G-BAND: HANDMAID'S TALE "Waiting Room"
What stands out to you from your reading? Choose a passage and explain why it seems significant to you. Work from places of confusion-- perhaps choose some lines that you don't quite understand and explore them. Perhaps you ask a question and try to answer it. You can also just respond to a passage, explaining why it stands out to you and what it reveals about a character, conflict or big idea.
Either way, make sure that you respond to someone else and do not repeat passages! Agree or disagree, but make sure that you add something new-- a new idea, a reference to another part of the book. Include textual evidence as you push the conversation forward.
Format:
"...." (#).
Response:
"'Most of those old guys can't make it anymore,' he says. 'Or they're sterile.' I almost gasp: he's said a forbidden word. Sterile. There is no such thing as a sterile man anymore, no officially...'It's too dangerous,' I say. 'No. I can't.' The penalty is death...My hands are shaking. Why am I frightened? I've crossed no boundaries, I've given no trust, taken no risk, all is safe. It's the choice that terrifies me. A way out, a salvation" (61)
ReplyDeleteThese few lines stood out to be because it shows that the men the society are willing to go against the laws of the government just to fulfill their human desires. The doctor's offer portrays that people cannot be controlled by the totalitarian dictatorship that is followed in Gilead due to peoples inner desires. Offred is taken aback by how the doctor used the word "sterile" because the word is forbidden and several men are not fertile anymore. However, in private, people realize that men can be sterile. They can outlaw the word "sterile" but the very existence of sterility cannot be prevented. The need for children is the main force that drives this society and forbidden activities secretly go on, such as secret impregnation. Possibly, the need for children caused this oppressive system in Gilead. When the doctor offers to get her impregnated, she refuses even though she knows its an opportunity to escape. This depicts this "prisoner mentality" that is always with her because she knows that refusal is the only way she can survive. She is used to this mentality and this might be comforting to her. The idea of freedom, "a salvation" is horrifying and alien to her yet her captivity makes her feel safe.
I totally agree with you here. This quote also shows just how they say that its never the mans fault, always the women. Which also just shows why these women can be killed or sent away for not being able to provide a baby even if its actually the men who are infertile. That seems to be the reason that Offred actually thinks about the doctor impregnating her because it would be a way for her to get pregnant without the worry that the commander could be sterile.
Delete“I looked up at the blind plaster eye in the ceiling. I wanted to feel Luke lying beside me. I have them, these attacks of the past, like faintness, a wave sweeping over my head” (52).
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because I think it helps deepen the reader’s understanding of Offred and her actual raw emotions. Loneliness and nostalgia begin to take over Offred and she begins to miss her old life, her husband, her friends, her daughter etc. Since she isn’t allowed to openly express these feelings she is left to deal with her sadness isolated and alone making her emotions feel like random and wave-like “attacks”. This reminded me a lot of Mae in The Circle when she talks about her “tear”, representing her fear of the unknown, in a world where people are expected to share/know everything and to practically be perfect. But Offred’s sadness on the other hand exists because she knows too much. She remembers what life was like when her value exceeded her ability to bear children and she understands that at one point she actually had power and worth. As we the reader’s are more exposed to Offred’s real emotions and her past, we are able to see the true person/woman that she exists within her and that she used to be before she became the devalued object she now serves as in this new world.
I completely agree with you here but I wanted to add on that maybe Offred wants to go back to the past and be with Luke and her daughter again. She keeps reliving the past and having flashbacks to show us that even though Handmaids are only useful when it comes to bearing a child, they still have emotions and feelings which are being expressed here through Offred. She seems to realize that even though Luke and her thought they had problems in the past, they did love each other and it came down to the fact that she was not living in the moment. If she knew that she would become a Handmaid in the future and be kept in chains like this, she would have enjoyed those little moments she had with Luke and her daughter. Now she feels worthless and powerless because the other people in the society are not fond of her and they tend to look down upon her because she's a handmaid.
DeleteVarshini I agree with you to a certain extent but when I was reading this latest chapter I couldn't help but think that Offred would be much better off if she didn't have the memories to compare her life now to. Her life as a hand-maid would be so much more bearable if she didn't have the good memories to keep reminding her of what she once had.
Delete"My nakedness is strange to me already. My body seems outdated. Did I really wear bathing suits, at the beach? I did, without thought, among men, without caring that my legs, my arms, my thighs and back were on display, could be seen. Shameful, immodest. I avoid looking down at my body...I don't want to look at something that determines me so completely" (63).
ReplyDeleteThis passage really stood out to me because the narrator begins to compare her past to her present and she realizes how comfortable she used to be with her body. She recalls wearing bathing suits without caring about showing off her body. This makes her feel bad about herself mainly due to the fact that Gilead has set up rules that are bound to make women feel of less value. For example, women must cover up their bodies in order to not be stared at or harassed by men. They are basically being taught to neglect their bodies, which can almost cause them to fear their bodies as well. When she says, "I don't want to look at something that determines me so completely", it implies that the society highly values women's bodies because they can give birth. However, this makes her feel self-conscious and lowers her self-esteem. This is not right because women should be comfortable in their own bodies and should not have to feel ashamed of their own skin.
I agree with your response but to add on, do you think this shows that women in our society should also be shameful of showing too much skin and in order to be "good girls" they have to cover up in order not to get attention? I think that the narrator as well as other women should not follow the status quo and just do them. The amount of clothing women wear should not determine whether they are good or bad and the attention they get is not really their fault.
DeleteI strongly agree with this because the girls of Gilead have no choice in what they wear. For example, when the Japanese tourists came she says, "We are fascinated, but also repelled. They seem undressed. It has taken so little time to change our minds, about things like this. Then I think: I used to dress like that" (28). Because they're so used to all of these rules and restrictions put on them by the government of Gilead they're manipulated into thinking wrong of and judging what they once used to dress like.
DeleteI think that passage is also interesting because it not only shows how women regard their bodies, but also the stance Gilead holds towards women. A big issue in our world today is the belief that, by choosing to wear less clothing, women "provoke" men to catcall to them, or sexually harass them. This passage proves that Gilead not only devalues women for the reasons you brought up, but it supports a view that women "provoke" men by wearing clothing that doesn't cover everything up. That is an anti-female view. It thrusts the blame onto the shoulders of women, and it also shows what type of society Gilead is. It's an interesting statement because, even though the book was written 30 years ago, topics discussed in it, like "provocation", are now big issues within our society.
Delete"But Rita clamped her lips together. I am like a child here, there are some things I must not be told. What you don't know won't hurt you, was all she would say." (53)
ReplyDeleteI chose this quote because it shows that innocence is forced onto the women in this society. Offred remembers what it was like to be independent and strong before the change in government. In Gilead however, women need to be naive, young and dependent on men. Any form of "rebellious" lifestyle considered normal in our own society must be forgotten. What frustrates me the most is that the Handmaids had the little innocence they had left destroyed when their own children were taken away from them. Also, the Handmaids experience one of the most painful parts of the human life cycle, then proceed to have those babies taken away from them so that someone who doesn't know how to raise a child raises it, and on top of that, the Handmaids are expected to pretend to not know suffering, and hide any sort of sadness. Instead, they act like preteens, whispering to each other like schoolgirls, scared of interacting with men. It seems that the government wants to create a world where children create children. They are forced to pretend they're oblivious to the world, when in reality they're not. But the government knows that if you lie for long enough, you believe your own lies.
Also, Rita's response is that "what you don't know won't hurt you." I think this is funny on Atwood's part because she takes a phrase that is commonly used in our society, and brings it to its extreme. In some ways, oblivion can be used as a good coping mechanism. However, in Offred's case, she wants to know what happened to the handmaid that lived there previously. The fact that whatever happened to her is so severe that it can't be spoken about is wrong and scary. Offred deserves to know her fate if it's predetermined (like the other handmaid's) by someone who shouldn't be entitled to determine things like that.
I agree with how innocence is forced upon women in this society, and I feel that this innocence or child-like behaviors are almost a reason or excuse to treat them like products that only have one use and need to be watched and follow strict rules all the time. If they can reason or pretend that all women need help and are children then they can say that it is perfectly natural to "help" them, or to watch them all the time, even when the bathe like on page 62 as "Cora sits on a chair outside in the hall, to see that no one else goes in...Cora has run the bath."
DeleteJenifer Jara
ReplyDelete"I cannot avoid seeing, now, the small tattoo on my ankle.Four digits and an eye"(65).
This passage stood out to me because with the tattoo she will always remember her past. Even if she tries to run away and start a new life she will not be bale to because the tattoo will always remember her of her past. I wonder what the eye symbolizes. I think it symbolizes that she will always be watched and if she tries to run away her commander will find her. The tattoo she has in her ankle makes her look like an object and an animal. I think it is not right for her to have that because she is not an object or an animal she is a human being. In Gilead women have no control over themselves and are just used as objects. I think its not right for women to be seen as objects because they are human beings like every one else and not just a person that only works for making babies.
I agree with you completely. When I read this the image of a cow being branded came to mind. The women in Gilead are reminded with tattoos and with being issued to me that the are property and therefore have no freedom. They are seen as object, like you pointed out, that are used for their ability to reproduce and and then passed on or killed if they are no longer useful. I thought the tattoo might also bring them joy because it represent that they are not unwomen.
Delete“Sometimes these flashes of normality come at me from the side, like ambushes.”(48) This passage stood out to me because it showed how much she misses her old life, her free life and how something as little as a dishtowel can remind her of it. I was confused about whether she was relieved because of the palimpsest, seeing something of her old life in her new life showing her that not everything has changed. Or if the dishtowel is kind of a slap in the face simply reminding her of what once was. Her choice of words to express how she felt like ambushed and a kick also stood out to me because it shows the reader how hard it hits her emotionally being reminded of when she was free. I also think that she’s numb in the sense that she’s used to this life but sometimes it just “flashes” in her mind that her old life is gone and she’s stuck with this one for good, it’s not a dream.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this and I also feel like when she says that flashes of normality come like ambushes, shes showing how shocked she is a way that there is any similarity between what her life used to be compared to how it is now because she is not free anymore as she used to be and cannot live the way she used to but just seeing the simplest forms of normality come to her as an attack.
DeleteJenifer Jara
DeleteI agree with this because through this the narrator expresses how she feels and how her life from before differs with the one she has. She also expresses that like her life before was normal and she had freedom. But now she has rules to follow and a commander and she is not free anymore. In the world she lives in her life is not normal since she has no voice and she is controlled.
“It pleases me to ponder this message. It pleases me to think I’m communing with her, this unknown woman. For she is unknown; or if known, she has never been mentioned to me. It pleases me to know that her taboo message made it through, to at least one other person... Sometimes I repeat the words to myself. They give me a small joy." (52).
ReplyDeleteThis passage stood out to me the most because it gives us an idea on how lonely the narrator feels. This message that she has found means so much to her because it was actually written by someone whom she didn't know anything about except that this person was once in the same place she was. The fact that she has this strong attachment to a message she doesn't even know the meaning of or who it was written by shows us that she doesn't have a stronger connection with anyone else. In Gilead, the Handmaids really have no true friends or anyone to have a conversation with because they're looked down upon by the rest. Because of this lack of connection with others, she's devoted to this unknown message because it's the only sense of association she has with anyone.
I strongly agree with the fact that her strong attachment to the message has to do with the fact that she is lonely. The message definitely fills a void and gives the narrator a sense of hope because she knows someone else has gone through her current circumstances. In a few lines after the passage, the narrator says, "When I imagine the woman who wrote them, I think of her as about my age...I turn her into Moira..." (52) This also represents how lonely the narrator is for she begins to create an image of who this woman was and how she acted as a person.
DeleteI also agree with your analysis of this quote. I think it is very interesting how enchanted Offred is with this message, just because it gives her something to think about and communicate with in her mind. I might also add something about how she says it pleased her that the message made it through because this tells us how insignificant the handmaids are. The handmaids sole purpose it to have children, yet it is comforting to know that someone from the past left their mark in another way.
Delete"She didn't work out, she said.
ReplyDeleteIn what way? I asked, trying to sound as neutral as possible.
But Rita clamped her lips together. I am like a child here, there are some things I must not be told. What you don't know won't hurt you, was all she would say." (53)
As I read what Rita was saying I realized that the woman that Rita was talking about may have either been killed or sent away. I am assuming that the unknown lady was killed because in the page before, we encounter the narrator reading, "Nolite te bastardes carborundorum." I translated this and the meaning is "Don't let the bastards get you down." When I discovered this I realized the woman before our narrator must have been rebellious such as Moira was. I assumed that she got killed due to being rebellious or because the commander is sterile and as the women were taught in the training of becoming handmaids, nothing is the mans fault, it is the woman's fault. Everyone else also seems to have that mindset and I figured that out as Rita speaks about summer and tanning and says that such "things" do not happen to good women and it seems as though she is justifying the harassment or disrespect that women received yet not saying it exactly and instead sugar coating it with the word "things".
I agree with you ideas about rebellion and how hard the government is trying to suppress it. It is possible, however, that in this quote, when it says 'She didn't work out,' it might just mean that she was not able to get pregnant. This also has far reaching implications though because that may mean that the commander is infertile, and therefore Offred may not be able to get pregnant. The book said that it is the law that it is always the woman that is either fruitful or barren, and so if she cannot get pregnant, there may be bad consequences, even though we know she is fertile because the already had a kid.
Delete"It's Janine, telling about how she was gang-raped at fourteen and had an abortion...But whose fault was it? Aunt Helen says, holding up one plump finger. Her fault, her fault, her fault, we chant in unison. Who led them on? Aunt Helen beams, pleased with us. She did. She did. She did. Why did God allow such a terrible thing to happen? Teach her a lesson. Teach her a lesson. Teach her a lesson." (71&72)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because of how unreal and inhumane what's happening seems to be. A woman is telling her story of how she was horribly raped at 14 and instead of being offered sympathy, she is shamed and told that it was so she could learn a lesson. Not only that, but she seems to be using her story as a way to gain attention and is proud of it. This is also wrong as it's not like a toy or some possession to brag about, it is a hardship that she was forced to go through. The worst part about all of this, however, is how real it seems. Even nowadays, in a world we consider to be different than Gilead, this still happens. Women are often shamed for being raped, and instead of being helped or being sympathetic, people often wonder why she didn't do more to fight back or why she was in that situation in the first place, as if it was her fault and she wanted to be raped. But it wasn't her fault, and she didn't want to be raped, yet all this is overlooked and the victim is often blamed more than the criminal. In both Offred's world and ours, rape culture is horribly misguided.
I completely agree with this and I was so freaked out when I read this passage. Also it made me think of when Offred has a flashback to talking about rape with Moira and how different the attitude towards rape was back then, when people were allowed to talk about it and question it. Compared to in this scene where rape is always assumed to be the women's fault and as you said some sort of possesion/toy.
Delete"She's just crazy, Luke said.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was an isolated incident, at the time" (64)
This quote really made me think about this big question of why all these women are infertile now. In class we talked about how maybe there was some sort of nuclear or chemical outburst that caused women to become infertile, but this quote made me think otherwise. In the quote when it says that she thought it was an isolated incident, it makes me think that mabye it started happening to women in phases. I think this because if it seemed to happen to all women, then the narrator would have known, which she didn't, but obviously the women who tried to steal her baby knew what had happened and knew that she was unable to have children. Also the narrator didn't even know anything had happened, but just thought that the woman was crazy. If there had been some large event like a chemical bomb or something then everyone would have known and been watching out for people like this.
I agree with you that must have been a chemical bomb/Nuclear Bomb incident that may have occurred at some point during their on going war with the "outcasts" of their society, but I also want to add on that it could have been something that had to do with the food or water as well, since in this new society everything is more controlled the possibilities are endless.
Delete"I don't know if the words are right. I can't remember. Such songs are not sung anymore in public, especially the ones that use words like free. They are considered too dangerous. They belong to out-lawed secrets." (54)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because it shows how the people of Gilead are allowing themselves to be told what they can and cannot say, as well as living with no freedom. Whoever has this authority seems to be exempt from these laws, but everyone else has to suffer through a life with no real choice or freedom. Even the word free is banished from being said, because it could remind the people of the better times of the past. This reminds me of The Lottery, how everyone just accepts this horrible tradition, and nobody takes action or tries to stand up to the authorities and change the flaws in their society. Not only do the authorities have control over the people in both these stories, but a fear of the unknown also controls them from stepping to far out of their comfort zone. We take our freedom for granted in modern days, but in times like this, freedom was a far fetched idea that could be dangerous to even think about. In Gilead, the handmaids have no real choice over their bodies, but they seems to just acknowledge this. Speaking up may be dangerous, but living in confinement with nothing to do or think about, seems like it would push a group to stand out and express criticism for the many flaws of that society, or question the people who pushed for this to happen in the first place.
I agree and the freedom to express feelings of sadness or depression is lost as well (whether it be through lyrics or acts of suicides). I think that the person with the authority to create these laws does it to gain more control over the public's mindset and overall beliefs because over generations, the idea of freedom/past memory of freedom won't exist anymore.While speaking up is dangerous in their society, they do it very discreetly by doing what is forbidden, for example when Moira and the narrator were talking through the small wooden hole. (Kind of like the passive resistance that we talked about in "The Lottery.")
Delete"I was nervous. How was I to know he loved me? It might be just an affair. Why did we ever say just? Though at that time men and women tried each other on, casually, like suits, rejecting whatever did not fit." (51)
ReplyDeleteI found this quote very significant because I've never really appreciated the ability or freedom to reject someone. Obviously, we fear rejection and it isn't a good feeling to either be rejected or reject someone but in this society, a woman cannot reject a man. And, I assume that if a man is "issued" a woman, they aren't allowed to reject her either. (Perhaps the fear of rejection is why they cancelled out the option to reject.) It's a really disgusting thing to imagine that you have no choice or say in whether or not you want to be with that person especially when there is no guarantee that you will be loved/you will love that person. The option to say no, no longer exists meaning that -for example with Janine- you have no say and people are blaming the victim. This idea and mindset becomes constantly practiced that as a woman, you actually believe that it's your fault. The same issue happens in our society today where a woman is blamed for being raped because she wore something "too revealing" or "was asking for it." Back to the quote, the narrator also talks about how people would try each other on like suits and it doesn't seem like this glamorous thing but in some ways it is true. Some people end up dating a lot until they find "The one" but it is because they want to.
-Also, general question, does a Commander's wife have to be infertile to be a Commander's wife?-
I agree! I think it's interesting too that Offred shows some insecurity and doubt on whether Luke loved her or not, which shows that there is a value in love. In this new society, it doesn't matter if there's love between the couples, because the woman is assigned to the man, and there is no space for freedom of choice.
Delete"Serena Joy, what a stupid name. It's like something that you would put in your hair, in the other time, the time before, to straighten it."(45)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because for the first time in the book, we are seeing the Handmaid's showing signs of jealousy towards the commander's wives. Everyone says that because the handmaid's are fertile, all other women envy them and wish to do what they are able to do. But I mean aren't the handmaid's jealous of the wives independence, intelligence and freedom. Although these women can not give birth they stand for more than just their infertility. Even though it's not shown in this society, fertility and reproduction are not the most important aspects of life, or they shouldn't be. Why should these handmaid's attempt to get pregnant every month when those children are just going to grow up and end up being just another handmaid? Isn't there more to a society and a person? These are all questions that I believe the handmaid's are secretly asking themselves in their heads. They are told their important but really they are lacking what a commander's wife has, freedom and equality. You may say that the wives are looked at critically because of their infertility but they are not the women being locked up and raped every month. This quote shows a desire that a handmaid has, to be more than just baby maker.
I agree i feel that all the women envy what others have. Serena joy was once a very outgoing women as Offred remembered but now is forced to be a housewife and watch over her garden. All these women miss their old lives and are envious of the things that others can do, just because a couple years ago they were able to do what they wanted and didn't need to obey a strict regime.
DeleteI totally agree but I also feel that with his qoute it could as be argued that that this qoute shows the true colors in The Republic of Gilead becuase the way the socity is set up it makes it look like everyone is happy even willing to do the whatever job they are supposed to do because it keeps the socity intact but in this qoute we see how everyone ( the handmaid in particular) really feels about their jobs - Nayah Ferris
DeleteAnother thing about this quote, is that it shows Offred talking about before Gilead and she makes it sound so much better than now because in that time all women could have had babies and there were emotions. Now, its just whatever. Yet strict.
Delete"I ought to feel hatred for this man. I know i ought to feel it, but it isn't what i do feel. What i feel is more complicated than that. I don't know what to call it. It isn't love."(58)
ReplyDeleteThis quote shows that Offred takes other peoples thoughts into consideration and does not follow the ideas set by society. Even though the commander basically rapes her, she understands the fact that she like him was forced into this new society with no say in the matter. She understands the commander she does not appreciate the fact that she has no power, and that she is just like an item in the society. She also does not follow the thought that all different groups should hate each other as the other women hate the handmaids. Even though she does not agree with all that is set, she has no power to rebel or anyone to rebel with her.
I agree the only reason she doesn't feel hatred is because she knows that they have both been forced into this society and they both have no say in the matter. What I am wondering is will the next generation even know that what is happening is rape? I assume they wouldn't because they will have no knowledge of the time before and they will have been born and raised in this life.
Delete“This week Janine doesn't wait for us to jeer at her. It was my fault, she say. It was my own felt. I led them on. I deserved the pain,” (72).
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because of how relevant it is to our society today. Girls get raped and it their fault no matter what. They’re told to dress a certain way so that they don't make men think that they want to intimate with them. Instead of trying to fix the real problem, men that hurt women justify their action using the women. In many cultures and religions women are to be covered in order to protect themselves from the stare of a man. Even though women are to be the ones to take action it is also implied that man are at fault.This quote also made me very anger because women, who I believe should try to comfort Janine, are the ones to make her feel that she is the reason why she was raped and had to get an abortion. The women, knowing that what they are doing is wrong, don’t stop because they haven't been raped to understand how she feels. They have also been thought to believe just like how men can not be sterile they also can't be to blame for raping a women who shows to much skin or acts sexual in any way. I also felt sorry for Janine because when she said that she deserved the “pain” I saw it as pain from the men and also the shame she got from the women around her.
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ReplyDeleteThere are three new bodies on the Wall… The two others have purple placards hung around their necks: Gender Treachery (43).
ReplyDeleteThis passage interested me for a couple of reasons. One thing that caught me off-guard was the calm way she referred to the dead bodies. This obviously means that this is a common occurrence. Not only is this a way that the government shows power over the people, but it also conveys the clear message if you go against the government they will kill you. Another interesting point this passage brought up was the idea of homosexuality. This shows homosexuality is punishable by death, but why is this a crime of such a high caliber? I believe this is such a high offense because fertility is so rare that the idea of it being wasted on mates that can’t even reproduce is ludicrous. The government does not allow love to exist in this world and believes there are only two kinds of people: those who can have babies and those who cannot.
"But if its a story, even in my head, I must be telling it to someone. You don't tell a story only to yourself. There's always someone else. Even when there is no one" (40)
ReplyDeleteThis quote really stood out to me because it connects to the modern day society. This demonstrates how much privacy we lack and continue to think we have. Over the years, we began to feel obligated to tell people everything we think which eventually leads to us critically thinking. As a result, we have different opinions and ideas on different topics. Within this world the narrator lives in, it is forbidden to write and that causes her to feel as if her thoughts are not safe as well and that she is still telling someone. This concept is very interesting to me because it is our human nature to share our thoughts with each other and think more logically. The society within the book is taking that opportunity away from the people and creates an unsafe environment. It raises the question on whether our minds are even safe to ponder and if we shouldn't know everything or how others feel.
Keaona Gray-Outlaw
I agree with you. Yes, it is human nature to tell others our thoughts and opinions, but the human race has become SO dependent on expressing their concerns, ideas, and thoughts with one another on social media websites. Even when it is easy to stop yourself from telling others your thoughts, there is always another person on facebook or Twitter or whatever it is that feels obligated to share their rather boring or interesting thoughts. So yes, I agree with what you are saying.
DeleteI completely agree with both of you. This passage though, I feel establishes a whole new worry to sharing your information. The narrator does not have the technology that we use everyday, therefore it is hard to imagine that even your own thoughts can be feared. The author uses the fact that the narrator is entrapped as a way to show that technology, eventhough it affects people, is not always needed to change human nature and our perspective.
Delete"We pause, out of respect, while they go by. I wonder if Ofglen feels what I do, pain like a stab, in the belly. We put our hands over our hearts to show these stranger women that we feel with them in their loss. Beneath her veil the first one scowls at us. One of the others turns aside, spits on the sidewalk. The Econowives do not like us."(44)
ReplyDeleteThis passage brought out many ideas that I felt were significant as to the relationship between the handmaids and the wives. One of the things that stood out the most for me was the fact that the wives envy the handmaid's because they possess a kind of "power" that the wives do not. Yet, the wives have freedom and independence while the handmaids are locked in a room for most of their lives and still the wives manage to feel envy for them. Another very important point in this passage is that the author chooses to describe the pain as a stab in the belly. This is symbolic because pregnant women usually feel this pain constantly. I believe the author chose to add this because she wants to exaggerate the fact that a handmaids life constantly revolves around pregnancy and children. This connects to the envy that the wives feel because the wives do not really know what it is like to be in the position of a handmaid and if they knew, I believe that they would not treat them like they do.
I also wrote about the relationship between the handmaids and another person that they had to deal with in a way. But more about how they felt each other. And I do agree with you 100% but I was thinking about the idea of “power” and who has power over someone else. Maybe the housemaids really do hold lot of the power just without them knowing it because if you think about it the society is all about them and what happens with them and kids. But if they all just stand up for themselves then the society would be forced to do what they wanted and because they in away hold the key to this society.
DeleteNayah Ferris
ReplyDelete"Its not the husbands you need to watch out for , said Anut Lydia, it the Wives .You should always try to imagine what they must be feeling .Of course they will resent you . Its only natural .Try to feel for them...Try to pity them " page 46
This qoute really stood out to me because it brought a more human side to the conflict in this book , becuase in this book I feel like what is happening is very inhumane, the ideas that every person is alive for one job and one job only is werid for me .When Aunt Lydia says "its not the husbands you need to watch out for, said Anut Lydia, it's the Wives " she makss it sound like you should fear them because they are jealous for , " try to pity them" she makes it seem like ths Handmaids are "living the life " and the wivesarethe way less fortunate in this situation, when no one is more or less fortunate becuase they are all stuck doing one job for the rest of their lives , it no way to live .
"I put on my clothes again, behind the screen. My hands are shaking. Why am I frightened? I've crossed no boundaries, I've given no trust, taken no risk, all is safe. It's the choice that terrifies me. A way out, a salvation." (61)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because it is in essence, a loophole in the system. Offred is offered a way out, and it isn't the shadiness of the offer that she is horrified by. It is rather the mere idea of having the right to choose and being the only decision-maker for her future, even if the opportunity was short-lived. Offred and many of the other handmaids live in constant fear of the system that they abide by, but it didn't seem that it was the fear that drove her to deny the doctors request. Again, it was the option to be able to choose for herself, and in a society like this, in which everything is controlled and there are extremely rigid boundaries, the idea of being allowed the right to choose for yourself becomes barely fathomable, even when that right is the pathway and guarantee of your safety.
"I wait, washed, brushed, fed, like a prize pig. Sometime in the eighties they invented pig balls, for pigs who were being fattened in pens. Pig balls were large colored balls; the pigs rolled them around with their snouts." (69)
ReplyDeleteI think that this is a powerful comparison, women, or particularly handmaids, to prize pigs. Apparently, women can be reported for not finishing their food, as we see later on in the book when Offred forces herself to eat dinner. Her small room is like a jail cell- or like a pen- keeping her trapped. There is no escape of any form available to handmaids. 'I am a national resource.' Said Offred earlier in the book. Like a prize pig, she is being held captive, and force fed for the gain of others. This returning comparison of women to animals is a very detrimental idea, because when women are not thought f as human beings, they will not be awarded due rights and treatment. She is jealous of the fact that the wives get to knit as a way to occupy their time. She is not even given a 'pig ball,' or some form of distraction. Instead, she is left to reminisce about the world that she grew up in. No wonder her room is designed with shatterproof glass and no hooks, the life she is living is meaningless. Handmaids' only purpose is to repopulate, and even though this story takes it to the extreme, many people, even in modern society, view this as women's primary purpose. When a woman is valued only for her reproduction abilities, women are devalued. We have seen that the short time in this society has changed even Offred's views of women. She could not believe that the tourists were wearing skirts that she may have worn a couple of years ago. If a forward thinking, modern woman's views were so easily changed into shame at the sight of the female body, it shows that these messages were very effectively brainwashing at least the majority of the society.
"God, do I need a cigarette, says Moira.
ReplyDeleteMe too, I say.
I feel ridiculously happy."
This quote stood out at first to me because to me it was a huge difference between the Republic of Gilead and the society we have now. The fact that this small act of rebellion, the whispering behind closed doors, had enough effect to make our protagonist "ridiculously happy" seemed almost pitiful to me. Just talking about the act of smoking cigarettes created a bond between the two girls was enough to create elation. But then I realized how these two societies are really not that different after all. In Gilead, the form of rebellion is to talk about smoking cigarettes, in our society, we smoke cigarettes. What's the difference? Neither are productive, they are both acts of defiance that don't harm anybody but in our society, ourselves. With this quote, Margaret Atwood is trying to convey to the reader that however pitiful this act of defiance may sound to us, we are no better.
“They’re talking about me as though I can’t hear. To them I’m a household chore, one among many.” (Pg.48)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because it shows the relation between the handmaids and the marathas who are in the house. But using them and how they feel towards the handmaid's can help us see how most other people see and treat them beside other handmaids. We can see that handmaids are treated very badly and talked down to without being talked to. That just because of what they do people don’t respect them even though they really don’t get a say in what they do. That they are just they and they are a pest. You can see that when it saids “a household chore, one among many.” that they are thought of as something that just hangs around with out any meaning and has to be dealt with sometimes. But other wise it is really not their.
"Don't think that way, Moira would say. Think that way and you'll make it happen"(85).
ReplyDeleteVery short quote, but has a lot of depth. I really liked this quote because it is saying that if you believe/think about certain things, it will eventually happen. In Offred's case i understand why she felt the way she did. She was frightened, worried, and nervous. She states," Worse, how will i be able to hold on to Luke, to her, when im so flat, so white?". If she had kept thinking that way, i believe something would have happen, but if she would have calmed down and took a breather, everything would have worked out fine.
"It was our hands that were supposed to be full, of the future; which could be held but not seen" (47).
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because it is saying everything I believe in, in one concise line. This line is saying that WE are the future. WE are the people that are going to have to keep on filling the roles of the people before us. Not that you know what you are going to do (the seen part) but you eventually will take up a role in society that a person had before you. Also, it's saying that our future is in our own hands and we have the choice wether or not to make it great. I also feel like it means something a little bit more.. mystical i guess the word could be... She says that the future is something that you can't see, so maybe the thing that you can see is the past, which you need to learn from.
"Yesterday morning I went to the doctor. Was taken, by a Guardian, one of those with the red arm bands who are in charge of such things. We rode in a red car, him in the front, me in the back. No twin went with me; on these occasions I'm solitaire.
ReplyDeleteI'm taken to the doctor's once a month, for tests: urine, hormones, cancer smear, blood test; the same as before, except that now it's obligatory." (59)
This passage is important because it reveals a few ideas I'm sure will be ongoing themes of the book. Offred talks about how it's now obligatory for her to go to the doctors. This themes was mentioned in a few other comments, but it is an important point, so I'll bring it up again. Women are treated as surrogates in this society. They go for monthly checkups to the doctor, to make sure everything is in working order, they are forced to live in small rooms, specifically designed so they can't kill themselves, and that, in itself, brings up another point, that will surely be a theme in the book; why would the women want to kill themselves? Here's an answer: women are viewed as tools to help the society progress: women=children=the future. But if that's the case, then I ask, what's the point? If Gilead is always forward looking, what is the point of life for those who live there? Why live if you're never focused on the moment, but exclusively on what comes next?
I agree Lucas, I myself ask those questions while i read this passage. Maybe Gilead focuses on the lives of the people who live there in order to create a better future. In this society its all about progress, and to them progression is obligatory. The Handmaids are almost trained like lab rats to focus on "what comes next." These strong women block out the sadness and madness and try to move on to the next thing. They learn at a young age how things have to be with no exceptions.
Delete"I remember the pictures of us i once had, me holding her, standard poses, mother and baby, locked in a frame,for safety." (64)
ReplyDeleteThis stood out to me because of her choice of words used on this page. She describes the picture as a safety reminder. I found it odd because usually pictures are intended to remind you of life's beautiful memories. She uses this as leverage in her life to deal with he surroundings. I feel like this is a coping mechanism as a "used to be mother" because this way she is reminded that her daughter is not a ghost and that it did exist. This child was born from her uterus and is not the property of the dystopian government presented in the book. This memory make sit easier for her to become oblivious to pain since she has dealt with it to its extreme level.
I also thought this when reading this passage. I thought that it was interesting how she was pointing memories that might have been important to her, but in our world today we see everyday. This can also connect to the idea that once we are striped of what we took for granted then we begin to crave it even more and I think that migh be what she is trying to say too.
Delete"It's Janine, telling about how she was gang-raped at fourteen and had an abortion. She told the same story last week. She seemed almost proud of it while she telling. It may not even be true..." (p.71)
ReplyDeleteThis quote shows how woman are sometimes made to feel that being a victim of rape is their fault. In our society there is a thin line between being a victim, or leading someone on. Not only men have this conception of how women's actions can provoke a mans instinct, but there are women who also feel like some women's actions including wearing short skirts, or wearing to much make up, somehow invites men to violate them. Because of this, women feel afraid and ashamed coming forward about their stories because they feel they will be shamed upon. It was very frightening to read this passage because to think that other girls would have trouble believing in someone who when through this traumatic experience scary. They bully and embarrass her into making her feel like she lead him and that it was all her fault that this happened to her. When she began to cry as well I thought this was heart breaking and it angered me because by them not even caring I think desensitizes the fact that she could have gone to serious trauma. It is embarrassing that still in 2014 there are people like Todd Akin who say things like a woman can release a chemical in her body to prevent being raped. This just proves the perception that women can somehow still be blamed for being raped.
"I'm taken to the doctor's once a month, fir tests: urine, hormones, cancer smear, blood test; the same as before, except that now it's obligatory"(59).
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me slightly and that is because Handmaids are supposed to be taken to doctors, fed, cared for, it actually isn't that bad right? Well I just want to answer this question with another question, What happens when the doctor finds out that the Handmaid is infertile? My guess is that they get rid of her right on the spot. This might actually be a very scary experience for the Handmaid. If the Handmaid is not eliminated on the spot, is she turned into an Econo-wife? Well in the same page, there was also another quote that helped answer this, "...still wearing his pistol in the shoulder holster"(59) This in a way answers my question of what they do to the Handmaid once they are found to not be as fertile. ...