What does the Handmaid's Tale contribute to the debate over
What does the Handmaid's Tale contribute to the debate over women's positions in society today? Throughout the Handmaid's Tale there is a connection between women's roles in our society today and that of how they are perceived in the novel. All of the different roles in society are shown for example housewife, mother, prostitute, feminist in the novel but are more emphasised and instead of the multi-roles that many women take on today mostly by choice, the women in Gilead have theirs forced upon them and that is the single role that they must stay in. The Martha's in the Handmaid's Tale are the stereotypical housewife; they do the Commanders cooking, shopping and even bath 'Offred'. They are in contrast with a typical 1950's housewife who stayed at home and looked after the children which is also a job of the Martha when a child is born 'she wants a little child so spoil in the kitchen, to iron clothes for, to slip cookies into'. The wives seem to be just for show; there is no pacific reason for their role apart from the fact that they are simply the wives of the commander 'Or knitting scarves.... maybe it's just something to keep the Wives busy, to give them a sense of purpose.' They mostly seem to be middle-aged 'becaus
However the idea of Handmaids date back to the bible 'Genesis, 30:1-3' where Rachel is unable to bear a child and therefore she asks her husband Jacob to impregnate her maid so she 'may also have children by her' and so raise the child as her own. Feminists and feminism is constantly reminded to the reader throughout the book. if an environmental pollution had left most of the world sterile. Throughout the novel it is obvious that all the positions in the Gilead society e. Either it is through Offred's mother, Moira or even through Offred's memories at the Red Centre. While feminists want women to have more rights, the Gilead women are stripped back into their stereotypical roles which contrasts to how women were perceived and treated in the 19th Century where it was seen as the 'need to protect good women' from sex. The Handmaids are also subjected to carrying a child for nine months just for it to be given to the Commander and his wife to raise as there own, their reward for this is never 'to be declared an un-women'. The Handmaid's are basically there for breeding only. The fact that she did is ironic as she protests for a world where women had more choice and equal rights but although the things protested have come about, this has led to women's roles being more confined and passive. Their faces are often covered which can be compared to modern day Islamic women where wearing a veil and traditional clothing to cover all flesh is seen as a way of dealing with harassments and sexual objectification.
Common topics in this essay:
Handmaid's Tale,
Centre Offred's,
Feminists Gilead's,
Red Centre,
Martha's Wives,
Janine Who's,
offred's mother,
Moira Offred's,
handmaid's tale,
women choice,
women gilead,
modern day,
roles society,
red centre,
eg handmaids,
women's roles,
feminists women,
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Acceptance Essays
