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.
The first quotation is taken from the first few chapters of Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. The novel does not seem to be set in a specific time period just before and after a post-apocalyptic catastrophe. At the beginning of this quote, Oryx is talking to Jimmy about the life she lived and how her community was as a child. The second quotation is taken from the first couple of chapters in The Handmaid's tale by Margaret Atwood.
Satire is often described as the use of humor, irony, or exaggeration to criticize someone or something. The Handmaid’s Tale was written shortly after the beginning of Ronald Reagan’s presidency. With concerns regarding the possibility of reversing everything that feminists have accomplished, Atwood writes of a story that examines and criticizes what a protestant puritanical society would be like. In The Handmaid’s Tale, women are oppressed due to Gilead’s perverted perception of Christianity and the bible which can be seen when Aunt Lydia twists passages of the bible to conform to their agenda. Atwood shows a contemporary society with repressive views when taken to their logical extremes, in this case, extreme right wing ideology.
In the novel “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood, Gilead -the republic in which Offred resides- is a theocracy-a government in which there is no separation between church and state. Religious terminology and references are incorporated into everyday life; everything from the titles of civilians, to the names of the shops they frequent, to the automobiles they drive. This uses of biblical phraseology to describe all things in their society, provides an ever-constant insinuation that those who reign are acting with “God’s” warrant. However like in most theocracies, words get warped and taken out of context and used as justification for vile deeds and characteristics; especially those of the Old Testament. In the novel, many of the biblical quotes have been misrepresented.
Language is a major themes in both novels “1984” by George Orwell and “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwool. Language are heavily reshape in both novel in order to crave a goal to control individuals. “1984” creates authority over citizens through altering and reducing the English language to its most basic form. To “return” to the root of English, the Party have to eliminate the complexity of the language - synonyms and subtle meaning of words -from the existence of the people minds in the apparent belief that there is no justification from antonyms and ‘shades of meanings’, and only one concept should only subsist . However the true purpose of simplifying language and destroying words is to eliminate concepts that might led to the idealism of rebellion and disobedience; The Party does not want the thoughts of rebellion and disobedience to exist therefore they have to destroy and simplify to a huge extent.
In face of severe situation, people often feel relief when they think of happier, simpler times in order to alleviate the severity. In the fiction novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, written by Margaret Atwood, a theocracy government controls every aspect of life in order to produce the best result of its plans. At the beginning of chapter 12, Offred takes a required, but luxurious bath because she can take off the burdensome wings and veils. While she bathes, Offred remembers her daughter from the past and a time with her family. Atwood compares Offred’s past and present through imagery, tone, similes, and symbolism combined with parallel structure to highlight the vulnerability of women to their surroundings.
What would become of the world, if our current societal flaws, such as sexism, racism, and classism were ingrained and executed at a systematic level? This is exactly what The Handmaid’s Tale set out to explore. The novel, which claims to be speculative fiction, is set in the theocratic Republic of Gilead (formerly the USA), where birth rates are rapidly declining and women have been marginalized by the patriarchal regime, forbidden to read, write or love and valued only if they are able to procreate. They are separated into classes, including Wives, Marthas, Aunts, Unwomen, and Handmaids, distinguishable only by the color of their clothing. The Handmaids are renamed by combining ‘of’ and the name of the Commander that they have been assigned to, stripping them of any individuality.
Symbolism can be defined as the use of symbols that an author uses to suggest more than the literal meaning of the object .Symbolism often allows the reader to understand the text better and connect with the story on a different level. In The Handmaid’s Tale, symbolism can be seen in various parts of the novel. One of the most common type of symbolism that can be identified in the text is through the use of colours. One of the most obvious symbols in the novel is the uniform that every Handmaid is supposed to wear.
Often, we see a society’s cultural values reflected in its citizens. For example, the United States values equality, a standard that is shared in all facets including gender. The opposite is true of Gilead, a fictional society in Emily Bronte’s The Handmaid’s Tale. The novel’s main character, Offred, is subjected to degrading treatment simply because she is a woman. It becomes apparent that this repeated degradation has affected the protagonist’s mind.
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.
In Margaret Atwood’s novel, ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, Moira is depicted as the symbol for resistance to authority and represents hope to the Handmaids. Atwood presents her as a polar opposite to Offred. She is independent, strong-willed, and outspoken. Conversely, the pair can be argued to be doubles in the fact that they both ‘resist’ to the oppressive Republic in Gilead.
Although the novel does not contain many dialogues in the beginning, the author gradually increases the number of dialogues to provide readers with an insight into the character’s emotion, as well as to reveal the events readers did not know about before reading the dialogue. After their first meeting, Scott contacts Rachel and tells her about what happened the night Megan disappeared. Scotts says “...I feel like I can’t tell anyone, because if I did they would look at me like I was guilty,” claiming himself for being “unkind to her” and “a bastard” (125). Reading his words, readers can understand how regretful he is toward his tactless action. Not only that his action caused Megan to be upset and leave him, but it also makes him a primary
cultural constructs of femininity, identity, and the extent of government control. The story explores the affects social and political trends have on society. The Handmaid’s Tale evaluates gender roles and the subjugation of women. Atwood’s use of aphorisms, symbolism, and allusions urges readers to examine the juxtaposition of cruelty and vulnerability in femininity.
Worldwide Scrabble Language is a splendid way of communication that it affects people’s relationships starting from the first step of creating identities to creating cultures; making one feel belonged to or estranged from a place, it is a form of connection and discrimination. Thinking of one’s mind as a liquid, language is the box that shapes the liquid, that it has a great influence on the way one thinks. Due to this, in the dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, one of the first things that is changed by the dictator government that want to restrict and brainwash the society is the language, and through banning words that remind people of their old lives and adding new ones that have religious connotations and also feel people estranged, they gain power and prove their dominance over the community. In the book, The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood conveys the idea that language is used to dehumanize and alienate people through the example of the various usage of language by the government of Gilead. First step of dehumanizing is making people feel detached from their identities, as one would not feel dehumanized when they still have the idea of an ideal “I” in their mind, thus the government forbids the usage of names.
I disagree with the author’s assertion because It would have been fairly egregious to overlook women of color in a televised series about state-sanctioned reproductive control given our nation’s history. Our nation’s history is exactly why all the Handmaids were white. The children the white Master forced on captive women of color were never going to inherit the Master’s wealth position and authority in the eyes of the Master raping women of color slaves was like breeding cattle. The men who serve as the model for the Masters of Gilead are the same racist people who believe that mixing the races is immoral thus, their heirs will be pure born of white womanhood.
