Essay on Feminism in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale

In today’s news we see many disruptions and inconsistencies in society, and, according to Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, humankind might be headed in that direction. The deterioration of society is a concept often explored biologically in novels, but less common, is the effect on everyday social constructs such as the position of women as a item that can be distributed and traded-in for a ‘better’ product. The Handmaid’s Tale elaborates the concept that, as societal discrimination towards women intensifies, gender equality deteriorates and certain aspects of societal freedoms are lost. Offred’s experience with serving Gilead demonstrates a victim’s perspective and shows how the occurring changes develope the Republic.

Offred struggles with her new life, stating, “I want to be held and told my name. I want to be valued, in ways that I am not; I want to be more than valuable. I repeat my former name; to remind myself of what I once could do, how others saw me” (Atwood 97). Offred is emotionally run down. She misses her husband Luke and the way he made her feel. Offred spends most of her days wondering about her husband Luke, and daughter. She wonders if her husband is dead, made it across the Canadian border, or was captured. Although Offred never finds out Luke’s life status, Serena Joy offers to tell Offred some information regarding her daughter. Consequently, Offred must sleep with Nick and conceive a child in spite of receiving the information. As long as the Commander believes he is the father of Offred 's child, no problems will arise. Offred 's decision is unconventional and risky, both for herself and Nick. If Nick and Offred are caught, they will be executed. However, her unorthodox decision pays off. Serena Joy obtains a photograph of Offred’s daughter and informs Offred that her daughter is now around eight years old and has been adopted by a family loyal to the regime. Offred is informed that her daughter is alive and in safe care. The new information provides Offred with a sense of relief.

In Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood writes about a dystopia society. Atwood used situations that were happening during the time she began writing her novel, for example, women’s rights, politics, and in religious aspects. Atwood’s novel is relevant to contemporary society. There are similarities between Atwood’s novel and our society today, which lends to the possibility that our modern society might be headed to a less intense version of this dystopia society.

She is kept alive for purely that reason in the first chapters, as the story progresses and she is invited into the Commander's office, where they play Scrabble and he reveals to her hidden or contraband aspects of the new society, such as fashion magazines and cosmetics, which he allows her to read, an activity otherwise prohibited for women. In these meetings Offred is treated more humanely than she has in years. She's treated more like a human should instead of a slave to her own body and “Commander”, which is suggested in her name in of its self, which means “of Fred”, conceding the point that the Commander's name is

This gives us a hint on the totalitarian society of Gilead that Offred lived through, where she had no control over her own life. She wishes she had control over what would have happened to her. Overall,

Offred never fully encompasses the life of a handmaid, because she has the hopes of being united with her husband and daughter. Even when Offred was sent to the Rachel and Leah Center, where all fertile women were sent to denounce their former lives and accept their new roles in society, she still tried to find a way to escape with her friend Moira. Offred lets the viewers know that she is not going to conform to the society by some of the remarks she makes. For instance, Offred says, “We are two-legged wombs, that’s all: sacred vessels, ambulatory chalices” (Atwood, 1985, p.136). This hints to the audience that she knows her place in this society, and it is not the place she wants to be in for a long time.

As a wide-celebrated book, the handmaid’s Tale described world as female dystopia. What role does women have in such a scrutinized social environment? In the story The Handmaid’s Tale, the advocacy and commences of feminism is the theme throughout the whole book. The author Margaret Atwood appealed to feminism by mainly three storylines: Moria’s attitude toward life, the depiction of Offred’s mother, and the organization of Mayday. To begin with, the author Margret Atwood stressed the idea of feminism sharply and insightfully from Moria.

Consequently, rebel groups may take over the Republic of Gilead since the republic is deteriorating from the inside. However, this book is more than a fictional story of an imaginary girl named Offred, who lives in a made-up society called the Republic of Gilead. The novel is an allegory, teaching readers that a society focused on the principle of absolute control will fail. People, no matter the political environment, will cling to freedom and live a life, rather than just survive. In an ideal government, societal structure depends on the ideals of the government’s entire population.

Throughout history, women have been treated inferior and have been viewed as less powerful than their counterpart, and therefore were removed from essential societal events because of the harsh and authoritarian treatment placed upon them. In our society, as time progressed most countries began to give women their proper rights, however in the in the novel “A handmaid's tale,” by Margaret Atwood, the audience sees that their version of progression turned out to be counteractive. In a restricted, oppressed society like the one displayed by Atwood, the audience experiences controversial scenarios relating to sexism which limits the characters opportunities, these constraints influence people to take risks when the timing is right in order to create meaning in their life. Overall, the women in “A handmaid's tale,” are taken advantage of, oppressing them further. The assigned roles in their civilization such as the ‘aunts,’ are used as a psychological device to convince the handmaid's that they are lucky, by stating manipulative phrases to persuade the handmaid's into believing that where they are is not a “prison”, but actually a “privilege,” in the hopes of making them accepting of their role as the republics breeding device,

Offred's memories are a way for her to escape a society riddled with hopelessness. The authoritarian society of Gilead prevents her from

Basic civil liberties are seen as endangered, along with many rights for women won over the past decades and indeed the past centuries…” (XVIII-XIX). In a society where men are, the ones who rule and women are just the caregivers and child bearers. Margaret Atwood makes a society that depicts the life of the storyteller, who in the book The Handmaid’s

It’s the choice that terrifies [her]. A way out, a salvation,” (Atwood, 76). Offred is aware of the extreme consequences regarding this decision and is living in fear, but she is also aware that it is her chance to be “free.” This being said, in Offred’s mind are engraved thoughts of salvation by rebelling against the regime. As the novel progresses, Offred’s will, to not give up and her hope in escaping Gilead, overpowers her fear in the consequences of going against the Gileadean regime.

A taped voice of a man reads the Bible to Offred before lunch, exclaiming, “Blessed are the silent” (89). Offred believes that this part of the Bible has been fabricated, but she has no way of verifying this. Attempting to brainwash the Handmaids, the government reads falsified parts of the Bible to women who do not remember the truth, teaching Offred that to stay silent is to stay alive and protected. Moreover, the leaders teach her not to speak up, thus, deteriorating her relationship with God. Worn down by endless propaganda, Offred prays, “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum,” saying she does not know “what else she can say to God” (90). Before knowing the translation, Offred conflates the meaning of this quote with her memories of her rebellious, uproarious friend Moira. Much later, Offred realizes the quote means, “Don’t let the bastards grind you down.” Atwood hides this meaning temporarily, reflecting the relevance of this quote to Offred’s life. Although Offred allows the government to confine her and lie to her, she attempts to make her life bearable by disregarding rules about relations with men during her relationship with Nick. Their relationship, ironically, makes her more willing to stay in the Republic and obey the government. She prefers to survive, not live authentically, and feels satisfied

“I feel thankful to her. She has died that I may live. I will mourn later” (Atwood 286). Many sacrifices and hard decisions are made by unorthodox people to keep what they believe in alive. There would be no rebellions and no change without these nonconforming people. Offred, the main character and a Handmaiden, would have faced eminent death in her strictly orthodox world had it not been for the rebelliousness of those who died before her wanting change. The Republic of Gilead, previously known as the United States, is a theocracy. Environmental events and population decline prompt changes. A caste system is created, and each caste performs specific duties. They are punished if the laws are not followed. The Eyes are at the top of the caste system; they make sure the laws are obeyed. Next are the Commanders and their Wives. The Handmaiden’s main task is to produce a child with their Commander. In Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, some unorthodox characters challenge the theocracy such as Offred, Ofglen, and Nick.

“There is more than one kind of freedom, said Aunt Lydia. Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from,” (Atwood 24). The Handmaid’s Tale, written by Margaret Atwood, is a novel set in the near future where societal roles have severely changed. The most notable change is that concerning women. Whereas, in the past, women have been gaining rights and earning more “freedom to’s”, the women in the society of The Handmaid’s Tale have “freedom froms”. They have the freedom from being abused and having sexist phrases yelled at them by strangers. While this may seem like a safer society, all of the “safeness” comes at a drastic cost. Atwood depicts a dystopia in The Handmaid’s Tale