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The Handmaid's Tale By Margaret Atwood

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The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood depicts the future dystopian society, Gilead. There, the few remaining fertile women, called handmaids, are enslaved to a life of procreation to combat the dangerously low birth rates. The theme of oppression and rebellion is prevalent throughout the novel, and is best illustrated by Confutatis from Mozart’s Requiem. In his final hour as he composes Confutatis, Mozart begs God for mercy to be called one of the blessed to enter heaven. The compelling lyrics of Confutatis accompanied by intense orchestration parallel the lives of the Handmaids, who desperately seek to escape the oppressive world they are imprisoned in. The women of Gilead are stripped of the possession of their name, identity and their …show more content…

At the Red Center, Moira, a rebellious Handmaid, and Offred often arranged to meet in the washroom to exchange a few words: “Moira? I whisper. Is that you? she says. … I feel ridiculously happy” (84). The precious yet illegal friendship between Moira and Offred kept their lives slightly more bearable during their training at the Red Center. Eventually, Moira escapes from the Red Center after injuring Aunt Elizabeth and stealing the Aunt’s high-ranking uniform to walk out of the center. As Offred describes her last impression of her friend, “Moira had power now, she’d been set loose, she’d set herself loose. She was now a loose woman. … Nevertheless Moira was our fantasy” (154). Moira never returned to the center again, giving the Handmaids hope that they too will be able to escape from the oppressive regime in the future. The second chorus of Confutatis, sung by the sopranos in a soft, angelic-like quality, “Voca me (“Call me”) / Voca me cum benedictus (“Call me when you are blessed”)”. The chorus is sung in C major with sopranos and altos echoing each other, representing the many bathroom visits Offred and Moira took to console each other. Similarly to how Mozart prayed to be one of the blessed souls to enter heaven, the Handmaids pray to be one of the lucky women to one day successfully escape. However, the happiness and hope the sopranos’

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1310 Words | 6 Pages

(Atwood 187). Although Handmaids experience oppression by the Gilead regime, Atwood emphasizes the importance of unity and collaboration in the face of difficulties. The government of Gilead presents how hypocritical their society is toward women’s rights since the government uses a form of manipulation to make the Handmaid’s circumstances more tolerable. Additionally, Offred expresses how women do not have a right to their bodies because of the power others have over them as Offred states “I am abject” (Atwood 331). Offred expresses the removal of her individuality, autonomy, and basic human rights.

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Just like Hamlet, Offred was also unable to trust anyone other than her best friend, Moira because of the situation she was placed in. Since Offred was a handmaid nearly all of her human rights were taken away, because of this she was unable to build relationships of trust with other people. She had lost all connections with people she loved, with the exception of Moira. Gilead, a world where all the citizens are obligated to obey those in power, none of the people had any meaningful relationships such as friendship or companionship. As shown by Offred 's statement: "We aren 't supposed to form friendships, loyalties, among one another" (Atwood 353), people were expected to not create new relationships.

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Moira is the embodiment of defiance towards ‘The Republic of Gilead’ and its oppressive nature, Offred constantly reflects on memories of her for use as a symbol of hope and defiance. In Gileadean society the only purpose of handmaids is to be a vessel for children, so it was only natural for Moira, as a lesbian, to resist the changes that Gilead and The Red Center tried to enforce upon her. Margaret Atwood uses Moiras frustration to change the tone of The Handmaids Tale to a story that focuses on trying to resist the power of an oppressive regime rather than just revealing what life in such a society is like. Offred constantly looks to Moira as a guiding figure because she is strong and independent. This is why when the protagonist finds

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1137 Words | 5 Pages

Offred uses this relationship to placate her complacency but also to muster up her courage to run away when the time came. In another light, Offred is intelligent simply because she knows things. An early comment she says is that “Men at the top have always had mistresses, why should things be any different now?” (Atwood 163). Since Offres knows this it implies that she not only is acquainted with the culture of life before Gilead, but also that she is well versed in cultural norms from other time periods.

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1118 Words | 5 Pages

She voices women’s loss of power over their bodies and economies. And how they became trapped in the their own household. Medea explains, “With an excess of wealth it is required/ For us to buy a husband” and notes to not take a “master” is worse (L 232-234). Here she passionately speaks out against the injustices she faces as a women.

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918 Words | 4 Pages

The Commander also has the power to break the rules that govern men and women, forcing Offred to do what he wants regardless of the possibility of her punishment. The Commander takes Offred to Jezebels, a prostitution hub, actively putting her in danger without consequences of his own, all of the blame being shifted onto Offred. Furthermore, the Commander gets to indulge in aspects of life deemed illegal, like board games, magazines, and infertility without consequences. However, if Offred is found to be participating in these acts with the Commander, as he repeatedly requests, then she will be sent away and possibly hung for public speculation. The Commander's indulgence and biased perspective of the world as a result of his idealism, results in putting Offred's life in danger.

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367 Words | 2 Pages

Previously, Offred was granted “freedom to” where she was free to think, feel, and act however she would have liked. Presently, the totalitarian government has converted the past freedom into protection and safety for the women. Offred must sacrifice all of her freedoms in order to achieve safety. She is now restricted in society into playing the role of a Handmaid where her only responsibility is to give birth. Now, that Handmaids are confined into their role in society, they no longer have the freedom of a romantic relationship, and instead are controlled by the commander during monthly appointments.

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She is used by Commander for sex and companionship and had an affair with Nick (higher preganancy chance). Most of her actions are being forced “Which of us is it worse for, her or me?”(151) meant the sex between the narrator and commander is unbearable to the point of watching your husband having sex with another women right infront of you. Her only defiance done totally by herself is “I will use the butter later that night.” (113), everything else including escaping the Gilead, having an affair with Commander, having an affair with Nick and leaving the Commanders house are all stimulated by others. Offred represent those who does not stand against oppresion, being pushed around and used for sex.

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“You wanted a women 's culture. Well, now there is one. It isn’t what you meant, but it exists. Be thankful for small mercies.” (Atwood 124) Offred is looking back on her past life to a story her mother once told her.

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It is narrated by the protagonist, Offred who is a handmaid forced into sexual servitude. Facing a plunging birth rate, the fundamentalist regime treats women as property of the state. Handmaids are the few of the remaining fertile women and their sole purpose is to help the government into re-populating their society, where a lot of people are left sterile. The Handmaid’s Tale deals with the theme of women in subjugation to misogyny in a patriarchal society, primarily. It shows the struggle that women have to go through in that society, as a Handmaid or as not being able to be one.

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1504 Words | 7 Pages

No one will see you. I'll sit here." Offred has been given a command by Serena Joy to meet Nick late at night which breaks the law. She has to follow Serena’s step by step procedure, however she also needs to listen to the laws that were made by the government. As a lower class citizen she will be severely punished, since her only job is to be a tool for sexual reproduction.

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928 Words | 4 Pages

At the same time, the Historical Notes reveal that other records of those who lived in Gilead also exist (346). Though Offred has never participated in a coordinated regime subversive activity, her story, along with those of other survivors, now form a polyphony of resistance. Storytelling in The Handmaid’s Tale performs various functions: it is Offred’s way of resistance, her survival strategy, her intellectual pastime, and a testimony to the future. By telling herself stories she escapes into memories, shape and change her experience, and substitute the lacking communication. She uses storytelling to preserve herself, to validate her existence, to prove her life matters.

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1035 Words | 5 Pages

This year is the 30th anniversary of the publication of Margaret Atwood 's dystopian classic, The Handmaid 's Tale. The novel is told from a first person account of a young woman, Offred. In an age of declining births, she is forced to become a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead, the imagined future in the United States. The Handmaids are to provide children by the substitution of infertile women of a higher social status. Through the creation of different characteristics of female characters – ones who are submissive yet rebellious, and like to take advantage of their power - Margaret Atwood portray themes of love, theocracy, rebellion, and gender roles.

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996 Words | 4 Pages

In this written text, the emphasis will be on Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Handmaid’s Tale and as well as the way Atwood portrays women and how it can be argued to show the oppression of women. The main purpose is to analyze the way women are treated throughout this book and depict why they are represented this way in the society in Gilead. Then, comparatively, observe the men’s domination over women and how they govern this society. In The Handmaid’s Tale, women are stripped of their rights, suffer many inequalities and are objectified, controlled by men and only valued for their reproductive qualities. The Gilead society is divided in multiple social group.

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1101 Words | 5 Pages

Imagine a nation in which its government commands by a religion where women are separated into different titles and must conceive children for their commander. Their rights from before this regime, and anything deemed unholy by the government, are a thing of the past. This situation is the one represent in the Republic of Gilead, where the rules of society and its traditions are not taken lightly if broken. In the novel The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood shows that an oppressive government leads to the inevitable neglect and remiss of the rules through Offred’s characterization, irony, and flashbacks. Offred 's character development can show that her actions change .

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