For tonight's blog, please choose a line from the text, quote it (with the page number), and then ask a feminist critic question based off of this line. Then, try to answer your own question. Dig deep. Perhaps try out a couple of potential answers. Perhaps, in your answer, provide a piece of textual evidence from earlier in the novel. YOU MUST ALSO RESPOND TO A CLASSMATE'S QUESTION. Example:
"It pleased me that she was willing to lie for me, even in such a small thing, even for her own advantage. It was a link between us" (152).
Question: Why is Cora and Offred's moment of secret solidarity so rare? What does this moment of "sisterhood" DO for these women who are all being oppressed? What does this exchange suggest about Atwood's larger message about the ability for "sisterhood" as a means of resisting patriarchy?
Answer: Answer your own question! Even if you're not sure, posit various responses-- "maybe..." or "perhaps...." Make connections to other passages/moments in the novel to try to answer your own question.
ReplyDelete“He kissed me then, as if now I’d said that, things could get back to normal, But something had shifted, some balance. I felt shrunken, so that when he put his arms around me, gathering me up, I was small as a doll. I felt love going forward without me. He doesn’t mind this, I thought. He doesn’t mind at all. Maybe he even likes it. We are not each other’s anymore. Instead, I am his...So Luke...Was I right? Because we never talked about it. By the time I could have done that, I was afraid to. I couldn’t afford to lose you” (182).
Question: What are the power relationships between men and women? How are male and female roles defined?
Answer: This passage enticed me because it refers to men as being the dominant one in the relationship, and how that role makes them more powerful and superior. I was really struck when Offred says, “Maybe he even likes it,” which does show how possessiveness can be a part of male behavior. However, in another part of the passage, Offred mentions how she would never bring up to Luke hat she felt unworthy and unappreciated as both a woman in her marriage and a woman in this changing society. When she says, “So Luke….Am I right?’ it is made clear that Offred was only making assumptions about how Luke felt after she lost her job in terms of who had more power in the relationship. I think Offred’s assumptions are right and that Luke obviously had more power, but I also think Offred was also afraid of change, of being alone, of suddenly feeling uprotected. I think she should have spoken up and attempted to have good communication with her husband, instead of cowering away because she was afraid to lose him. On the other hand, he was all she had at the moment besides her daughter, and I do understand her reasoning for not confronting him,. In a fast-forward to the present in the book, the commander starts to become an older resemblance of Luke, someone who looks out for her, but still maintains that dominant male role in the relationship.
I definitely agree that men are often referred to as dominant and protected and this creates an imbalance in the power relationship between men and women. However, you mentioned that the Commander begins to develop into a dominant male like Luke. Yes the Commander has some power over Offred seeing as he can send her to the Colonies or rat her out to Serena anytime, but he's also referred to as weak. The Commander needs Offred to keep him company since Serena won't, so he'll do anything to keep her around. He gives her gifts and lets her read and do things women aren't aloud to in his study. Offred could refuse to see him at any time and tell his secret which would ruin him. She has power over the Commander, so in some relationships the power dynamic is shifted around. I think it's interesting that in this relationship between Offred and the Commander she holds power even though it's not expected in the society, whereas in the past she had no power in the "gender-equal" society.
DeleteI strongly agree, that men are seen and like to be seen as one not necessarily in charge, but like to lead the relationship. Now coming from the Commanders point of view, he wants to be in charge, but in this society love is an object you hold from your past. The Commander can not really love Offred because of her class as not a wive and this creates a shift of power from Offred controlling the Commanders feelings.
Delete“I thought, Already he’s starting to patronize me. Then I thought, Already you’re starting to get paranoid. ... I didn’t go to any of the marches. Luke said it would be futile and I had to think about them, my family, him and her. I did think about my family. I started doing more housework, more baking.” (179-180)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How is the relationship between men and women portrayed? Does the work reinforce or undermine patriarchal ideology?
Answer: Men, even in a seemingly gender-equal community, still possess power over women. The relationship here, though it appears genuine, is that in times of stress or danger the man always gets the final say over what the family as well as the woman does. Women are also submissive to men as though they can’t make their own decisions and have to follow what their husbands or fathers tell them to. This is similar to when the government takes away her child and says, ‘Don’t you want what’s best for her?’ as if she is doing the wrong thing by wanting to raise her child the way she believes she should and not the way society believes a child should be raised. Luke is saying that she has to put her family first, and that going to the marches would put them in danger when really going to the marches could have saved them from spiraling into what Gilead has now become. This passage undermines patriarchal ideology by reinforcing it. By seeing how awful things are in Gilead where patriarchal ideology is enforced, readers choose to undermine patriarchal ideology, therefore disagreeing with the way Gilead’s society is run. This particular quote hints at today’s problem of blaming the victim. Victims of rape and sexual harassment believe that what happens to them is their fault because of what they were wearing or how they were portraying themselves. Women who are in a bad mood get asked if they’re on their period, as if it’s unnatural and forbidden for women to feel anything other than happiness. Women’s emotion both in Gilead and present day are being invalidated due to the patriarchal ideology the society enforces.
The quote you chose stuck out to me as well, and I completely agree with the arguments you made, although I had a couple different ideas as well. When reading the passage my immediate shock was entirely pointed towards Luke, his instantaneous acceptance of the status quo and prompt attempts to assure her that he will take care of her. She just lost her job and her money, just the first phase in the attack on her freedom, and he sees her as a damsel in distress, a princess needing saving rather than a woman needing empowering. She acknowledges this and then she trivializes it, pushing it to the back of her mind, calling herself paranoid and sticking her head back into the sand. Still, she feels the impact of the theft and mourns her rights in quiet. Yet change doesn't come from those who whisper their grievances, change comes from those who roar what they think to the world. Still, she didn't say anything and she didn't go to the marches (possibly because she was afraid she to be the first one, or because someone told her she would be the only one, or because her husband told her not to). She let society erode at her thoughts and change her every bit of being, and did exactly what "they" (the founders of Gilead, the reason for the changes) wanted.
Delete"Somehow the Wall is even more foreboding when it's empty like this. When there's someone hanging on it at least you know the worst. But vacant, it is also potential, like a storm approaching. When I can see the bodies, when I can guess from the sizes and shapes that none of them is Luke, I can believe also that he is still alive" (166).
ReplyDeleteThe wall is although just a Wall, it has this essence of progress and Fear. Even without the bodies the Wall is the blockade where you are not going anywhere and if you do you will be one of those bodies on the hooks. She states how even without the bodies, theres that essence of mystery. Who is next? And that is the question of the society. Who will be the next pregnant handmaid? Who will be the next person on the Wall? And this is why the society is so in functional because the individual is lost to the society and the fears like the Wall.
You say at the beginning of this post how the Wall has this essence of progress, and one of the ways it does that is it can scare people into behaving better. But are there any more plausible additions to it? From the way I see it, being scared of punishment shouldn't push for better behavior. That's what we analyzed in The Circle, through Mae and Bailey's conversation and Kalden's declaration. Fear isn't an asset, it's a default to human behavior. I feel a bigger part of this quote, for Offred, may be the fact that she hasn't seen anyone closely resembled to Luke hanging on the wall. And that gives her hope, which is a greater and more useful tool for motivation than fear might ever be.
DeleteI also find it very interesting how Offred found it scarier when there were not people hanging from the hooks on the wall then when there were. This reminds me a bit of The Circle because Offred felt unsafe when she did not know what was going on, she had no idea who had been killed because the wall was empty and that is her only way of knowing what is going on. In The Circle, Mae always felt unsafe when she did not know everything that she could and at many times in the book, Mae needed that specific information, but only because she had access to it. When Offred says "at least you know the worst", it tells the reader Offred is isolated from the world, knowing who has recently died is her only way to get information, and when that is taken away from her, all the possibilities of what could have happened open up.
DeleteSorry Lucie, my computer didn't show your comment until after I had posted mine. But I really agree with what you said about hope and fear, and it was very similar to my thinking after reading this passage in the book. Although it is a tragedy to see any unknown bodies hanging from the hooks on the wall, when Offred sees them it allows her to continue to hope that Luke may still be alive. But when there is nothing there she does not know what is happening outside the wall and it is easier for her to lose hope.
DeleteBut there still is some of this hope that in an imaginary world, Luke has made it to Canada or he's at least safe. It's not logical, and yes, it is easier for her to lose hope in this circumstance, but she still has some hope.
Delete“Ofglen and I are more comfortable with one another now, we’re used to each other. Siamese twins. We don’t bother much with the formalities anymore when we greet each other; we smile and move off in tandem, traveling smoothly along our daily track. Now and again we vary the route; there’s nothing against it, as long as we stay within the barriers. A rat in a maze is free to go anywhere, as long as it stays inside the maze” (165).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What does the work reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or psychologically) of patriarchy?
Answer: This quote in particular tells a lot about the operations of patriarchy in Gilead. It reveals a lot about the political operations of Gilead and Offred when it says that her and Ofglen are Siamese twins. Siamese twins are twins that are bound together and a certain place on their bodies and cannot separate. It is a rule in Gilead that each of the handmaids must have a partner: someone that they travel with all the time when they leave their houses, they must always be with each other because they cannot be trusted on their own: “We aren’t allowed to got there except in twos. This is supposed to be for our protection, though the notion is absurd: we are protected already. The truth is that she is my spy, as I am hers” (19). This quote also reveals a lot about the social operations in Gilead when it talks about how Offred and Ofglen are more comfortable around each other and how the do not bother with the formalities that they are always supposed to say. “This one is a little plumper than I am. Her eyes are brown. Her name is Ofglen, and that’s all I know about her” (19). It is very dangerous to be friends with someone in Gilead, so although they are not very close, they are not afraid of the other person, they trust each other, even if only a little. The most important part about this quote is when Offred compares herself to a rat in a maze. A rat in a maze is usually an experiment: to test the rat’s intelligence, or to see what the rat will do. When Offred compares herself to this it reveals a lot about the psychological operations of Gilead, it tells us that Offred believes that her purpose in this society is solely for other peoples benefit, and so far and the book, that seems to be true.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete“He doesn’t mind this, I thought. He doesn’t mind it at all. Maybe he even likes it. We are not each other’s, any more. Instead I am his. Unworthy, unjust, untrue. But that is what happened.” (182)
ReplyDeleteHow are male and women roles defined?
Women has been under the control of men, since the say they seized bank accounts. Not only women has to deal with the change, but men too. The woman know must be cared for and the men must care for them. Gilead stresses the opinion that Women offer men pleasure. Women carry our children. Women's greatest purpose is to give support to a man so that he may better carry out his work. In this way, women contribute to society immeasurably. This goes back to Lois Tyson’s theory, “The belief that men are superior to women has been used, feminists have observed, to justify and maintain the male monopoly of positions of economic, political, and social power, in other words, to keep women powerless by denying them the educational and occupational means of acquiring economic, political, and social power.” This is exactly what Gilead does to it’s woman. Going back to the quote, "What happened" could mean either what the narrator accused Luke of, or the fact that she had these "unworthy" thoughts. Whether Luke likes the new setup with himself in the power position or not, he seems committed to leaving Gilead behind and escaping with the narrator and their daughter across the border. By doing so, all three lives are at risk. These seem like the actions of a man committed to keeping his family together, although the ultimate cost is the family's splitting apart. On the other hand, if they'd done nothing, the result probably would have been the same.
I absolutely agree with you. I believe male and women roles are defined as the man being the provider and doing everything for women. The ability to have control and power over women, and making decisions for them and themselves. A women may cook, clean, carry babies and etc. but its only to please and follow what the men said to do. I agree that in this society women are powerless and barley have a say in anything they do/ have to do.
DeleteThat quote also stood out to me. The man has the power over the woman. Luke now owns Offred's account even though it's her own money. She has to go to him to ask to use her own money. Men provide money and care now. The women are there for making babies and doing stuff in the house.
DeleteI totally agree with you because the men always have power over the women because like Amani clearly stated they are considered the provider. Since the men are the provider their obligations are making decisions for both the women and themselves, go to work and be in charge of the family. However, the women has to most important in job of all by actually having ability to make babies for the family she and her husband are going to have together, cooking, cleaning, getting the groceries etc. It seems like the women are not being recognized for the handwork, that they do to actually keep the family sustained. On top of that they are being silenced by the counterpart. Why men cannot help the women with getting groceries and taking care of the kids? Can the women for once actually have the chance to say what she feels and make the money? This is why I hate patriarchal standards of women because I feel like women should have voice and not be oppressed by men.
Delete"I said there was more than one way of living with your head in the sand and that if Moira thought she could create Utopia by shutting herself up in a women-only enslave she was sadly mistaken. Men were not just going to go away, i said. You couldn't just ignore them"(172).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Why does Moira feel that it is okay with believing and wanting to be in a society focused on women?
When Offred said this quote, she was saying how Moira cannot make herself believe that this is and will not be a society around men or in other words, centered around men. Moira believes she can just ignore men, but that is not the case. A little earlier in the book, we find out Moira is a lesbian which explains a lot about her theory/beliefs. Moira response to Offred, "That is like saying you should go out and catch syphilis merely because it still exists". Moira was relating to what Offred said earlier about men going away and ignoring them, because she feels like there is nothing wrong with totally just blocking men out of her life.
I also found this quote interesting because in this quote, you can see the different perspectives that women have on men in this society. Moira is a lesbian so she sees men differently than Offred and other straight women. Therefore, the way Moira acts is different from Offred. I think that Moira thinks it is okay with a women centered society because of her gender, her ways of thinking and the environment that she has lived in. This is a good example of how different ideas can collide to create a strong argument between each other. Offred thinks differently because she has lived in an environment where she is a reproduction product towards men and she has no freedom because she is a woman.
DeleteI absolutely agree with this particular quotations relatively relating back to the huge distinction in gender norms and stereotypical options that women and men face. The type that women face is severe creating very little freedom and tight laws from the commanders in the tale. Men have the say and authority for almost all of the decisions amongst the Handmaids , other groups of females and the vicious but powerful commanders.
Delete"They've frozen them, she said. Mine too. The collective's too. Any account with an F on it instead of an M…Luke can use your Compucount for you, she said. They'll transfer your number to him, or that's what they say. Husband or male next of kin" (178-179).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What are the power relationships between men and women?
Men are able to own whatever they want. Women get shut down and their stuff goes to the men to own. After Offred's account was frozen, it was given to Luke to use. She now has to go to him if she needs anything to be purchased. The women had to go to the men to get something they wanted. They're pretty much asking for a man's permission to buy something with their own account. Men have the power to say yes or no now. Even though the men own the accounts, it's like they own women now also.
I agree, i think that men are always going to be the gender in control. That money was money that Offred made, not Luke. Even though we don't know that much about Luke, based on what we know about patriarchal societies and how men treat women, it's easy to say that eventually everything that Offred has will be left to Luke. Everything she does will not be based on her independence, but on her dependency on Luke.
Delete"Now and again we vary the route; there's nothing against it, as long as we stay within the barriers. A rat in a maze is free to go anywhere, as long as it stays inside the maze." (165)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How are women portrayed in this society?
A rat is a filthy animal most humans are hostile towards. This metaphor of rats "free" to go anywhere shows that this patriarchal society views women with no difference. It makes me question whether rats are really free, because from what I know about the way we treat rats, if we see one we try to kill it. Women aren't necessarily killed once they're spotted, but in this book, they are always controlled, and if they go out of line, they're punished. On page 174, when Offred is describing what people are telling them to do after the "catastrophe," she states that the one thing they were told to do was "to continue on as usual." Problem is that had a totally different meaning back then, and the change was so quick that if you said that sentence at this point in the novel, years after the chaos, it'd tell you to stick to being a rat and to stay in the maze.
This quote stood out to me as well. I think women are portrayed in this society as inferior, easily controlled and manipulated by men, worthless and silenced. In Chapter 13, the women despised Janine because she was considered a "new born mouse" because she was considered weak and nobody wanted to be like her. It is interesting how Offred compares herself to rat because she is free in a sense, that she could do whatever she wants as long as she within the barriers. However, a mouse is always being restricted and weak and therefore, it never has the chance to be free because a mouse is always caged. This is exactly what Jeanine feels. Women are not exactly "free" because the government oppresses them. They cannot get away from their structural divided society of classes. They are rats and they are being put to stay in the maze and never finding away to escape.
DeleteI've noticed thoughout the novel tons of points in which the woman are compared to animals. I think it's partly to show the lack of respect they have for themselves. A similarity is that the woman of Gilead are blindly tamed and don't question their lives similarly to animals. On the other hand though, animals follow instinct. The woman fight against their instinct in an attempt to stay num. It tires them out they work so hard to not want to fight and be human.
DeleteI agree with you lucie.I think this is a very interesting quote which is also very true. Rats are technically "free" but not actually, because if they cross humans in the wrong way, they are killed. This is like women in the novel, they are "free" to an extent. This doesn't mean they are actually free, this just means they are privileged. However once a woman makes one wrong move in this novel, they are penalized for it. These women are not free in all actuality, at least not the way the men are.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete“We’ll get through it, he said, hugging me. You don’t know what it’s like, I said… Hush, he said. He was still kneeling on the floor. You know I’ll always take care of you. I thought, Already he’s starting to patronize me” (179).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How are male and female roles defined?
Answer: Men always feel the need to be protective over their significant other. Although, when it comes to Offred and Luke, Luke feels that he will always be the primary source of care for Offred. She just lost her job; something that she enjoyed doing because she felt independent and felt she could provide for herself. In the patriarchal society of Gilead, women never get the chance to care for themselves, and are forced to succumb to whatever their husbands or commanders tell them to do. Offred knows that Luke shouldn’t act like she can’t take of herself, but then she quickly brushed it off by saying that he just loves her. This shows that the women in Gilead make excuses for their boyfriends and husbands instead of sticking up for themselves and putting their opinions out there. Men’s roles are defined as being the provider of the household, while women’s roles are defined as being the typical housewife- which Offred turns into one a few days later by doing more housework and baking, quickly forgetting her opposition to Luke’s proposal of taking care of her.
I very much agree with your thoughts on this quote, women are patronized in society, they are thought to always be sensitive, delicate and fragile beings and they overlook the women's great power, independence and ability to overcome anything. This ignorant thought drives society to believe that the characteristics of sensitivity and sympathy are only women characteristics and not human. Making it appear that women are inferior because men show no emotion but only physical power and anger. This is the reason men tend to think they have the need to look after their partner because she is "unable to."
DeleteI agree with Balvuena in the sense of men feel as if they need to look after their partners because she is "unable" to. But I also think that since the men bring in the money to provide for the family they feel as if they have control on what goes on and what happens all because of that little factor. Making them debase themselves to whatever their husbands or commanders tell them to do. and adding on to Taylor's comment of "women in Gilead make excuses for their boyfriends and husbands instead of sticking up for themselves and putting their opinions out there" even women today do that especially to things like cheating and domestic violence.
Delete"That was one of the things they do. They force you to kill, within yourself."
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What does the work reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or psychologically) of patriarchy?
Answer: This quote explains how the society of Gilead functions in order to maintain its stability and organization, they rob away the women's identity, ability, and independence. In the society of Gilead women are not allowed to read, or to be educated properly, they are merely seen as sensible and valuable objects, who only have one purpose, which is either to maintain the house, please their husband or bear children. The women are categorized in different groups, they are either Wives, Marthas, Housemaids or Ecowives, and each of them obtain something that the other greatly desires, creating a tense and envious relationship between each other, killing any chance to create a bond of sisterhood that could enable them to fight for their rights. In addition, they are forced to wear long and heavy dresses that covers their entire body, they see their bodies as valuable objects who need to cared for under the men's authority and power. The women fear change, fear their own ability to fight for their rights, they are forced to believe they need to be taken care of and need to behave as "good girls" to thrive in this society. While in reality their identity is being taken away from and they are becoming women who are dependent, easily manipulated, powerless and uneducated making them inferior to men.
I agree with you. I do believe that since they can not have basic rights they are forced to conform to this ideology. It's really the definition of a dystopian society, where women have less rights than an animal. If you think about it, some societies around the world today are stripping humans of their basic needs to achieve their own goals which is messed up.
Delete“Victory is on one some side of the inner doorway, leading them on, and Death is on the other. It’s a mural in honor of some war or other. The men on the side of Death are still alive. They’re going to heaven. Death is a beautiful woman, with wings and one breast almost bare or is that Victory? I can’t remember” (166).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Why have men taken away a job that once belonged to women? How come with memories like these, does nobody protest? What does this mural in Offred’s memory tell us about the power relationships between men and women?
Answer: The men in Gilead are the only ones who are able to go to war because the society has made them believe that women are made to cook, clean and reproduce and nothing more. As we see with this passage, before Gilead, women were seen as strong leaders who were able to do the jobs that men do now in Gilead. In fact, they were able to win this war and march on with victory. However, the women’s did not do this by themselves, they had they help of men. Men and women both working together, fighting for the same cause will lead to success. Until Gilead is able to see the equality that both men and women have, they will never be victorious with the war going on. Not every man is meant to lead and not every women is meant to follow. As we see with Moira, she did not agree with the wives, she did not want to follow, so she fought her way out and because of this, the other handmaids believed Moira to be there fantasy, Offred said, “In the light of Moira, the Aunts were less fearsome and more absurd. Their power had a flaw to it” (133). This feeling the Handmaid’s feel when thinking of Moira, is the feeling every civilian should get when a leader is in charge of the moves of the military, now who is to say, that a women can’t be the one to give the people a sense of security and faith, that a women can’t be a commander.
i agree with your answer. I like that you rose the question of, why doesn't anyone protest even though they have memories of their freedom. The only person who does that is Moria and the women just admire her for it. I think it's something they want to do, but are too scared of doing because of the risk of change or failure. The women were brainwashed into thinking that now the society is perfect and good for women. No more bad things will happen to women now, but the women do not think for themselves and realize it is not right. Women should no try to down themselves for men and should be able to have freedom. They should be equal with men in the society, as you said, with jobs because they are just as capable and important.
DeleteI strongly agree with you. Men and Women should be united together to fight against women oppressed society in Gilead. Moria is such a strong example of a women who is so strong, independent and speak her mind. These women admire her like Victoria said since these women do not have the courage to do it themselves. Women do not have any freedom because they are easily silenced, brainwashed by the government. Once they start to form a sisterhood or a resistance group run by both men and women, then women will get jobs and are recognized for it. They will be considered an equal to men and will hopefully feel like they are an important member to society.
Delete“At the corner is the store known as Soul Scrolls. It’s franchise: there are Soul Scrolls in every city center, in every suburb, or so they say. It must make a lot of profit. The window of Soul Scrolls is shatterproof. Behind it are printout machines, row on row of them; these machines are known as Holy Rollers, but only among us, it’s a disrespectful nickname…Ordering prayers from Soul Scrolls is supposed to be a sign of piety and faithfulness to the regime, so of course the Commanders’ Wives do it a lot. It helps their husbands’ careers”(166,167).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Is this business called Soul Scrolls symbolizing the lower wages for women in jobs?
This quote stood out to me because I thought it was interesting that even in a society where women are treated horribly, there are still jobs that some women are allowed to work in with fairly minimum wages. To answer the question, I think that the business called Soul Scrolls symbolizes the lower wages for women in jobs because many women today in our world do not get paid the same amount that men get even if they work for the same hours. Just like how women do not get paid fairly in our world, in Gilead most women do not even get paid and even the lucky ones that have jobs do not get to keep the money. In Gilead, almost all the money goes into the Commanders’ wallet and the Commanders’ Wives are working so they can increase the Commanders’ social status. The women in Gilead are not benefiting themselves but instead, they are helping the Commander have more power over the other women.
I agree with your analysis, Taisei, and I believe it's a huge issue in the book as well as in our society. I also wanted to add on this idea that because the women are supporting the men's status by helping them get more money, they are fulfilling their roles as patriarchal women. But now I'm beginning to think: is it on purpose? I used to think that the women knew their place in Gilead and would easily follow any rules set aside for them. Serena Joy, for example, works in her garden and stays home all day. This way, she is doing her job as being a patriarchal women and obeying the regulations of Gilead. But, this doesn't necessarily mean she agrees with them. This shows how women in the book, and in real life, have to surrender their rights to form into the perfect women their society demands them to be: polite, obedient, and quiet. And they can't really do anything about it except conform.
Delete"You can't stick your hand through a glass window without getting cut, is what what she said about it...They ignored me, and I resented them. My mother and her rowdy friends...You're such a prude, she would say to me, in a tone of voice that was on the whole pleased. She liked being more outrageous than I was, more rebellious." (180)
ReplyDeleteQuestion :What does the work imply about the possibilities of sisterhood as a mode of resisting patriarchy and/or about the ways in which women's situations in the world-- economic, political, social, or psychological-- might be improved?
Answer: The possibilities of sisterhood as a mode of resisting patriarchy, reversing the effects of Pornomarts and Feels on Wheels vans, and ridding the world of inequality are unlimited in an environment where all causes for jealousy and resentment have been eliminated. Yet even in pre-Gilead North America, where women in the household aren't purposely pitted against each other, such circumstances are impossible to come by. And even in the home of a whole-hearted defender and advocate of feminism, such circumstances aren't even visible. Offred's mother is a woman who had dedicated much of her life to fighting societal expectations of women, protesting the commercial objectification of women and pledging herself to protecting the rights of women. She is, ironically, a true-believer in feminism (and why shouldn't she be?). She is, however, not beyond reproach as she was swept up in it all and inadvertently aided in the early stages of the division of women (which would later clear the way for the founders of Gilead). In raising her daughter to resent women who weren't afraid to sound their voices, in reprimanding her daughter with the same taunts of society and the media, and in taking glee from her daughter's contempt, she debased herself (discrediting her as a feminist). Any woman who put down another woman was contributing to the diminishing chances of a successful sisterhood, just as any person who puts down another person is contributing to the diminishing chances of a successful personhood. It isn't a variable that can simply be eliminated, it is a factor of human nature. It is a spark from a petty spat, a fire fueled by media and societal expectations, and an obstacle that needs to be conquered for any resistance to be successful.
I definitely agree! Sometimes I see this attitude in young men or women in our society today. Through the aggressive advocating of their own agenda, people often forget how easily their can hurt their own cause. Clearly, permanent change in Gilead was not able to be won by angry feminists who did not take the time to understand the other side of the argument they themselves were fighting on. Actions like these, that you so well described in your post, can easily cause a more significant tear in the relations between different groups of people.
DeleteThis is also made me think of how the rejection of men in feminist communities may also have contributed to the roles in society of Gilead. As Offred mentions, women were always taught to automatically fear men and protect themselves against them, but did this only hurt them in the end? As Emma Watson said in her UN speech, were men in this alternate US not "invited to the conversation", and were rather kept apart from women? Would this have helped in the way Gilead ended up?
"There is an us then, there's a we. I knew it... It occurs to me that she may be a spy, a plant, set to trap me; such is the soil in which we grow. But I can't believe it; hope is rising in me, like sap in a tree. Blood in a wound. We have made an opening" (169).
ReplyDeleteWhat does this imply about the possibilities of sisterhood as a mode of resisting patriarchy?
This part of the book really surprised me because I never really knew much about Ofglen. I suspected her to just be another follower of the system by the way she would obey all the rules. She never really interacted with Offred besides a few little words here and there. So when she was able to connect with Offred and joke with her, it felt as if there was a real friendship forming. As if they can really trust one another. I think there can be a sisterhood among the Handmaids, the Marthas, the Aunts, and the Wives if they had the same goal in mind. Even if they resent one other and are jealous of each another, I believe they can come together to change the laws of Gilead if their passion was strong enough. Ofglen even reveals that there is a secret group dedicated to not being a believer, which develops a sense of hope for change. This creates a sisterhood based on gaining equal rights for both genders. But the only reason why this sisterhood isn't forming fast is because people are afraid to go or speak against the government. It took 168 pages before Ofglen and Offred revealed that their judgements of one another were inaccurate. Just imagine how wrong they could be about all the other people they think are "believers" of Gilead. The women could strive for a revolution if they truly wanted to, but their fears are far more greater than their desires.
I agree with your ending statement, but I was also wondering what exactly are the rebels doing, because it doesn't seem like their efforts are really doing anything. Maybe because the narrative is done by Offred that we don't see any change, but this whole Gilead thing has been going on for three years! What will it take for all of the women to rise up? Will these girls just have to look each other in the eye, one by one, before they all realize their lives suck?
Delete"But something had shifted, some balance. I felt shrunken, so that when he put his arms around me, gathering me up, I was as small as a doll. I felt love going forward without me" (182).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What does "The Handmaids Tale" reveal about relationships between men and woman, and the power dynamic between men and women? How does income effect their lives behind closed doors?
Within our own society, money=power whether it's within a community, or in a household. For a long time, probably since the Neolithic Revolution, men have been the sole "Kings of the Hill", protecting their damsels, whose only purpose in life was to be a working "two-legged womb". But we see a shift in reality, and in the novel, where the household income is brought in by a king and queen, united by their desires to provide. In Atwood's dystopia, another schism occurs, and society is placed back into a "proper patriarchy". This change is somewhat erotic to Offred's husband Luke, and he sweeps her into bed, showing off his dominance even more. Offred realizes their balance had been shifted, and now she was nothing more than a doll. She was not her own purpose now, all because of the loss of a job. This amplifies the true value of having a passion, a role, a career when you're a woman. She realizes than she's no longer her own person, but Luke's, all because she has no income of her own to support herself. This passage leaves the reader to question if gender roles are a natural thing, or, if it's just the power of being able to provide that creates an unbalanced relationship.
This quote also stuck out to me a lot because as you said how men are the "all mighty protecters of their wives." I also think this is a very big theme in the book. In the novel women's sole purpose of being alive is to have the commanders baby, clean, and be a mom. This is where this major theme of Feminism comes in to play.
Delete-Ethan Burda
This quote also stuck out to me a lot because as you said how men are the "all mighty protecters of their wives." I also think this is a very big theme in the book. In the novel women's sole purpose of being alive is to have the commanders baby, clean, and be a mom. This is where this major theme of Feminism comes in to play.
ReplyDelete-Ethan Burda
"All those women having jobs: hard to imagine, now, but thousands had jobs, millions. It was considered a normal thing". (173)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What jobs did these women have in the past? And How did these jobs changed based on how society is structured?
Answer: The jobs these women had in the past were not exactly specified in the book. In Gilead, the society was divided into classes due to their status. The jobs of the women are very different because of their classes. The Handmaid's have sex with the Commanders and are the most fertile. The Marthas are considered infertile, and are servants in the Commander's home. The Econowives are considered lower class. The Commander's Wife is the wive of the commander and is jealous of the commander. It seems like the women have only one job because their status, which makes all of them envy each other. It is interesting in the past women had millions jobs and "it was considered a normal thing" These women maybe had jobs, that paid lower wages and now due to the way their society is in Gilead I'm not sure if these women are exactly being paid for the jobs they are doing right now. Having millions of jobs are not exactly "normal" anymore because women are only obligated to one job. These jobs women had in the past changed because perhaps the authority figures were probably in outrage since women were able to do jobs, that were not as restricted. They were doing an abundant amount of jobs, and felt like the society needed to be more structured.
Yea I agree, I chose the same quote because I didn't see it till after I uploaded. But my question was that why don't they consider the duty's they have now jobs, because there are different levels to there jobs and that each role has a responsibility just like you said. So they could all be different jobs but, over all they they have different responsibility.
DeleteTo answer your question Christina, I think the reason why the women do not consider duties is because they are being oppressed by the government to jobs, that are being forced upon. Women cannot have the option to choose their own jobs they could do on their leisure time because the women do not have any freedom. They are just expected to follow the norms of society.
Delete"They've given me a small electric fan, which helps in this humidity. It whirs on the floor, in the corner, its blade encased in grille-work. If I were Moira, I'd know how to take it apart, reduce it to its cutting edges. I have no screwdriver, but if I were Moira i could do it without a screwdriver. I'm not Moira." pg 171
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Does Offred's fascination with Moira underline her real desires to try to achieve things on her own?
In a society where everything is handed to you and all you need to do is complete your assigned job, you sometimes crave something out of the norm. This can relate to the concept of the feudal system, where the serfs work in the fields, and the lords provide them with food and shelter. In actuality this was how slavery worked. Knowing that you can't do something, makes a person want to do it even more which is why I believe Offred has this admiration for Moira. She wants to be able to defy the means and boundaries that were set for her, it's in everyone's human nature. Yet, I also think that she is afraid of authority and her safety more than freedom its self.
I agree with your answer, that Offred longs for an escape from the society she is in. It touches on the idea that all the women in their positions long for any power they can get, considering everything their best is taken away from them. Offred loves the idea of rebellion, but is to scared to ever properly take a stand against the society like Moira did. This raises up the question, what are the limits that Offred has set against herself to rebel? In other words, how far would Offred go to achieve just a little bit of freedom?
Delete"What would she tell me, about the Commander, if she were here? Probably she'd disapprove. She disapproved of Luke, back then. Not of Luke but the fact he was married. She said I was poaching, on another woman's ground. I said Luke wasn't a fish or a piece of dirt either, he was a human being and could make his own decisions"(171).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Moira makes interesting comments the view of women in relationships. Why does Moira have such a negative view of men in general, is it inherent sexism or did something in her past cause this? And what are the double standards that face women in issues like this?
Answer: This passage shows interesting view onto Moira's perspective. We have seen that she has a somewhat feisty personality, and earlier in the book Offred did have the flashback where Moira casually made a date rape joke. This connects to this passage because it represents her carefree nature, telling Offred she shouldn't approve of a man that's married, and it can lead the reader to synthesize that she wouldn't approve of any man Offred would date or marry. This passage also makes an interesting connection to the role of woman in relationships with married men, which is happening with Offred right now and in the past. If a woman was married and had an affair with a man it would be looked down upon more then if it was the opposite. This shows double standards in our society, where if girls sleep with a lot of men she is called a 'slut' and looked down on, where if it's men that do it they are considered a 'player', and even if that term isn't one someone would want to uphold, it does create the person a certain level of eliteness to the person. This connects back to Offred's life as a Handmaid, where it is almost said that the Marthas' look down upon her because of what she does, and where the Wives dislike them as well, as they are essentially a mistress in their marriage.
"All those women had jobs: hard to imagine, now, but though sands of them had jobs, millions. It was considered a normal thing." (Page 173).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Why do the women not consider there duty's jobs?
Woman do not consider there duty's jobs because they are forced to do it. They do not want to. Women used to be free to chose what they wanted to do. Jobs used to be something that they wanted to do not something they were forced to. A women could have picked to do something that they enjoy during the times that they could have jobs and it was not weird. Now they do not enjoy there duty's to there society and do not question it. They do not have an option and cant choose they do not question there society and just go with it.
I agree, women are forced to do these jobs in Gilead. As we see with the Handmaid's, the aunts only mention the negative part of their old society. In page 118, the Aunt's are showing the Handmaid's old videos, and instead of the happy movies Offred remembers, they would show as she describes, "Women kneeling, sucking penises or guns, women tied up or chained or with dog collars around their necks, women being raped, beaten up, killed. Once we had to watch a woman being slowly cut into pieces, her fingers and breasts snipped off with garden shears, her stomach slip open and her intestines pulled out" (118). With memories like these in their mind, is not so much that they do not question their society, but more like, they are afraid of the alternative. Therefore, fear forces them into doing a job they dislike.
DeleteYea I totally agree with you, when you're being forced to do something or act a certain way, your whole aroma changes and everything just becomes dreadful. They didn't ask for this, they don't enjoy it so why should they feel happy about doing this? A duty is more like a feeling of obligation and willingness as opposed to a job where it's like you don't have a choice, or else you wouldn't be there.
DeleteI agree with you as the women are slaves to giving labor to children as they are forced to have sex with men that they don't have a say in choosing. They still have opinions and they still have emotion. With their happiness and freedom being corrupted, why would they call their duties jobs? They are getting nothing out of their services and they are treated as machines whose only purpose is to know nothing and produce children.
Delete"And if I talk to him I'll say something wrong, give something away. I can feel it coming, a betrayal of myself."(185)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What are the power relationships between men and women? How are male and female roles defined?
Answer: In this passage, I thought of this question because it struck me how much "power", in a way the Commander still has over her. To me it seems like, when Offred said this, it was because she would sort of be ashamed of what ever it would be that came out of her mouth. The Commander is the one that will sound more accepting, and more sure of himself no matter what it is that he'll say. So to answer that question men are generally the ones with the higher power, and MOST women just degrade themselves or feel as if though they will make a fool of themselves if they don't follow the "role" that a woman should play. In this book it is pretty much more than obvious who plays who, the wives for example, although may think they have some power, its actually a denial of the truth no matter what the Commanders call the shots. It shows by their attitudes and how they just put up with everything that goes on.
“ It’s a mural in honor of some war or other. The men on the side of Death are still alive. They’re going to heaven. Death is a beautiful woman, with wings and one breast almost bare or is that Victory? I can’t remember. They won’t have destroyed that” (166).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How are women portrayed in this society?
Answer: After reading that little section I do wonder how women are portrayed in Gilead if they are shown to be death with wings and one breast almost bare? I feel as if the women are not even treated as humans but just as machines. Machines who get the groceries and push out babies. The women in Gilead are only portrayed as to be used as sexual being, which might be the reason of the one breast almost bare. The women has wings because men are supposed to be seen as honorable and Victorians and going to heaven. Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle said in his book Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds, “A beautiful woman is the hell of the soul…” I think this quote shows into the mindset of what some men, mainly the leaders of Gilead, might have thought about women, which is the reason for women being the symbol of death. In today's world if a man has accomplished something giving him victory, the known reward is sex which is provided by women. With saying that it also connects to why women would be a symbol of victory and have one breast almost bare. St. Augustine once said, "Any woman who does not give birth to as many children as she is capable is guilty of murder." I think that would be a motto or a convincing quote to Gilead, that what they are portraying women as is what women “should” be portrayed as.
"His approbation laps me like a warm bath. I sense in him none of the animosity I used to sense in men, even in Luke sometimes. He's not saying bitch in his head. In fact he is positively daddyish. He likes to think I am being entertained; I am, I am" (184).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Why do the men in Gilead live with the strict class system in Gilead?
I first thought of this question due to the clear negative affects of the society of Gilead on men. Atwood has shown clear examples of the emotional repression men have to deal with in Gilead, and the country is not safe for all men, seen in the man being arrested on page 170, and does not treat all men equally, seen by the position of Nick in the household. Why wouldn't men want to fight back against the society that clearly mistreats them as well? A possible answer to this question occurred to me as I read about the loss of Offreds money and property to Luke. As the whole US went to hell, men were able to retain some sense of control by controlling women. When the Commander calls Offred to his room to play Scrabble, it not due to a strange obsession with women reading, it is rather a reconstruction, as Offred calls it on page 140. The Commander simply wants to know he can retain some sense of normalcy in his life, and power over women in his household allows him to do this. Undoubtedly, the power to control women in their lives also comforted the men of the past, before Gilead, allowing men like Luke to feel as though they were still protecting their family in some way during a crisis that the citizens themselves were not able to solve.
The men in this system are put as much pressure as the women because they are subject to the roles that they do not choose. the transferring of power from men to women give them pressure that's something that cannot handle justifying the commander's actions to seek comfort in Offred. the commander and Luke just as any other men seek discomfort because they sometimes cannot handle the problem of pressure they are put under. the whole role of men is to calm the women but then who do they have to keep them adjust and at ease.
Delete"She said i was poaching on another women's ground. I said Luke wasn't a fish or a piece of dirt either, he was a human being and could make his own decisions. She said i was rationalizing. I said I was in love. She said that was no excuse. Moira was always more logical than I am" (171).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How does Offred portray Moira in this society?
Answer: Offred always looks up to Moira in situations. She looks back and thinks what would Moira tell me or what would she do? Also, because of Moira's escape i think Offred more than ever wants to see her and be rebellious with her. She wants to find that within herself, but at the same time puts herself down. On page 171, Offred said, "I am not Moira." She doesn't believe she can do what Moira does/has done, but at the same time looks up to her and always thinks of her and what her input would be in situations. Moira is also like a mother figure to her. She values her opinion and always refers to it, but never did with her real mother. She always fought with her mother and never agreed on the same things. Moira comes in and makes not only Offred, but other handmaids believe that there is hope and that there is a way. But they cannot be scared, that is something the women have to find within themselves before than can rebel and be like Moira.
"Death is a beautiful woman, with wings and one breast almost bare; or is that Victory?" (page 166)
ReplyDeleteThis quote made me stop during the reading as questions and multiple theories rushed through my mind on what the naked woman's presence meant and why was such a descriptive and somewhat random example used to portray both victory and death as those are two extravagantly contrasting words
Offred is most certainly straight as she loves her husband who's presence is kept secret however, her use of stating that victory is a beautiful woman can be because she has appreciation for a woman’s beauty although we have not seen any forms of lesbian desires from her. For instance she still appreciates her own body and her complexion as she breaks the rules and hides butter from meals to rub on her skin. This is rebellion is seen when she states “I tear a corner of the paper napkin, wrap the butter in it, slip it into the toe of my right shoe. I will use it later” (page 66).
This can also relate a common view in life where it is acceptable for a straight male or woman to find her same sex attractive. It can be said that although Offred prefers men to women for a relationship, she finds women more attractive as she chose a beautiful woman over a beautiful man to show her desire of victory which she confuses with death. I hope I am not breaking any rules but this confusion between two very different words opens up a dark vision of Offred in which death is a victory. This is understandable because by her death, Offred is free of being a slave to giving labor along with being a function in the Gilead. This love of victory which can be death is so beautiful that she compares it to a provocative yet arousing woman.
"It remains a question. What does he have to gain from this sort of pampering? There must be something." (Pg. 184)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: What damage (if any) does having defined gender roles cause?
Answer: The damage comes in the form of a lack of freedom. One of the things that defines a person is the choices they make but when all the choices are already made for them we loose sight of who they are and sometimes, they loose sight of who they are. These gender roles make everyone feel as if they can't show their emotions. Offred shouldn't be in the mindset that there must be alternative motives. Why can't two people find comfort in each other? It's because of this society that's structured in a way that implies we only need ourselves when the truth is that we need the love and connection of others. It's why Offred so often thinks of Luke. It's why the commander goes to Offred. It's why everyone is so together during the birthing ceremony. There's safety in numbers.
"I said there was more than one way of living with your head in the sand and that if Moira thought she could create Utopia by shutting herself up in a women-only enclave she was sadly mistaken. Men were not just going to go away, I said. You couldn't just ignore them" (172).
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How are the consanguinities between women and men played?
Answer: This is a very important because in this section of the book you start to see how people are striding towards gender equality, like what we are going through right now. Men and Women trying to get equality in pay, in the work place and more. Offred comes to realize around this time in the book that, equality will never work if you separate the two side from each other.
-Ethan Burda
"I no longer sit stiff neck, straight-backed, feet regimented side by side on the floor, eyes at the salute. Instead my body's lax, cozy even. My red shoes are off, my legs tucked up underneath me on the chair, surrounded by a buttress of red skirt, true, but tucked nonetheless, as at a campfire, of earlier more picnic days."(183).
ReplyDeleteQ: What are the power relationships between men and women (or characters assuming male/female roles)? How do characters embody those traits?
A: In these moments of pure rebellion between Offred and the Commander, they escape the world of Gilead and enter to a place in which they are equal, and this is shown in how they do not have to hold up fronts. In this world of Gilead, everyone in a way is fake, and hides behind a mask. A mask designed by the government of Gilead. This can be exposed to how Offred and Ofglen have now talked and seen each other for the very first real time. They his with scripted greetings and the wings that cover their eyes, but with the small rebellions of conversations and games of scrabble people are allowed to show each other their own individual selves, braking down the labels and power defining positions, of Handmaids, Commanders, Marthas, and Wives. In this passage Offred and the Commander do not hold each other in the positions that Gilead does, but just exchange their own thoughts and share their own selves without having to be suppressed to their power roles in Gilead.
"It's over, in seconds, and the traffic on the street resumes as if nothing has happened. What I feel is relief. It wasn't me" (169.)
ReplyDeleteThis quote really stuck out to me because it represented the lack of emotion/empathy everyone has towards each other and the nature of most women. In this story, the "sisters" hated each other for being vulnerable when they were supposed to be there for each other. The women in this story who were living poorly, for the most part, lacked empathy for each other because they were not receiving empathy from society and were constantly being mistreated. This raises a question for me : does this lack of empathy tie back to men disrespecting women? I think in some cases yes, because this lack of empathy could stem down to women feeling constantly attacked by society and having the incentive of just looking out for themselves over others.