Journal #3: Topic C

    In her novel The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood hints at what the consequences will be if the world does not embrace the feminist movement. If women continue to be objectified and are not appreciated for their true attributes, then society will mold itself around what women are used for, and women will simply become beings only used for having sex and making sandwiches. I can definitely see Atwood's vision coming true. It is all too realistic for me, to have the government dispatched like it is in the novel, to see all the new "temporary" government's attempt to control/ brainwash people to squelch rebellion. Her portrayal of religion as a tool used to force people into submission is genius, and I really can see a government potentially manipulating religion so it supports the new system. This actually reminds me of Islam... But I'm not going to be racist. :)

Journal #2: Topic B

     Alright, I'm going to go out on a limb here and analyze the Commander's violation of societal norms. At first glance, he seems like the type of guy that would stick to the rules-- later in the book we find out that he played a part in implementing this "temporary government." But then we start to see inconsistencies: small at first, but growing larger as the  novel progresses. First he's spotted by Offred outside her bedroom. Then he calls for a rendezvous with her, and they begin what become regular meetings at which they will play Scrabble and just talk. After the conclusion of each night spent together, the Commander would kiss her. This, of course, is completely against protocol, and it makes the reader wonder why someone who has it so good in this society would risk everything. Is it for intimacy with another person? Is it sympathy? Is it nostalgia? Then, he begins to give her things; beauty magazines, and then makeup and a costume, and they go to an underground 'nightclub' of sorts. I guess maybe it was all for intimacy-- he chooses to go there so he and Offred can have sex alone, without Serena Joy around to make things more awkward than they already are and to escape the constraints of the ceremony. The only person apart from Offred and the Commander who know is Nick- at first. Serena Joy eventually finds out. Whether or not the Commander is actually punished I do not know. I know only that Offred was taken away, be it by people who want to help or hurt her.

Journal #1: Topic A

     Just a short clarification before I begin my entry: My distopian novel is The Handmaid's Tail by Margaret Atwood. This entry will be covering the first third of the novel (pages 1-99), and I selected Topic A from the requirements list. The passage I chose to analyze is replicated below.


Passage: Pg 99

     "Is it so bad for him, that he'd take the risk of coming to my room at night? I think of the hanged men on the Wall. I can hardly stand up. I have to get away, back to the stairs before I dissolve entirely. His hand's on my shoulder now, held still, heavy, pressing down on me like warm lead. Is this what I would die for? I'm a coward. I hate the thought of pain.
     "He told me to," Nick says. "He wants to see you. In his office."
     "What do you mean?" I say. The Commander, it must be. See me? What does he mean by see? Hasn't he had enough of me?
     "Tomorrow," he says, just audible. In the dark parlor we move away from each other, slowly, as if pulled towards each other by a force, current, pulled apart by hands equally strong.
     I find the door, turn the knob, fingers on cool porcelain, open. It's all I can do."


Response:

     The chosen passage shows the effects of society on two individuals: Offred, a Handmaid, and Nick, a Guardian. These characters meets by chance in the living room of their household and a forbidden emotional exchange takes place between them. The nature of Offred and Nick's blooming relationship is outlawed because of the prospect of sex. In this society, the only function of sex is to reproduce- and such is done by unconventional means. If individuals form an emotional attachment to one another, they become a liability, and their lives are terminated. Each person has a role specific to them. there are Handmaids, Marthas, Guardians, Angels, eyes, Commanders, and Commanders' Wives, among others. Offred's only purpose in civilization is to bear the children of a Commander. This selection subtly references the punishment for any interaction she should have with Nick- being hung on the Wall. Offred and a fellow Handmaid passed by this Wall earlier in the novel. It is there that rebels are made an example of.