The Handmaid's Tale Analysis

Atwood parodies the way some of the religious right may perceive women in which they are important for creating life by introducing handmaids, women who have been reduced into only their procreative purposes. Another technique that was used is when she parodies the way traditional families’ wives take on the names of their husband. In the story, handmaids are named “Of” plus the name of their commander, criticizing how changing the surnames makes it seem like the men are the owners of the women. The way these issues were satirized in the story are effective because of the role of the main character. It would be difficult to not sympathize with a victim of a totalitarian society that oppresses women to a much greater extent than to that of men.

Women are given protection and helped from the misdeeds of others. This new environment forces women into certain mentalities. They have become so damaged that they break the rules in order to regain their sanity a bit. Handmaids are not given lotion as part of the law and resorted buttering “[the] skin to keep it soft”(Atwood 96). They are breaking rules only for vanity.

In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Mrs. Dubose’s suffering helps Jem and Scout learn about perseverance, virtuous characteristics and how much she really desires to do the right thing. Without realizing it, Mrs. Dubose shows Jem and Scout how to do what they know will be hard, combat fear with courage, and standing up for the right thing. She teaches them by her actions not by words without ever leaving her own bed. TRANSITIONAL SENTENCE Even though Mrs. Dubose knows how much pain coming off morphine will include, she continues to fight through the agony and suffering. During Jem’s reading session, Mrs. Dubose falls into a state with “cords of saliva” collecting on her lips while her head rocked slowly “from side to side” (123).

The strain is simply too - too hellish,” (36). Larsen uses words provoking anxiety and horror to give the reader insight into Clare’s mind when she thinks about pregnancy and motherhood. She uses the words ‘died’, ‘terror’, ‘fear’, ‘dark’, ‘risk’, ‘strain’, and ‘hellish’; which are all words associated with danger or negativity. In contrast, Irene enjoys being a mother and always thinks about her children when making decisions. She feels motherhood is a strong life-long responsibility that can definitely be stressful, but is worth it in the long run.

Madame Ratignole is always giving Edna counsel and warning her. When Edna moves into her new home alone and becomes close to Arobin, Ratignole “advise[s] [her] to be a little careful while she [is] living there alone” and tells her that Arobin’s “ attentions alone are enough to ruin a woman’s reputation” [96]. Ultimately, Edna ignores her about almost everything. Ratignole has little influence on Edna’s decision making and Edna makes choices that she would never make, both of these facts show their dissimilarity. Edna’s relationship with Mademoiselle Reisz is different.

Gilead’s True Commanders: The Handmaids Despite the many ways to interpret Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, there’s no denying that the chain of command in Gilead can seem quite fluid when it comes to who is in control (and who has the more at stake). Though the handmaids seem like they should be most afraid, it is actually the Commanders who have more reasons to be fearful, and the handmaids who have genuine power. If all handmaids realized their capabilities, mutinies like that of Mayday would be even more successful. Fearing and trying to prevent a rebellion, the Commanders make unsupervised interactions with anyone nearly impossible, remove anything that could be used in suicide attempts, and limit all access to reading materials. Try as they might, their tactics are of no use when in comes to the more resourceful handmaids and wives who are able to use their influence to bend the rules made by the superior men.

I saw you. It wasn’t fair!” (Jackson, 224) It is apparent that she is not necessarily distressed over the practice of the ritual, but specifically that she is the victim, as she states they should start over, so that a new victim will be chosen. “I think we ought to start over,” Mrs. Hutchinson said, as quietly as she could.” (Jackson, 223) This differs greatly from Jane, who begins to sympathize with the plight of all domestic women through her experience with the woman behind the yellow wallpaper. Although she initially frowned upon the woman’s efforts to escape, the more her mental health deteriorated, the more she began to relate her plight to that of the trapped woman, both prisoners desperate for escape. With her newfound revelation, she sought to save the trapped woman from her prison, subconsciously freeing herself in the process.

After her step sisters volunteered her for the testing she learnt not to trust anyone and with not trusting anyone she became a very independent person. Cinder is being lied to constantly by the doctors that she has just gotten so used to saying “Another lie” (Marissa Meyer, 126). This shows that she has learnt to not trust many and to be very independent and do things on her

However the story masks this obviousness fact by illustrating some of Edna’s questionable actions. Some of Edna’s most obvious decisions immediately question her weakness to handle pressure. Edna’s inability to show compassion and care for her children challenge this normalcy for a mother of the time period; Edna considered her children “like antagonists who had overcome her; who had overpowered and sought to drag her into the soul's slavery for the rest of her days” (Chopin 115). The children almost seemed like a burden, or a detriment to her. Edna’s doctor visit nearly foreshadows this mindset, where the doctor notes that

In “Number the Stars” by Lois Lowry, we watch Annemarie slowly start to mature and realize the importance of information in the hostile world she is now living in. The most pivotal scene surrounding Annemarie’s maturity is in the beginning of Chapter 9 on pages 75-77. This scene is a reflection of Annemarie’s own perception of her bravery, before the climax of the book. While she thinks that she isn’t brave, her Uncle disagrees and after the conclusion of the book I am certain that all readers would agree with him. In the previous scene Annemarie had become skeptical of the situation in the living room of her Uncle Henrik’s home, while she wants to believe her mother’s story of her great aunt Birte’s death, she notices some strange details.

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