Handmaid's Tale Analysis

These can be seen in the reliance on women in general because even though females no longer partake in the economy or politics, they are essential to the development of the world through producing children. Nurses also hold the same amount of power as Commanders and Wives command their households, so there are themes of influential women. Overall, Gilead is able to achieve a conservative frame of government while also having a liberal, feminist underlining. The Handmaid’s Tale addresses many controversial topics in society, such as women’s rights and changing how the government is run.

No one is allowed to switch occupations or complain about his duty, or even to prefer one duty to another, and all citizens are required to keep their jobs, and to do them dutifully and well, until they become forty and are to be put in the Home of the Useless with the Old Ones. Although everyone has the ability to feel pain, agony, love, etc., no one is allowed to voice any of these feelings if they are felt. No one of the male gender may take notice of women, nor may women take notice of men. Everyone is to be selfless in all that is done, only doing it for the sake of the community and not for any type of personal pleasure. There is no knowledge of singular personal pronouns, such as “I”, “he” or “she”, but every person calls themselves “We”, and when talking about anyone else, calls that person “they”.

Luckily, Orleanna finally decides to stick up for herself in the book because if not, she would’ve lived her whole life as a miserable slave to her

Introduction During the renaissance period, women were supposed to be seen not heard, they were expected to look beautiful at all times (Amanda Cloud, 2012). Though women were inferior to men, women in different classes had different roles. Low class women were expected to be housewives and take care of everything to do with the house. Upper class women may have had servants and workers working for them but the women were still expected to take care of the house hold (Pat Knapp / Monika von Zell, 2007).

Throughout the Middle Ages, the Renaissance Period, and the Restoration Period, the role of women began to change. This idea was reflected in many of the literary works such as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, The Book of Margery Kempe, Astrophil and Stella, Utopia, The Rape of Lock, and A Modest Proposal. During the Middle Ages, women had few rights. They were meant to serve their husband and children and tend to the household chores. Many people used religion to show that men had authority over women.

“Women could not be doctors, priests, judges, or lawyers” (Hopkins 8). For several years there was these bias towards men and because of that women were not entitled to vote, did not receive an education unless you were of royalty, and they were forced to surrender any land inherited to them to their husbands or brother. Women were also only allowed to move to a new community by marrying a man from a different

The effect of this was this became the dominate role for women and all the women did was have babies, take care of children, and certain task they were assigned for example cooking or gathering water. Another piece of evidence to support this is how even though the men had more priority over women some women had accepted this lesser role over time. “Although there were clear disadvantages to women, paradoxically, many of them enjoyed being provided for and complied to the female gender roles that had be reinforced within the group for years. As these expectations had been accepted as traditional, gender roles and stereotypes were internalized to the point where the men and women rarely butted heads over what had become social norms”. - http://ibthingsfallapart.weebly.com/children-and-gender-roles.html.

The structure of Gilead is rigid, specifically designed to oppress and reinforce dominance. Throughout Offred’s perspective of events, it is always difficult to define who the main leaders of the society are. Because of this setup, those in top power can rule as they please without fear of anyone committing assassinations or rebellions. How could a person attack something or someone they do not know? Despite the lack of a main formal authority, the world of the Gilead have maintained the structure of their social system, enforcing importance based on one’s fertility.

In the totalitarian and theocratic state of Gilead, Woman who are fertile and thus still retain the ability to reproduce, are assigned to a Commander – A high ranking military official of the Gilead society. The only distinction between these individual fertile women is whose property they belong to. So the handmaid’s names are a combination of the word “of” and the name of their commander. That is why the main character is called Offred, as well as other handmaids being called Ofglen and etc. The aim of this is to strip these women of all their individuality.

It 's like what Aunt Lydia said about “freedom to and freedom from” Pre Gilead, it was protection from [everything below is not yet editted] •“A Matriarchal Gilead”: how disunity forms through restriction (first talk about their restrictions and why it is that way, then talk about how the women are set up in this matriarchal/caste system; eg; domestic work, handmaids and commanders wives and marthas) ◦at that point we can try to pick apart who the real enemy, at first sight, in the handmaid 's tale, it might be men, but they can easily be victims themselves •“Handmaids: Superior or inferior?” ◦EXPLOITED but at the same time, idealized into weakness. ◦“the salvaging” sex is a primary way of organizing humans because it is so easily recognized; superior and inferior groups, in the handmaid 's tale, allow for cheap or unorthodox distributions of labor, in which the society depends on to function. ◦

She was bullied by people I knew, by my best friends. And instead of stopping them, I joined them.” (Davis 212). Katherine explained why she got involved, and went on to say that she was not strong enough to say no. Gaining enough strength, she managed to tell the truth, “I don’t deserve to represent the state of Washington at a pageant or anywhere else… this will be my final pageant…

She vows to never reveal the name of Pearl’s father, however it is later revealed that he is the ever-so-respected town Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. Hester is more than aware of her exclusion from the groups of the colony, even though she was working to rebuild her name by working and keeping busy, “In all her intercourse with society, however, there was nothing that made her feel as if she belonged to it. Every gesture, every word, and even the silence of those with whom she came in contact, implied, and often expressed, that she was banished, and as much alone as if she had inhabited another sphere, or communicated with the common nature by other organs than the rest of human kind” (page 108). The judgmental community that Hester is a part of, ceases to affect her actions. She refuses to leave, and raises her daughter the best that she can- with love, respect, without revealing to Pearl what makes her different.

After hours of waiting, the jury came back in. Scout explains how “A jury never looks at the defendant if it has convicted, and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson… Judge Taylor was polling the jury; ‘ Guilty...Guilty...Guilty’”(211) When Scout and Jem hear the verdict, they are distraught. As they were walking home, “It was Jem’s turn to cry.. ‘It’s not right, Atticus’”(212)

But the thing women fought for the most was equal job rights for both men and

From the beginning she is told Americans that ask her if she wants to leave the brothel is a trap, and will take them to Mumtaz for a beating. Lakshimi ends up trusting an American and escapes exposing the brothel. Patricia McCormick was successful in her purpose of explaining to an American teenage audience how and why the cycle of human slavery present in the brothels exist. Like said in the book, women are compared to goats meaning women suffer the lack of power. When the main character goes to work relates to how women have to sell themselves to support their family of their money problems.