Handmaid's Tale
The creation of Offred, the passive narrator of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, wasintentional. The personality of the narrator in this novel is almost as important as the task bestowedupon her. Atwood chooses an average women, appreciative of past times, who lacks imagination andfervor, to contrast the typical feminist, represented in this novel by her mother and her best friend, Atwood is writing for a specific audience, though through careful examination, it can bedetermined that the intended audience is actually the mass population. Although particular groupsmay find The Handmaid's Tale more enjoyable than others, the purpose of the novel is to enlightenthe general population, as opposed to being a source of entertainment. A specific group that mayfavor this novel is the women activists of the 1960's and 1970's. This group, in which Offred'smother would be a member, is sensitive to the censorship that women once faced and would showinterest to the "possible future" that could result. Offred is symbolic of "every woman". She was conventional in prior times, married with onedaughter, a husband and a career. She is ambivalent to many things that may seem horrific to the
The Commander is simply emphasizing his sense of power. The obvious contrasts arebetween other characters, such as between Offred and Moira. Is this because Offred has begun to accept the words of AuntLydia, or more likely, is she silent to create emphasis on the horrific deed? The answer is easilysatisfied when the reader finishes the novel. Examples of the contrast arethe women's rights rallies. Moira, her friend from college and the previous life, is dynamic and fullof life. Offred narrates in the expected manner with passiveness and deliberateindifference. Offred would attend with her mother and also Offred's smoking habit. On page 93, Offred is witness to Janine's confession of being raped. These contrast to the new institution of Gilead. She doesn't want to be held back, and her resistence causes her both trouble and distress. Offredmeets with the Commander for the things that represent freedom to her; fashion magazines, silkstockings and lotion. She has to sacrifice self-worth, though,and her admittance of fault in being raped is disgusting. The tense that Atwood uses is relative to the narrator also. When Offred used to meet Luke, there was one sole reason - love.
Common topics in this essay:
Handmaid's Tale,
Colonies Offred,
Gileadian Offred,
Historical Notes,
Gilead Examples,
Commander Offred,
Aunt Lydia,
Moira Atwood,
Offred Moira,
,
handmaid's tale,
possibility society,
historical notes,
past times,
love offred,
life doesn't,
average women,
past life,
margaret atwood's,
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Acceptance Essays
