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Narrative and gender roles
Social control in the handmaids tale
Gender and roles of women in literature
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People need some sort of control in their lives, whether that be through big or little things. In The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, the republic of Gilead had clear positions that enabled more power for some compared to others, the most powerful being the commander and the least being the handmaid’s. Men were the ones controlling all of Gilead and they had the power to make the rules. There were different ways in which men ruled over women a few of them being taking away their names, using the wall as a threat and controlling what they wear. The women who were forced to become handmaid’s were stripped of their identities in every possible way, including their names. Instead they were given the name of the commander, but added “of” to …show more content…
Women were purely defined by the men who had complete control over them. In the novel Offred had some control, by keeping her name to herself which maintained a little bit of her independence. As soon as people saw her they knew she was a handmaid, but as soon as people heard her name they knew exactly who her commander was, and from there on only thought of her as belonging to Frederick. Their name affects how themselves and others viewed them which Offred seems to notice when she says this, “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, remind myself of what I could once do, how other saw me” (Atwood 111). She states here that when she had her other name she was a completely different person, her other name gave her the power to be herself, but as soon as her name changed so did she. She also says …show more content…
The handmaid's wore red, “The red gloves are lying on the bed. I pick them up, pull them onto my hands, finger by finger. Everything except the wings around my face is red: the colour of blood, which defines us.” (Atwood 8). The wives wore modest blue outfits and martha's wear a “dull green” (Atwood 10). While out on a walk one day Offred sees a group of Japanese tourists, and noticed the girls were wearing short skirts. She then thinks back to when she used to dress like that, “They seem underdressed. It has taken so little time to change our minds, about things like this. Then I think: I used to dress like that. That was freedom.” (Atwood 32). Offred came to the realization that clothing is how she used to express herself and men being able to choose what all women wear deprived them of expressing themselves in anyway. On page 62 Offred talks about how Moira used to dress, she would wear lace clothes, snap garters and bras that pushed up her boobs. From that one explanation it becomes clear what type of person Moira was. Clothing is a form of self expression, the men took away any form of being able to express
The women are divided into functions and are identified by the colour of their dress. In chapter 5, Offred is walking down the streets of Gilead, reminiscing about the days she used to walk down the street wearing what she wanted to wear before she got taken away, and also thought about simple things such as how she was able to freely walk to the laundromat to wash her own clothes with her own soap. She informs the reader of her analysis of the different types of women in the Republic of Gilead: “There are other women with baskets, some in red, some in the dull green of the Martha's, some in the striped dresses, red and blue and green and cheap and skimp, that mark the women of the poorer men. Econowives, they're called. These women are not divided into functions. They have to do everything; if they can.” (Atwood, 5.5) The Handmaid’s— the bearer of children— wear red, the Martha’s, who are the housekeepers wear green, and the wives wear blue. Econ Wives are the only women who aren’t defined by the colour of their dress because they must do every function. Atwood is showing that the individuality and identities of these women have been completely taken away and are labelled by the clothing they are forced to
Atwood uses nomenclature to place the women in The Handmaid’s Tale within the possession of the men around them. Offred, literally means Of-Fred, as in, The Handmaid Of Fred. By taking the women’s names away the society places them in the possession of their commanders. Which is exactly how the commanders see their handmaids, the commanders see the handmaids as a vessel for life that they must sleep with once a month during the ceremony. The women are forced to have sexual relations with their commanders and are sent away when they do not conceive a child. By placing the women of the society completely into the power of men, Atwood encourages the reader to see the injustice of this act and encourages the reader to identify with the cause of women. Each category of women must dress in the colour of their group so they can be identified by the outside world. Handmaids, like Offred must wear red, a colour associated both with shame and with ripeness and fertility. Similarly in The Color Purple, a period drama, based on a book with the same title by Alice Walker, women are categorised by the society they live in.
This is a post united states world and some people, in the story, have seen the changes of from United States of America to Gilead. In their dystopian world, the handmaids wear “Everything except the wings around my face is red: the color of blood, which defines us”(Atwood 8). This is an example of the Ordinary World, female servants are used for reproducing because if the decline birth rate due to sexual diseases. During the call to adventure, the reader can consider Offred going to the call of adventure before Gilead, as well as, after Gilead. Both of them relating to the mistreatment against women. Her friend Moira, before Gilead, showed her a world in which women were fighting for their rights in the 1970’s during the women's liberation movement. Her and Moira went to a rally where “(she) threw the magazine into the flames. It riffled open in the wind of its burning; big flakes of paper came loose, sailed into the air, still on fire, parts of women’s bodies, turning to black ash, in the air, before my eyes”. (Atwood 39). Offred was gaining some of her memory back, pre- gilead days, she knew her mother and Moira were apart of the feminist movement. In addition to the rise of the government, her and Luke needed to leave because she feared the safety of her daughter and her husband. In matter of fact, Offred was a bit precautious of entering a new world because she was scared of
Cora’s unpleasant reaction towards Offred, when she arrives at their home, represents how other classes automatically feel superior over Handmaids. When Offred walks in, she instantly is judged after she sees Cora “frowning...[Cora] tears out three tokens and hands them to [Offred]. [Cora’s] face might be kindly if she would smile. But, the frown isn’t personal: it’s the red dress she disapproves of, and what it stands for” (Atwood, 10). The tokens given to Offred symbolize the oppression of Handmaids throughout Gilead, since these women are handed money with no value. Granted, that the tokens have no worth outside of the imperialized area, this shows how women like Offred are looked at worthlessly. Handing out tokens instead of real money demonstrates how the government does not trust Handmaids; they believe these women will use legitimate money to escape Gilead, or rebel by accessing black market goods. With Handmaids associated with reproductive organs, and thought of as vessels for this process, the women wear red to exploit their societal intentions. Being that the color red symbolizes impregnation, it displays the advantage Handmaid’s attain over resentful women in society; this advantage is ironic due to the fact that higher classes in Gilead look down on Handmaids even though...
In the novel The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood the themes of Religion and inter-human relationships are the themes that are most evident in the text. This novel shows the possibility of the existence of an all-powerful governing system. This is portrayed through the lack of freedom for women in society, from being revoked of their right to own any money or property, to being stripped of their given names and acquiring names such as Offred and Ofglen, symbolizing women’s dependant existence, only being defined by the men which they belong to. This portrayal of women demonstrates the idea that individuals are unimportant, that the goals of the society as a whole are more pertinent. “For our purposes, your feet and your hands are not essential” (chapter 15) is a quote revealing that Gilead denies rights to individuals and to humankind. In The Handmaids Tale, handmaids are only considered of value for their ability to reproduce, otherwise they are disposable. Religion is an aspect very prominent in the society of Gilead. We see this in chapter 4, where Ofglen and Offred meet and th...
Margaret Atwood uses the culture of how handmaids dress to psychologically change how Offred sees and thinks about the world and others. On the way home from shopping with her partner Ofglen, Offred sees a group of tourists who are dressed how women used to dress before the war. Offred and Oglen stop and watch the tourists; "We are fascinated, but also repelled. They seem undressed" (28), Offred then remembers that she too used to dress like that. Offred's reaction shows that being a handmaid and having to dress so modestly can alter how you think about yourself and
Offred, among other women depicted in this novel, tries to overcome this dominion. In her own way, she attempts to do this by ensuring the Commander’s expectations of her behavior which could result in her freedom. Thus, there is a present power struggle between the Commander and Offred throughout The Handmaid’s
I never looked good in red, it's not my colour." The wings worn on the head prevent others from seeing their face and vice versa, prevents them from looking anywhere except the direction in which they are facing, limiting their options to stray. All garments cover every inch of skin; ankle length skirt, full sleeves and red gloves all worn by the Handmaid prevent temptation for others and themselves.... ... middle of paper ... ...
In The Handmaid’s Tale, Offred’s account and detailed descriptions of a mélange of settings within the Commander’s house and the different events that occur there highlight her struggle between succumbing to Gilead’s forceful system and upholding her identity. Throughout her recollection, Offred uses symbolism and yonic imagery throughout the Commander’s abode to highlight the subtle, yet oppressive standards— an addition to the harsh rules and brutal punishments already publicly displayed in Gileadean society. Furthermore, she utilizes rhetorical devices, such as diction and sexual imagery, to identify her relationship between her own power and Serena Joy’s.
Offred was different because she chose neither so she remained neutral. Offred internalized the rules of Gilead and in doing so she began to lose herself and she tried to preserve it by hanging on to her past identity. She says that "the expectations of other have become [her] own" (Atwood 95). In part three, they talk about resistance and complicity. Offred doesn't clearly or actively resist to the system. She instead does minor things like making eye contact with the guardsmen or swaying her hips. It's something so subtle and further supports the fact that Offred only defines herself by her body and not her identity because she no longer has it. In the article they use the example of another handmaid, Moira. She attempts an escape but is unfortunately caught and is brought to a Jezebel, which is another term for whorehouse. Even in such a disheartening situation where hope is taken from her she keeps her humor, her identity. "Anyway, look at it this way: it's not so bad, there's lots of women around. Butch paradise, you might call it" (Atwood 249). Offred, on the other hand, slowly lost her identity as she never garnered enough interest to
Another way the women in The Handmaid’s Tale are unequal to men is in dress. In modern society it is normal to think of clothing as a way to express our personality and individuality. What you wear helps others know who you are. In the novel, the main character Offred grew up in a westernized world –freedoms like self expression and speech- but it was taken away from her when she became a handmaid.
The Wives wore blue, the Marthas wore green, and the Handmaids wore red. This color coordination also identified the power that the women had, leaving the Handmaids with the least amount. As a Handmaid, Offred described her outift, “Everything except the wings around my face is red: the color of blood, which defines us” (Atwood 8). By saying that blood defines the Handmaids, the red symbolizes their fertility, as they are the women that still have a menstrual cycle and have the ability to be impregnated. This feature reveals their duty to get pregnant by the commander in order for the wife to have a baby. As the Handmaids do not appreciate their lack of power, they continue to abide by the new rules to avoid future consequences, which are being hung in front of many towns people or sent to the colony, however, many are guilty of minor infractions. During one of Offred’s shopping trips, she saw Ofglen, another Handmaid, and described her as “a shape, red with white wings around the face, a shape like mine, a nondescript woman in red carrying a basket” (Atwood 19). Handmaids are stripped of their identity and seen as a group, instead of individuals, portraying their inferiority. This description of Ofglen symbolizes the responsibility of the Handmaids to carry a baby
Gilead’s subjugation of women is also evident in their clothing. The roles of the women in the society were predetermined by the color of their dresses: Handmaids wore red, the Wives wore blue, and green was worn by the Marthas – their individuality and autonomy completely stripped from them. The handmaids’ dresses were referred to as a habit and was similar to the hijabs worn by Muslim women: covering them from their wrists down to their ankles, with the only skin visible being their neck and face. Offred compares the habits to the blouses worn by Lauren Bacall and Katherine Hepburn:
Throughout The Handmaid’s Tale, the author Margaret Atwood gives the reader an understanding of what life would be like in a theocratic society that controls women’s lives. The narrator, Offred, gives the reader her perspective on the many injustices she faces as a handmaid. Offred is a woman who lived before this society was established and when she undergoes the transition to her new status she has a hard time coping with the new laws she must follow. There are many laws in this government that degrade women and give men the authority to own their household. All women are placed in each household for a reason and if they do not follow their duties they are sent away or killed.
Though Offred is developed as a character through her opinions on female sexuality, she is further characterized by her individuality and willingness to defy her social expectations as a female, assigned to her by her government. In Atwood’s work, the narrative is told by an intelligent individual named Offred who is oppressed by Gilead’s female expectations but is not afraid to defy these assigned roles despite not being a traditional heroine (Nakamura). Even as Offred’s previous identity is stripped away from her, she retains small pieces of her womenhood and individuality through defiant actions such as manipulating men with her feminity from swaying her hips slighty in their line of sight to making direct eye contact with certain men, which she is forbidden from. On the other hand, a major act of rebellion from