The Handmaids Tale Essay Example For Students

The Handmaids Tale Essay The Handmaids Tale presents a futuristic society in which men and women do not have an emotional relationship. They need one another only for procreation. Men are represented as powerful and self-sufficient. Women are relegated to the position of servants. The intricacies of this society are examined through the characters of Offred and the Commander. By describing their daily lives, Atwood suggests that there are underlying problems in the Republic of Gilead relationships. She uses the Scrabble scene to symbolize that the characters needs are greater than society is able to meet. Through great risk the Commander seeks to change his relationship with Offred and therefore, take a small step toward changing society. Offred is summoned to the Commander’s room for unknown reasons. A plethora of possibilities go through her mind about why he would break the rules to see her. As she enters his office she notices his position and the serious tone of his body language. â€Å"I think I will cry,†(178) Offred thinks as she takes a seat. She is trapped in a sticky situation internally. She is obliged to go to the Commanders room at night, regardless if she doesn’t want to break the rules. Because of this new relationship, Offred is exposed to many new feelings and insights. Many of these feelings are uncomfortable and confusing. She does not know what to expect next. More important, Offred knows she is expendable to the Commander. From this situation Offred is given a new role as a handmaid. She is not only needed for her ovaries, but also wanted for her mind. The Commander uses her for himself, which is selfish yet Offred has an opportunity for Offred to open her mind as she once used to. She gains a new confidence and acquires a new sense about herself and her situation as a handmaid. Offred is not allowed to speak about her situation but has the ability to look at herself differently. She now has new meaning in the house, and a relationship of the mind with the Commander. The Commander says; â€Å"I want. †(178) Hearing this Offred does not want to give away her eagerness. He continues, â€Å"I would like you to play a game of Scrabble with me. †(179) He shows a new side to himself by exposing a weakness. A man who was an intimidating force in the house is seen differently. He exposes a forceless side. It is understood that he too suffers in this new society. He feels the lack of friendship, companionship, and love. He has shown vulnerability. He does not have everything he wants in life. It is hard to like the Commander because he is seen through the Handmaids eyes. A weak side to personality is rarely exposed in a leader. They are stereotypically presented as strong. When a weakness becomes obvious, the masses are satisfied because they can identify with the leader. It is understood that they are human and capable of making mistakes. The Commander is the stereotypical leader in the Republic of Gilead. Others look up to him and seek his power. Atwood has given him the name â€Å"commander† suggesting a higher ranking above others without even giving more details. A powerful label in life is seen as an immediate sign of power. Readers are programmed to respect people of authority, which happens just by knowing their label and not necessarily knowing them personally. Without getting to know him the readers subconsciously fill in what a commander should be. As Atwood describes the Commander in more detail, a different side begins to emerge and our thinking about him changes. As a man reading about him, I understand how the Commander feels. He has been socialized as a macho leader, with a one-dimensional side and no sympathy for others. Then a need for companionship emerges through the Scrabble invitation. By taking this interpersonal risk, a new respect was gained for him. He is no longer just the stereotypical norm. He has the guts to become involved in a relationship, and risk humiliation for companionship. Lamb to the slaughter, The sniper and Vendetta EssaySection IV: Waiting Room Chapter 8 What is â€Å"Gender Treachery?† The passage on the etymology of the term â€Å"Mayday† is correct. During World War II, the opening rhythmic pattern from Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony was interpreted as the Morse code for â€Å"v† (dot dot dot dash), and used to symbolize â€Å"victory†. What do we learn about Offred’s family in this passage? If a miscarried fetus may or may not be an â€Å"Unbaby† what would an â€Å"Unbaby† seem to be? â€Å"All flesh is grass† (Isaiah 40:6) is a quotation from the Bible meaning that all humans are mortal. Why does Aunt Lydia use instead the saying â€Å"all flesh is weak?† Does she really mean all humans? How about women? How is Offred’s silent correction a reply to her comment? Serena Joy’s speechmaking on behalf of housewifery is a clear satire on the career of Phyllis Shlafley, lawyer, right-wing activist, and cofounder of the Eagle Forum, who put most of her energy for many years into leading the fight against the Equal Rights Amendment while admonishing other women to stay home and raise their children. The Shape of Things to Come is the title of one of H. G. Well’s novels, alluded to ironically at the end of the paragraph beginning â€Å"She’s looking at the tulips.† Why does Offred envy Rita her access to the knife? Why is she startled at the end of the chapter when she realizes she has called the room â€Å"mine†? Chapter 9 What feelings does she have as she looks back on the early days of her affair with Luke? Nolite te bastardes carborundorum will be explained in Chapter 29. Note that a posting lasts two years. This will be important later. Chapter 10 Why are the words to the hymn Amazing Grace now considered subversive? Who did Aunt Lydia blame for the â€Å"things† that used to happen to women? What sorts of memories does she keep returning to in this chapter? Chapter 11 What do we learn about the Handmaid system during the scene at the doctor’s office? â€Å"Give me children, or else I die.† (Genesis 30:1). Deuteronomy 17:6 requires that for a couple to be stoned to death on account of adultery there has to be two witnesses to the act. Chapter 12 To what were women vulnerable in bathrooms â€Å"before they got all the bugs ironed out†? For Paul on hair, see 1 Corinthians 11:6-15. What does this mean: â€Å"I don’t want to look at something that determines me so completely†? The old sexist society was said to reduce women to mere physical objects. Has this changed? What does Offred suggest by saying of the attempted kidnapping of her daughter â€Å"I thought it was an isolated incident, at the time†? â€Å"Inheriting the Earth†: see Matthew 5.5. If Offred was parted from her daughter when she was five and she is eight now, the separation must have happened three years ago. Since at eighteen months the pattern of change was not clear to Offred, the revolution which established Gilead must have been quite recent. It is difficult to believe that such a thorough transformation of society in such a short time, but it is important to remember that this is not a realistic novel, but a satirical dystopia. What associations are aroused by the tattoo on Offred’s ankle? She is remembering scenes from the end of World War II, in which women who dated the Nazi occ upiers had their heads shaved in public. What two meanings of the word â€Å"compose† is she playing with in the last paragraph? Section V: Nap Chapter 13 What do you think about her comments on boredom as erotic? Offred lets herself go back in time to when she was in training with Moira. Does anyone blame women for being raped today? How has Offred’s attitude toward her body changed? What do her dreams about her husband and daughter have in common? What does she mean by saying at the end of the chapter â€Å"Of all the dreams this is the worst†?