handmaids tale

The central social hierarchy within the novel is the gender hierarchy, placing men in a position of extreme power. This is evident in every aspect of the book, as the entire Gilead society is male dominated. The Commander is at the top of the hierarchy and is involved with designing and establishing the current society taking control of a nation of women, and exploiting their power by controlling what is taught, what they can teach themselves and the words that they can use. Soon all of the women will become brainwashed, simply because it is made nearly impossible to defy the rules

The Eye is the next highest up and are used as spies to keep the society the way it is and make sure no one consorts against it. Angel’s are next because they are men so they are higher then all women. Their job is to make sure they are all safe and basically the police force. Men are the only ones who may drive cars, own property, have bank accounts, work, or even read from the Bible or any other text.

The next highest up is the commander’s wife. She has writes and privileges about all other women. Aunt’s are responsible for getting the handmaids ready for their society. They pound the ideas of the new culture into the handmaid’s head so that when they enter it seems normal.

Handmaids are the next class, they are the only women who can reproduce they are forced to have children for upper class couples women are often compromised by a forced sexual nature, thereby allowing them to be blamed for problems of conception. Handmaids show which Commander owns them by adopting their Commanders’ names, such as Fred, and preceding them with “Of.” I.e. Offred is one of these unfortunate servants who are only right to exist depends on her ovaries productivity. She lives with her commander and his wife in a highly supervised centre. All female characters in the text are only mentioned in relationship to a male owner of some sort. We find out about how women are treated as walking wombs when the ‘Red Centre’ also known as the Rachel and Leah Centre. As the basis of the novel it is replicated many times throughout the book, it is found in the family reading before the monthly ceremonies, and in Rachel’s plea give me children, or else I die. This really puts emphasis on the threat to the Handmaids life. By failing to produce a child, they will be classed as Unwomen and sent to the Colonies to...

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...they train the handmaids. You could tell them what you believed and hope for change. The commanders wife has privileges but a rough deal too because the commander still thinks of her as a woman and not an equal. As the wife I would try to put in his head that not al sex has to be for procreation.

As a handmaid or lower options are almost none. You have to make friends and trusted allies to make a difference. There is strength in numbers, but it would be imperative that it remain secretive. But in the end I think its hopeless for them in the society they are in. I think The Handmaids Tale is a direct warning to modern society, Atwood underlines that all the points in her novel have occurred in the world previously, and if a half truth establishes itself, it could take place again.

It would be hard to know who to trust because of the eye. But I think that their society would not let any women be in a position of power over a man so women can be more trusted. The angels would not be able to be trusted because the young guys are to stead fast on their principals and can do irrational things. Your best bet would be to make friends with all the commanders.