Similarities Between The Handmaid's Tale And 1984

Friendly Fire: Turning Our Own World Dystopian A nation bombing its own citizens makes little sense to the naked eye. Nevertheless, both Russia and the United States planned or carried out variations of this questionable tactic in the 20th and 21st centuries; the tactic, commonly referred to as a false flag operation, proves confusing. However, in the book 1984, George Orwell investigates why the totalitarian state of Oceania harms their own citizens to spark patriotic fervor. Orwell’s 1984, an acclaimed dystopian tale following the life of Winston Smith, represents one of the first modern dystopian books to delve into the tactic, with Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale also exploring its intricacies. George Orwell and Margaret Atwood’s

Just before Hate Week, a ceremony dedicated to increasing patriotism, the proles of Oceania face an alarming uptick in civilian bombings. This causes incredible unity among them, with Winston recalling “the whole population of [his] neighborhood turn[ing] out for a long, trailing funeral” that served as “an indignation meeting” (Orwell 149). Tragedy consistently unites populations through both mourning and anger. However, the unification of the proles stems not only from these factors but the social conditioning conducted by the government of Oceania. Just before this uptick in bombings, posters of Eurasian soldiers, the supposed enemy of Oceania, appeared everywhere. The proles, as a part of the ensuing riots, added these posters to the flames burning on the streets and in local shops; the posters play the crucial role of scapegoat. Winston, unsurprised, notes “the proles, normally apathetic about the war” on Eurasia “were being lashed into one of their periodical frenzies of patriotism” (Orwell 149). At the time of this thought, Winston did not know of Oceania’s treachery. Orwell’s foreshadowing demonstrates that even those unaware of a false flag operation’s existence recognize its effectiveness in stirring patriotic unrest. Amin Malak touches on the phenomenon, briefly discussing it in his article regarding the dystopian

Although the commanders of Gilead resort to the normalization of raping their handmaids instead of bombing them, it still leaves terrible mental damage. However, this anguish creates a unifying bond amongst them. This bond is displayed during the patricution of a mayday member. Charged with rape, the man suffers death by mob. A swarm of vengeful handmaids takes revenge for the crimes they perceive he committed, scratching, clawing, and kicking the man to death. By executing an alledged rapist, the mentally conditioned handmaids feel they help with solving the issue of sexual violence. This boosts their faith in the system that controls them. The handmaids suffered rape, there is no doubt of this; ironically the commanders bear responsibility for the raping, not the patriarch. This misdirection of blame, seemingly unbelievable, is Margaret Atwood’s nod to the Orwellian concept of doublethink; an important tactic that in this case plays a supporting role to that of the false flag tactic. The variation in method used by Gilead shows the versatility of false flag operations, a versatility that gives different types of governments the opportunity to employ it in different