses her wish that her “story [is] different,” that it is “happier,” or at least “more active, less hesitant, less distracted” than it is ultimately portrayed (267). However, as her story is told, these characteristics are evident in the way she talks and acts, especially around those with authority. Hesitant to express her true thoughts and feelings, and distracted by memories from her previous life, Offred attempts to piece together her role in the society that has taken her freedom. The result is a compilation of moments, of memories, both from her present, her past, and even speculation about her future.

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Discuss the importance of religion as a theme to the events, the characters and their actions in chapter 15. Religion is a key theme throughout Margaret Atwood’s novel, ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, and features prominently in chapter 15. Other themes include those of corruption, desperation, and oppression, which are conveyed via the actions of key characters such as Moira and Serena Joy. Set in a religious society, the range of characters are each affected differently by the oppressive nature of the ruling religion. Chapter 15 focusses on how the ideology of Christianity is applied in Gilead, a theocracy, showing how the ceremony is ‘reluctantly’ adhered to by the Commander, someone who is supposed to be an example of a devout follower of religion, but is hypocritical in his own corruption and reluctance to comply with his own laws.

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In Gilead, women are subjected to the authority of the state and the dictates of a patriarchal theology, echoing historical efforts to suppress female autonomy and enforce male dominance. In Fiona Tolan's "Monstrous Regimes: The Handmaid's Tale as a Critique of Patriarchy,” Tolan argues that the novel portrays women like Offred as monstrous figures, not inherently due to their actions, but rather as a result of the monstrous regime that seeks to control and diminish them. Through Tolan's lens, "The Handmaid's Tale" serves as a powerful indictment of patriarchal systems, illustrating how they transform women into monstrous figures by denying them agency and autonomy. Atwood's narrative also highlights the cyclical nature of history and the persistence of oppressive systems. Despite the futuristic setting, the atrocities committed against women in Gilead mirror historical realities, illustrating how the subjugation of women is not a relic of the past but a recurring theme in human society.

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Fear is defined as the emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat. The emotion of fear is present in everyone's lives and we all have a variety of fears that are unique to us. However, in the book The Handmaid's Tale by Margret Atwood, the society the book takes place, Gilead, is structured in a way to create a fear into the people who reside there. The way this type of economy is shaped has multiple characteristics that lead it to believe that no change can be brought upon it to overcome any fear that it gives off. This literary text delves us into the setting of the book and begins to instate fear into us, the readers.

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Atwood clearly emphasizes this point through the inclusion of Offred 's inner thoughts; which in turn, help to illuminate to the reader the process of this deterioration. Atwood also shows how the Republic of Gilead uses totalitarianism tactics, which parallel those used in North Korea, in order to remain in control. In The Handmaid’s tale, a dystopian novel, Margaret Atwood uses imagery and allusion throughout the novel to illustrate how the republic of Gilead uses techniques to deteriorate one 's mind in order to maintain their power. Throughout the dystopian country

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In Gilead, women are stripped of their right to control their bodies and are forced to serve as handmaids, whose sole purpose is to bear children for their male commanders. Atwood uses the character of Serena Joy, a former television evangelist who helped to create and implement the laws of Gilead, to illustrate how traditional views on reproductive rights, and control can be used to oppress and manipulate women. Through Serena Joy's interactions with Offred and her internal monologues, Atwood emphasizes the hypocrisy and cruelty of a society that denies women the right to control their bodies and reproductive choices. As Serena Joy reflects, "It all went wrong. We had a plan, we were trying to save the world and now look at us" (Atwood 107).

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What I must present is a made thing, not something born” (Atwood, 58). By conforming to the collective identity of Gilead, Offred is suppressing her individual identity and merely playing a role in society. As Arendt states in her essay, Truth and Politics, the main effort of oppressive regimes is “...directed toward keeping the propaganda image intact, and this image is threatened less by the enemy...than by those inside the group itself who have managed to escape its spell and insist on talking about facts or events that do not fit the image” (Arendt, 14), and this is eradicated ”by the conversion of language and culture into mental barriers...” (Feder, 3-4).

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The award-winning novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, written by Margaret Atwood depicts the malversation of a totalitarian society. Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale is a speculative fiction, reflecting the possibility of modern society's flaws. However, Atwood successfully conveys a sense of hope through the characters', Offred and Moira, acts of rebellion. The Handmaid's Tale make a clear point that society like Gilead will cease to exist. The totalitarian society will be overthrown, expressing that an extremist society will not be able to remain.

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How is identity, gender and freedom reflected in the novel: In "The Handmaid's Tale," the themes of identity, gender, and freedom are interwoven and closely tied together. The novel takes place in a dystopian world where the government of Gilead seeks to control and manipulate all aspects of people's lives, including their identities, gender roles, and freedom. Identity is reflected in the novel through the ways in which the characters are stripped of their names, individual experiences, and self-image, and assigned new identities based on their reproductive function or social status. By removing the protagonist's name and referring to her as Offred, she is undervalued, and her individuality is forcibly removed from her.

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There are two ways people will react to when their freedom is taken away. They will either accept it or rebel against it, which is what a lot of the female characters in Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Handmaid’s Tale accomplished. Shown through Offred’s repetition of certain events, Moira’s tone of being a fighter, and Serena Joy’s desperation, the reader can see that lack of freedom leads to rebellion. Offred, the novel’s narrator, now lives in a world where women are powerless. She has had her freedom taken away, and at times follows the rules, but ends up rebelling in many powerful ways.

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Throughout the novel, Moira’s use of informal language and slang is apparent. This is significant because Moira’s crude vocabulary is dramatically different from how the Handmaids are taught to speak, marking her as a dissenter under the restrictive rule of Gilead. For instance, Moira scoffs that the Red Centre is “a loony bin” in Chapter 13. The use of the colloquial noun ‘loony’ to describe the Red Centre establishes a conversational, almost childish tone of voice. This contrasts from the rather mechanic and automated voice Offred has when she becomes a Handmaid, replying with contrived phrases such as “praise be” to other Handmaids.

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Based on the data I have collected the stage in the cell cycle that took the longest is Interphase. As the phases of the cell cycle continues the time it takes to complete a phase decreases supporting my hypothesis. Although Interphase is the longest phase in the cell cycle, the phase that takes the least amount of time is Anaphase. Interphase is the stage in which the cell is growing up, while in Anaphase is the stage in which the chromatids are splitting into chromosomes. In the stage of Interphase, the single cell has a dot and tangled lines.

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Rebellion in The Handmaid’s Tale Imagine not being able to do what you used to do because some actions are forbidden in this new society. In the Handmaid's Tale, Gilead is a dystopian society where people are limited to certain actions. Throughout the story, Offred’s actions are rebellious because she has broken so many rules. Atwood demonstrates that restricted expression leads to rebellion by showing the Commanders and Offred’s affair developing throughout time and the actions of both characters.

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In the 1980s, United States was experiencing the rise of conservatism. Under the presidency of Ronald Reagan, conservative religious groups were gaining popularity. In response to the social and political landscape, Canadian author Margaret Atwood published a fictional novel The Handmaid’s Tale in 1986; a genre of dystopian novels. The storyline projects an imaginary futuristic world where society lives under oppression and illusion of a utopian society maintained through totalitarian control. Dystopian novels often focus on current social government trends and show an exaggeration of what happens if the trends are taken too far.

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