The Handmaid's Tale Language Analysis

One of the many prevailing themes in literature is that power is gained and can be manipulated when restraints are placed on natural desires of the individual. This passage is significant because it is an example of this theme, for it shows how power and manipulation have completely changed and restricted the people, especially women, of Gilead. Due to this, the passage reveals the shared anger that the Handmaids possess, and the cruelty that has been brought upon the society. The use of similes, diction, syntax, and illustrate the impact that this event had on Offred, for she feels such anger towards the unknown man and the crime he has supposedly committed. These literary and rhetorical devices additionally serve to make this event seem as

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.

Throughout the first 15 Chapters we are provided with information, as narrated by Offred, with glimpses of her past life and her journey to the life she is now facing. These glimpses are not logical in their sequencing or chronological in the narration, therefore creating a feeling of disorientation among readers, a feeling matching that experienced by those living in this society. This also provokes many questions in the reader’s mind along with creating tension and expectation as to the nature of the procreation which we have come to

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 Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Offred recounts the story of her life and that of others in Gilead, but she does not do so alone. The symbolic meanings found in the dress code of the women, the names/titles of characters, the absence of the mirror, and the smell and hunger imagery aid her in telling of the repugnant conditions in the Republic of Gilead. The symbols speak with a voice of their own and in decibels louder than Offred can ever dare to use. They convey the social structure of Gileadean society and carry the theme of the individual's loss of identity.

The Handmaid's Tale, a film based on Margaret Atwood’s book depicts a dystopia, where pollution and radiation have rendered innumerable women sterile, and the birthrates of North America have plummeted to dangerously low levels. To make matters worse, the nation’s plummeting birth rates are blamed on its women. The United States, now renamed the Republic of Gilead, retains power the use of piousness, purges, and violence. A Puritan theocracy, the Republic of Gilead, with its religious trappings and rigid class, gender, and racial castes is built around the singular desire to control reproduction. Despite this, the republic is inhabited by characters who would not seem out of place in today's society. They plant flowers in the yard, live in suburban houses, drink whiskey in the den and follow a far off a war on the television. The film leaves the conditions of the war and the society vague, but this is not a political tale, like Fahrenheit 451, but rather a feminist one. As such, the film, isolates, exaggerates and dramatizes the systems in which women are the 'handmaidens' of today's society in general and men in particular.

Within history, societies have to try to find a balance between gender and class. Margaret Atwood writes about a country called Gilead: a society where women are broken down into classes while men control all the power. Throughout her dystopian novel, The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood utilizes gender and class to alienate the protagonist, Offred, illustrating how women and their position within society are used as a political instrument to gain dominance.

Freedom to and freedom from” (pg.24). The state of mind that she carries is from an Aunt who is supposed to teach and console Offred who was back then becoming a Handmaid. Aunt Lydia is one of the people in the book who believe that their rights in Gilead are a blessing and should not be underestimated. Ms. Atwood's use of language for the Aunt in the novel is seen to be a concern parental figure who Offred uses constantly to remind herself in her head what is expected of a handmaid. She uses this voice to reconnect the Aunts teachings to her daily life in trying not to think of her freedom that she use to to have in her own home. This would tie into a nostalgic feel in use of language for the narrator because she remembers her old life and needs a sense of reassurance of what she has now. As of what she has now is not much but her sanity which is even up for question because of the lack of self control she has on herself. Even time can’t be measured in the society of Gilead so they only have bells to function on what time of day it is, this meaning she does not really have much but her own imagination and somewhat of logical thinking. Not her way of thinking of course but the way of thinking she has to respond in if she wants to

Gilead is a society not far from the present and it based around one central idea, control of reproduction by using women’s bodies as political instruments. Handmaids are women who the state took complete control of through their political subjugation. They are not allowed to vote, hold property, read or do anything that can make them independent from their husband and the state. These handmaids are reduced to their fertility and treated like nothing more than a set of ovaries and a womb. They lose their identity and become an object of the state. The narrator of The Handmaids Tale is a handmaid by the name of Offred. The novel takes place in first person point of view and this allows the readers to see how she is treated and all the events that take place for her. First person point of view allows the reader a closer view as to how a central theme develops by giving the reader a firsthand experience from the mind of the narrator.

Neologisms and Biblical Language help to give new meaning to words that were heard before and are scattered throughout the novel, from beginning to end. With language resulting in so much of the woman’s freedom, the story quite frankly could go two ways. After Offred has her child (assuming she has one), she may find a new perspective in all of this and find her place in society, something that she has been searching for since she became a Handmaid. This would result in no social change, but would end the story as her

The Gilead regime uses language, particularly Biblical language to solidify its power. Language has a strong influence in moulding how people think, and it is fully abused by the rulers of Gilead, for example, the phrase, ‘’give me children or else I die.’’ (pg. 99 ) gave the republic of Gilead the idea to use handmaids to bear children for barren wives. Bible readings and prayers before the ceremony, Is another example the regime justifies its actions and the role of the handmaid, to disguise what is actually taking place, which is the exploitation and abuse of women.

“Waste not, want not. I am not being wasted. Why do I want?” (Atwood 7). From stealing butter for lotion to playing Scrabble with the Commander, plainly, Offred is unorthodox. The Republic of Gilead controls how much knowledge each caste is allowed; this is one way of controlling people and keeping order. Despite being condemned to this society and commanded not to read, Offred reads anyways. Offred’s actions show her dislike of

Though the English language has its roots in a male-dominated society where the true meaning of words are now taken for granted. In The Handmaid’s Tale, language facilitates power. In order to effectively rule over class and gender the level of censorship on literature and control of discourses runs high. Atwood uses word choice to expose the shocking structures of the Gilead society and how faulty its foundations are as it was built upon gender inequality. The repercussions of gendered language are evident throughout the novel, implying that the sexist structure of Gilead is a result of oppressive language modern Americans accept and use in every day talk.

In “The Handmaids Tale”, author Margaret Atwood vividly illustrates the repulsive society of Gilead, that is strictly regulated by a Theocracy. In a Theocracy both religion and the government is one entity that rules under the teachings of the Bible and God. In Gilead, every inhabitant has an occupation based on gender and class that they must entirely devote themselves too. The authoritarian rule of Gilead disciplines many characters into being docile, obedient and submissive in consequence of modified communication. Gilead is able to drastically change and maintain order in this society by the manipulation and alteration of phrases. Through the perception of color, defined phrases and biblical ceremonies is that Gilead is able to suppress an entire society. Gilead imposes compliancy to a Theocracy by the use of the colored uniforms, defines freedom, biblical references and objects such as a wall.

A Critical Analysis of “The Handmaid’s Tale.” In this dystopia novel, it reveals a remarkable new world called Gilead. “The Handmaid’s Tale,” by Margaret Atwood, explores all these themes about women who are being subjugated to misogyny to a patriarchal society and had many means by which women tried to gain not only their individualism and their own independence. Her purpose of writing this novel is to warn of the price of an overly zealous religious philosophy, one that places women in such a submissive role in the family. I believe there are also statements about class in there, since the poor woman are being meant to serve the rich families need for a child. As the novel goes along the narrator Offred is going between the past and