Examples Of Reconstruction In A Handmaid's Tale

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In the excerpt on pages 134 and 135 of A Handmaids Tale, Margaret Atwood uses repetition and form-follows-content to express both her distress and hope toward her current situation, as well as highlighting the everlasting power struggle that exists in the world. The first paragraph of the excerpt begins with “This is reconstruction” (Atwood 134), at first the sentence is vague and does not have any meaning. However, the term “reconstruction” is then repeated several more times in the same manner, as if it is a well known secret. This emphasis through repetition indicates that “reconstruction” is in fact a well known secret, at least to those who recall history classes from the time before Gilead. Reconstruction referred to the rebuilding of …show more content…

It’s reconstruction now, in my head […]” (Atwood 134), in this quote she is referring to both the society of Gilead as well as her own self. By this statement, Offred is trying to compare the situation of Gilead to the reconstruction of the South, a new beginning with a corrupt upbringing. If the situations are the similar then Offred is claiming that the ruling party of Gilead is corrupt and based off of lies and secrecy, a fault in the perfect society. Her mind is no different. While it is being rebuilt with the new laws of the society she lives in, the question lies in whether it is this society that it is corrupting her or her inability to relinquish the past. By repeating “reconstruction”, she makes it clear that it is an idea that is troubling …show more content…

In a society where women have little to no control over their lives, power is a popular topic. Offred in particular always tries to figure out who has the most and how to gain more. “Maybe none of this is about control. Maybe it isn’t really about who can own whom […] Maybe it’s about who can do what to whom and be forgiven for it” (Atwood 135). The claim made in this quote is that all power is derived from forgiveness, whether it is being bestowed or begged for. Originally Offred had believed that power was equivalent to control. If she could hold on to the secrets of those around her, she’d have some meager amount of control over them thus having power. In the previous quote Offred comes to the realization that control is an inevitable byproduct of power, not the

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