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Women In The Handmaid's Tale

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Recommended: Gender roles in literature

Throughout history, women have been shamed and oppressed in different aspects of life. In The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, the oppression of women continues into the dystopian future. One cannot read The Handmaid’s Tale without seeing the problems of gender separation among roles and treatment in society with the underlying message of feminism. Even though it seems to be a feminist story, The Handmaid’s Tale provides an interesting image of men while degrading women. Beyond some characteristics like sexual predators, dominant male figures and other common society portrayals of men, we really don’t know much about them, this makes them very mysterious. Not many male complexions have more than the basic roles of society. Most don’t …show more content…

He seems to be looser than the rest of the Gilead society members. He is wearing a hat and winking at her, in a flirty way. She gives details about his physical appearance to ensure the readers that he is threating in any way. She describes his smile, “creases around the mouth where he smiles” p 28. This helps the reader that he isn’t threating because everyone else described by their outfits, not their physical appearance, which is a symbol for their social status. In the house, he brushes her foot with his, this gave her a sense of warmth and safety which she is in denial off. He has different roles depending on the time. During the night he is her lover while during the day he is just another stranger, this makes it more interesting and complicated because he is taking orders. Just like Offred, he is a lower rank, which meant everything he did was following orders sent out by the commander or serene joy. Through the first interaction Offred is given multiple descriptions. As readers we can see that his attitude isn’t explicitly described, he is an odd figure we cannot fully understand yet. Although a little is known about him, through any danger, she keeps going back to him, this happen in multiple occasions and eventually she falls in love with him without even knowing it. Even though she falls in love with him, she

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In many ways, history can solely reinvent itself. Women's representation in modern times has shown development ever since, but there are still elements that contribute to societal misconceptions toward women. Margaret Atwood, the best-selling author of The Handmaid’s Tale, expresses the evolution and the possible fates to which women are subject. Through The Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood portrays a representation of current anti-feminist viewpoints by reflecting current perspectives of pro-life stances, as well as recurring oppressions against women's economic growth and rights.

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The Imprisoned Fertility Gender roles and stereotypes cause bondages physically and mentally because of the expectations that people cannot free themselves out of. In The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, the reproductive system was the reason for Offred’s captivity, restrictions and routine. She was confined within strict regulations that the government put in place to protect their women and their chance to bear children. They protected them physically by having mandatory medical check-ups, making cigarettes illegal, and the rule for Handmaids to elevate their lower body after the Ceremony. They put a strict dress code regime, to theoretically protect women from men’s prying eyes.

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In the Handmaid 's Tale power is used to control the women and sort them into certain gender roles. Each women in the society of Gilead is assigned a certain job that is stereotypical of a woman 's job such as cooking, sex, and reproduction. These women are the lowest class in Gilead and have no control. The men have superior power of the women but the women such as Ofgeln and Offred gain control in power in their lives. Men have an upper hand in the control of these women.

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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.

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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.

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“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed.” (Ghandi) In the Handmaid’s Tale women are harshly oppressed, even though they are the foundation of society. Additionally, in Luce Irigaray’s story Women on the Market, women are deprived of power, yet ironically they determine the social status held by men. In both societies, women are treated like slaves and are seen as nothing more than powerless objects.

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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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To conclude Atwood’s novel “The Handmaid’s Tale” is centred around the horrifying extent of men marginalisation of women. Atwood has shown the consequences of this to such an extent to show the world just what society looks like. If women continue to accept that they are ‘inferior’ to males. Atwood also shows that women are extremely powerful when they unite as one to become this great force. As the audience we can assume that Atwood

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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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These texts demonstrate the societal issues involving oppression of women, women’s sexual role and their status. The Handmaid’s Tale depicts the rigid societal structure whereby women are forced to serve in various aspects and functions in the society. The boundaries of the context set are in Gilead, a totalitarian state dominated by Christian fundamentalists, indicating that Gilead enforces conformity among its citizens. In a simply put manner, one’s social position is fixed. The permanent social statuses are clearly evident from the colour-coding of the women wherein “some [are] in red, some in dull green of

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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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Moira, Offred's friend, is another character who embodies determination in the face of adversity. Despite being captured and subjected to brutal punishment, Moira continues to resist and ultimately succeeds in escaping from Gilead. Her escape is a testament to her determination to survive and resist oppression. Janine, a fellow Handmaid, also exhibits resistance to the prescribed identity for Handmaids. When she gives birth to a

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Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, argues that women are instruments of the patriarchy, that women know this, and that women allow the system of oppression to live on. Her fictions ask, “What stories do women tell about themselves? What happens when their stories run counter to literary conventions or society’s expectations?” (Lecker 1). The Handmaid’s Tale is told through the protagonist, Offred, and allows readers to follow through her life as a handmaid while looking back on how life used to be prior to the societal changes.

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The novel The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood is a story about a society set in a future world where women’s rights have been revoked. Many values change with this new regime of controlled women and strict laws. Despite the changes in the world it maintains many conservative, religious beliefs while also containing liberal, feminist beliefs simultaneously. Society in the futuristic world of Gilead is structured heavily off of readings from the Bible and traditional views of gender that have been in place for a long time. An example of the Bible being an important part of society is the idea of the Handmaids came from a passage in the Bible about two women, Rachel and Leah.

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The Handmaid’s Tale Essay-How does Atwood’s portrayal of women compare to modern conceptions of women? “I avoid looking down at my body, not so much because it’s shameful or immodest but because I don’t want to see it. I don’t want to look at something that determines me so completely” (Atwood pg.82). This is a quote that the narrator and main character of the book (Offred) says as two other women give her her bath. How hard does a woman’s life have to be that she wouldn’t even want to look at her body.

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