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Saturday, April 2, 2011
Saturday April 2, 2011
Who has power in the novel? Why? How is this power achieved and maintained? Why does this character/entity have power? What purpose does it serve in the novel?
It seems as though the men in the Handmaid's Tale have the power because the Commander's are superior to the Wives, the men are not color coded like the women, and only the men are allowed to carry guns in the society. Also, the fact that women are forbidden to read. Men also are able to bend the laws easily, for example, the scene of Offred's encounter with the doctor. Although illegal, the doctor attempts to have sex with Offred. Offred thinks that by refusing to have sex with him, "he could fake the tests, report me for cancer,.."(80). This shows how much power the doctor has as he is able to fix tests and bend the rules to achieve his own desires. It also shows how inferior women are to men in Gilead as Offred is unable to do anything if he does fake the tests. How this power is achieved and maintained is through the laws of the Republic of Gilead and the Republic's strict power to maintain this kind of power. Why men have more power than women is Atwood's choice. Atwood's choice to have women be inferior to men is maybe to show how inferior women are to men in today's world and to empower them to fight for equal rights. For example, women in the US are not allowed to participate in combat and other field combat MOS's. Many other countries today still have laws that don't give women equal rights as men, so maybe this book to is to inspire the women to be more empowered.
I agree with Dan with his statement that men has the power in the novel. More specifically, it's the Commanders. This is because they are able to control the "Guardians of the Faith' through spies and secret police. For example, the Commander uses Nick as his messenger to tell Offred when to visit him. Even if Nick finds their meeting inappropriate, he doesn't say anything or do anything because he can't. "It's a soft job for him, running little errands, doing little favors, and there's no way he'd want to jeopardize it" (Atwood 301). However, men in general, had more power than women. As Dan stated, men were the only ones allowed to carry guns in the society. Even the Aunts who had some power, weren't trusted with guns. Power is achieved and maintain by, also as Dan stated, making it forbidden for women to read. Therefore, women are restricted from access to knowledge. Books and magazines have been banned and burned. The purpose of this is to keep women ignorant so that they would not have enough knowledge to retaliate. I also agree with Dan's statement that men has power in the novel to show an example of the world today. A good example of men holding power is the fact that all our previous presidents have been male. And the purpose it serves in the novel is to highlight the fact that women weren't/aren't appreciated enough. They were simply only good for reproduction in the novel. Margaret Atwood creates this imaginary society that may act as a warning to present day society of what may happen in the future if present day inequality issues are not solved.
In the Republic of Gilead, men hold power over women and everything else in society. This is shown by the power of the Commander over the Handmaids. The handmaids must obey whatever the Commander says or face the consequences. Offred shows that she is afraid of the Commander when she wonders why he wants her to meet him in his study. She mentions that if she's caught, she'll be sent to Serena and she could become an Unwoman. But she risks that because if she were to disobey him, "it could be worse. There's no doubt about who holds the real power"(176) in the house. The consequences that the women would face if they disobeyed a man aren't explained in the story. This shows that many women including Offred are too afraid of the men to do something bad because of what would happen to them.
Men maintain the power in society by surveilling the women to make sure they don't do anything out of order. For example, when the Japanese interpreter tries to talk to the Offred and the other handmaid Ofglen, Offred suspects that the interpreter is an Eye and tries to keep the conversation to a minimum since the handmaid's are not supposed to talk to men. The men in the novel have the power because in society, men are thought of as stronger than women. This shows in our own society since so far there have only been male presidents. Also women didn't get the right to vote until the 1920's while men did.
Margaret Atwood purpose to give men more power than women is to show that men may take advantage of their power and force women to become simply objects of reproduction. As Tiffany stated, Margaret Atwood creates the Republic of Gilead as a warning of what may happen in the future if the issues with inequality today are not solved.
Name: Naftali Moed Posting: Response to Dan Just as in any society, that which is present in “The Handmaid’s Tale” serves to reflect upon the enduring struggle for control and power that has always plagued humanity. Thus being the reality, Gilead’s authoritarian, theocratic ruling class retains the power within the Republic of Gilead. While most all Dan addresses is accurate, it is important to go further into the motives of the Republic’s rulers (all male) and seek out a more wholesome perspective as to their motives, strategies implementations and subsequent meanings conveyed by the author. As demonstrated through such instances as that in which Offred remarks, “What I feel is relief. It wasn’t me”(Atwood 220), a remark regarding the abduction by another citizen by the government/police, Gilead’s leaders retain power through the employment of oppression and fear. A symbolic occurrence of this phenomenon is the wall upon which “they [the government] leave the bodies hanging”(214), imposing fear onto those who view the horrific fate of those who violate the law. The institutional employment of such tactics, including the prevention of rioting in the post-”catastrophe”(225) era, culminates in the ultimate rule by oppression that the government in Gilead has enforced. Similar to Dan’s argument regarding gender, the fact that the Handmaid’s names, Offred (of Fred) and Ofwarren (of Warren), demonstrate ownership by men over women further emanates the notion of divisional and fear evoking tactics. Ultimately, the tactics of Gilead’s government, such as divide and conquer and the general inflation of fear or fear mongering allow it to further its control of its citizens. These tactics of division and fear enable the government/ruling body to maintain control over the people, but symbolically aid Atwood in relating deeper meanings. As Dan hinted, the book contains multiple feminist undertones, all of which emphasize the disparity between the two genders. In addition to those messages relayed by Dan, the power structure of the republic of Gilead serves to highlight other of Atwood’s messages. One message perhaps warning against the notion of theocracy, demonstrated through the rather unfavorable recounting of biblical recitals and view of the government. Another message perhaps the problematic and antiquated nature of authoritarian government and humanity. While theses messages are ultimately subjective and completely open to interpretation, their presence is definite and clearly conveyed by the power structure established in the novel.
In "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood the antagonists Serena Joy and the Commander seem to have the most power within the household and over the fate of the handmaid's. These two individuals have power not only because of their status within the household, but because of their gender. Through Atwood's feminist view it is displayed that the Commander has the most power within the household because he is a male and somewhat elderly. Due to males being superior than women in this novel displays the classism between males and females. In addition, the Commander has power in this new society because he is still fertile enough to produce children. If he were sterile (oh em gee a forbidden word!) he would be stripped of his duty. Serena Joy seems to have power in this man powered world due to her prior status as a singer and occasionally on television. Unlike the handmaids she does not have to have intercourse and produce children like the handmaids, but she does have to watch over them. It is still a bit unclear what separates her from the handmaids, but it's most probably her being assigned to the task of watching over the handmaids and keeping them in a healthy state to bear offspring.
The Commander achieves and maintains his power in the society by continuing to be fertile and able to impregnate women to be raise as soldiers or to be used to create more children. In addition, he is most probably given his duty from a more superior source within the society. Serena Joy achieves her power from outside sources and maintains it by being strict with the girls and not getting to know them like it states in her rules as a Wife.
The purpose of these two antagonists are evident. The Commander is there to oversee the House Wife (Serena) while the role of Serena is to oversee the handmaids and assure the higher power that they are able to bear offspring.
I repeated stuff from my first paragraph because I already stated it, but felt it was essential to back up my pieces. Sooo ya. Lawl.
Naftali Moed Posting: Response to Andrew Andrew’s notion that the Commander and his wife are the source of power within their household is most certainly correct. Moreover, it is through this household image that the reader attains a more global perspective and comes to better comprehend such events of the “Prayvaganza”(Atwood 276) in which a commander presides over the ceremony. In a sense, the household power structure emanates that present in The Republic of Gilead’s overall structure, giving insights into how the republic works. It is through this power structure, in which multiple women are subjected to labor as are the “Marthas”, cooks and the handmaids, that many of the novel’s feminist undertones are revealed. As Andrew argues, the hierarchy depicted within the household demonstrates the roles of each individual and their placement with regards to the power structure. While much about Andrew’s assessment is true, it is rather clear what separates Serena Joy, a rather symbolic character from the handmaids, societal precedent. While the interaction between Serena and Offred can be somewhat personal and in cases questionable, the societal precedents established by the leaders of Gilead clearly differentiate between the two women. This is clearly depicted at the Prayvaganza where “ranks of folding chairs…for wives and daughters”(277), while a ”rope segregates us [the handmaids]”(277) who are forced to sit on the ground. The set up at the Prayvaganza is rather symbolic in that it places all of the women in their various ranks, visual alluding to the realities of their different classes.
In the Handmaid's Tale, the males are the dominant power in the male chauvinist society of the Republic of Gilead. The males embody the military and police roles of society while the females are simply reproductive tools. Maintaining power is easy for the males given their role as they can brandish weapons. The most notable male is the Commander, one of the leading figures of masculine power. Given his title, the Commander oversees male domination over the females in the Republic of Gilead. When the Commander offers to play a game of Scrabble with Offred, she quickly remembers that "Now it's forbidden, for us. Now it's dangerous. Now it's indecent,"(179), but nonetheless accepts the offer showing the extent of influence he has over the woman despite Gilead laws prohibiting the game. Often in history, woman are often shunned in favor of men, creating a gender struggle between the rival sexes. Throughout the centuries, women fought for equality and rights as human beings. A possibility as why Margret Atwood made the women inferior to the likes of men in The Handmaid's Tale is possibly to outline the unfortunate outcome of the continuing class struggle between the sexes.
In the novel The Handmaid's Tale, the men seem to hold the power because the women are subjected to what they are able to do, what they can wear, and when they can leave their "home". The specififc name for the men who have power are the Commanders. These men have accomplished and obtain the power over women by creating a new society, the Republic of Gilead, this society gives the men an opportunity to take over and have control over the women by color coding their clothes and keeping them coped up in one area, the Commanders' compound, so they can keep track of them. In the beginning of the novel Offred explains how the women are identified, "There are women with baskets, some in red...Marthas...red and blue and green and cheap and skimpy...mark the women of poorer men. Econowvies they're called....Sometimes there is a women in all black, a widow. You don't see the Commanders' Wives on the sidewalks. Only in cars,"(Atwood 32). This is one representation of how women are divided, the Commanders' manipulate what they wear in order to figure out their status. In this case the male is the dominant gender, which is expressed throughout the novel of how men carry the superior role and have the advantage to put restrictions on the women and "put them in their place" in society. It is said that the era of this novel is in the future, so this might emulate what is going on now in today's society and how some women around the world aren't treated equally as men and how inferior they are and have been for many years. The author, Margaret Atwood, may have capitalized on this standpoint of how women are treated today in society and her feminist views on it.
Clarissa Silvestre Response: James &Original In the novel, it is clearly shown that the men have full power and control over the women in the Gilead society. The shift in inequality of power in the Gilead was first explained to readers during one of Offred’s flashbacks when suddenly out of the blue “women couldn’t hold property anymore” (Atwood 231) and from then on any rights women held in society started to diminish. As stated by James, the women now serve as reproduction purposes only while the men in turn serve as military purposes and are equipped with machine guns. The Commander maintains full power over Offred due to his higher superiority and ability to determine her faith, which greatly affects her decisions to involve in risky actions. The Commander bears great masculine power and influence over Offred because like other men he obtains the superiority over women. Although Offred knows that the Commander’s request for her to accompany him one night is illegal, she still pursues his request as she reminds herself that “to refuse to see him could be worse. There’s no doubt who holds the real power” (176). The Commander’s power is achieved over Offred because he “owns” her and she is merely only seen as a tool to achieve reproduction. If Offred doesn’t obey the Commander it leads to the fear that she may be an Unwomen or sent to punishment or death. Thus, to avoid those events from happening to her she must obey the Commander’s requests to keep her position in society as a handmaid. Offred knows that the consequences for not obeying the Commander could lead him to “easily give [her] away so easily by a look, by a gesture, some tiny slip that would reveal to anyone watching that there was something between [them] now” (208). The Commander has the ability to automatically turn Offred into the authorities for any inappropriate actions or behavior because of his high status in society. Thus, Offred must obey the Commander’s risky decision even though she knows she may be caught because being turned in by the Commander may be worst. Overall, the Commander holds Offred’s life and what may become of her next. As long as he is Offred’s Commander, his decisions to turn her in or not into the authorities affects whether she can continue living her life as a handmaid or fall into the unfortunate options to make her life worst than it already is. As James stated, Atwood possibly chose men to carry the power in society rather than women to show the struggle for women’s shared equality for power with men in her novel. Throughout the novel, Atwood emphasizes how women are unequally treated compared to men who are able to posses far more rights than them and thus making them inferior. The enduring struggles for equal rights for women have been seen as a constant issue around the world for centuries. Atwood’s purpose to include gender inequality and women’s struggle for their rights throughout the novel help readers connect to the bigger picture on how this issue may still be happening today in our own society.
At a large glance the men seem to have the power in this novel, based on the laws that are restraining women from reading, dressing freely, holding guns, and much more. However, a more broken down look into the society shows that the power depends on the setting and the situation. The ranks of the citizens now determines the power 'balance'. For example, while the plot is set in the schools, the Aunts have the power. The fact that the Angels "never looked at any of us [the women] very closely, even and perhaps especially not the Aunts..." (171) shows that respect, and even nervousness is evident among the lower ranks to the Aunts (who are female). As the setting changes to the Household, Serena has most of the power, because it is her "territory" (111). This power switch helps support the idea that rank determines the amount of power someone has in the novel. Lastly, it is true that men do have a certain power as well. There power is more political then the women who hold power. Men can read, enter the library, have wives, hold guns, drive, and many more everyday tasks that are now withheld from women. The reason that men do not have complete control is that they still have women that they fear. The Commander for instance knows of the dangers that Serena represents if she were to find out about the 'affair' of him and Offred.
The power is earned through the rank system, but it is kept because of fear. Offred knows that the doctor has an unspoken power, that he can "fake the tests, report me [her] for cancer,"(80) and this keeps her from telling anybody anything, and from showing any offense. This unspoken fear is evident among all the ranks, and it is what keeps each one in it's place, and with it's power.
This multi-layered power system is used in the novel as a reason for suspense. Atwood portrays each character ambiguiously, so that the reader is unsure who they can trust. This unknowing of the possibility of evil or friendship helps move the plot forward, and keep the reader interested. The fact that throughout the novel one cannot be sure whether a character is a protagonist or antagonist adds personal judgement to the book, and keeps the reader connected. It tests not only the new societies morals and philosophies but the readers as well.
In The Handmaid's Tale, the men are the primary holders of power. Since the beginning of the new government it has been decided that “women can't hold property anymore”(Atwood 231). This decision changed the way that women were treated and viewed in society. It effectively took away a massive amount of power that women had, since now that they could not own property, they would have to live on men's property, which put them at a severe disadvantage. This puts the women under the control of the men, forcing them to do what they or told, for fear of getting kicked out. Men also hold control over women because only they can bear weapons. This gives them power because it enables them to enforce any demands that they make. They can also use threats of reporting women to the authorities for various things, regardless if the accusations are true or false, as demonstrated when Offred realizes that her doctor “could fake the tests, report me for cancer”(80) if she refused to follow his wishes. The fact that the men have the power in the novel shows how much of a struggle Offred has to go through in order to survive in the newly created Republic of Gilead. She must stand up against being seen as simply a tool for reproduction in order to get the rights she deserves. This may also be symbolic to how women in history had to fight for rights that they would have had in the first place.
Michael Tamin Response to all who argue that the men are the holders of power.
While it is true that the men in the Gilead Republic have more power and privilege than their female counterparts, the true holders of power are more specifically the male elites of society [such as the commander of Offred's "household"].
We can see early on in the book that much of the male population (such as the Guardians) are little more than servants and laborers who are "assigned [to tasks such as] ... washing the car" (23), and clearly do not hold much authority in the running of Gilead. They can still be severely punished for "crimes". Only a select few can hold the privilege of being in power.
The reason why the commander of Offred (as well as other commanders and high-ranking officials) have the power is that they were directly involved in the creation of Gilead and its societal structure and ideology. Through their overthrowing of the United States government and the backing of military power, they are able to achieve and maintain political dominance, thus providing them control.
Their having power is a crucial portion of the novel's structure. Without that fact, nothing mentioned in the books (barring segments of Offred's flashbacks) would have taken place. The existence of a powerful group is a vital factor that portrays the act of oppresion that characterizes this book.
Jeffrey Witter Response to: Michael I quite agree with Michael. While overall in the novel, men have much more power in the Republic of Gilead then women, the men in power still control most aspects of society. To build upon your ideas, I think that Atwood intended for her book to be set in somewhat of a modern day Christian theocracy. The Commanders might be religious leaders, as it is not really specified what it is they do or are in charge of. Atwood hints at many times as to the religious aspect of the Republic, with porn shops closed, religious wars, and anything that goes against the Bible outlawed. A literal interpretation of the Bible clearly places women below men, and so it would make perfect sense if the Republic of Gilead were a Christian theocracy. When Offred is alone with the Commander, she states “to refuse to see him could be worse. There’s no doubt who holds the real power” (176). It seems that the power varies among men, with servants such as Nick having much less power that the Commander, who can order Offred and others around at his whim. However, the power structure varies among the women, with the Aunts having power over the handmaids. The key power is centered around the mysterious commanders, and I think this is a continuation of Atwood's message of the dangers of the religious right. Atwood wrote this novel during the middle of a radical right shift by the Republican Party in the United States, with religious fundamentalism becoming a key tenant of their party's platform. Atwood warns what happens if you allow religious fundamentalism to grow unchecked, and uses the relation of the power structure to emphasize this message.
It seems as though the men in the Handmaid's Tale have the power because the Commander's are superior to the Wives, the men are not color coded like the women, and only the men are allowed to carry guns in the society. Also, the fact that women are forbidden to read. Men also are able to bend the laws easily, for example, the scene of Offred's encounter with the doctor. Although illegal, the doctor attempts to have sex with Offred. Offred thinks that by refusing to have sex with him, "he could fake the tests, report me for cancer,.."(80). This shows how much power the doctor has as he is able to fix tests and bend the rules to achieve his own desires. It also shows how inferior women are to men in Gilead as Offred is unable to do anything if he does fake the tests. How this power is achieved and maintained is through the laws of the Republic of Gilead and the Republic's strict power to maintain this kind of power. Why men have more power than women is Atwood's choice. Atwood's choice to have women be inferior to men is maybe to show how inferior women are to men in today's world and to empower them to fight for equal rights. For example, women in the US are not allowed to participate in combat and other field combat MOS's. Many other countries today still have laws that don't give women equal rights as men, so maybe this book to is to inspire the women to be more empowered.
ReplyDeletename: Dan
ReplyDeleteResponse: original writing
Name: Tiffany
ReplyDeleteResponse: Dan
I agree with Dan with his statement that men has the power in the novel. More specifically, it's the Commanders. This is because they are able to control the "Guardians of the Faith' through spies and secret police. For example, the Commander uses Nick as his messenger to tell Offred when to visit him. Even if Nick finds their meeting inappropriate, he doesn't say anything or do anything because he can't. "It's a soft job for him, running little errands, doing little favors, and there's no way he'd want to jeopardize it" (Atwood 301). However, men in general, had more power than women. As Dan stated, men were the only ones allowed to carry guns in the society. Even the Aunts who had some power, weren't trusted with guns. Power is achieved and maintain by, also as Dan stated, making it forbidden for women to read. Therefore, women are restricted from access to knowledge. Books and magazines have been banned and burned. The purpose of this is to keep women ignorant so that they would not have enough knowledge to retaliate. I also agree with Dan's statement that men has power in the novel to show an example of the world today. A good example of men holding power is the fact that all our previous presidents have been male. And the purpose it serves in the novel is to highlight the fact that women weren't/aren't appreciated enough. They were simply only good for reproduction in the novel. Margaret Atwood creates this imaginary society that may act as a warning to present day society of what may happen in the future if present day inequality issues are not solved.
Paola Mendizabal
ReplyDeleteOriginal Posting
In the Republic of Gilead, men hold power over women and everything else in society. This is shown by the power of the Commander over the Handmaids. The handmaids must obey whatever the Commander says or face the consequences. Offred shows that she is afraid of the Commander when she wonders why he wants her to meet him in his study. She mentions that if she's caught, she'll be sent to Serena and she could become an Unwoman. But she risks that because if she were to disobey him, "it could be worse. There's no doubt about who holds the real power"(176) in the house. The consequences that the women would face if they disobeyed a man aren't explained in the story. This shows that many women including Offred are too afraid of the men to do something bad because of what would happen to them.
Men maintain the power in society by surveilling the women to make sure they don't do anything out of order. For example, when the Japanese interpreter tries to talk to the Offred and the other handmaid Ofglen, Offred suspects that the interpreter is an Eye and tries to keep the conversation to a minimum since the handmaid's are not supposed to talk to men. The men in the novel have the power because in society, men are thought of as stronger than women. This shows in our own society since so far there have only been male presidents. Also women didn't get the right to vote until the 1920's while men did.
Margaret Atwood purpose to give men more power than women is to show that men may take advantage of their power and force women to become simply objects of reproduction. As Tiffany stated, Margaret Atwood creates the Republic of Gilead as a warning of what may happen in the future if the issues with inequality today are not solved.
Name: Naftali Moed
ReplyDeletePosting: Response to Dan
Just as in any society, that which is present in “The Handmaid’s Tale” serves to reflect upon the enduring struggle for control and power that has always plagued humanity. Thus being the reality, Gilead’s authoritarian, theocratic ruling class retains the power within the Republic of Gilead. While most all Dan addresses is accurate, it is important to go further into the motives of the Republic’s rulers (all male) and seek out a more wholesome perspective as to their motives, strategies implementations and subsequent meanings conveyed by the author. As demonstrated through such instances as that in which Offred remarks, “What I feel is relief. It wasn’t me”(Atwood 220), a remark regarding the abduction by another citizen by the government/police, Gilead’s leaders retain power through the employment of oppression and fear. A symbolic occurrence of this phenomenon is the wall upon which “they [the government] leave the bodies hanging”(214), imposing fear onto those who view the horrific fate of those who violate the law. The institutional employment of such tactics, including the prevention of rioting in the post-”catastrophe”(225) era, culminates in the ultimate rule by oppression that the government in Gilead has enforced. Similar to Dan’s argument regarding gender, the fact that the Handmaid’s names, Offred (of Fred) and Ofwarren (of Warren), demonstrate ownership by men over women further emanates the notion of divisional and fear evoking tactics. Ultimately, the tactics of Gilead’s government, such as divide and conquer and the general inflation of fear or fear mongering allow it to further its control of its citizens. These tactics of division and fear enable the government/ruling body to maintain control over the people, but symbolically aid Atwood in relating deeper meanings. As Dan hinted, the book contains multiple feminist undertones, all of which emphasize the disparity between the two genders. In addition to those messages relayed by Dan, the power structure of the republic of Gilead serves to highlight other of Atwood’s messages. One message perhaps warning against the notion of theocracy, demonstrated through the rather unfavorable recounting of biblical recitals and view of the government. Another message perhaps the problematic and antiquated nature of authoritarian government and humanity. While theses messages are ultimately subjective and completely open to interpretation, their presence is definite and clearly conveyed by the power structure established in the novel.
Andrew Pagan
ReplyDeleteOriginal Post
In "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood the antagonists Serena Joy and the Commander seem to have the most power within the household and over the fate of the handmaid's. These two individuals have power not only because of their status within the household, but because of their gender. Through Atwood's feminist view it is displayed that the Commander has the most power within the household because he is a male and somewhat elderly. Due to males being superior than women in this novel displays the classism between males and females. In addition, the Commander has power in this new society because he is still fertile enough to produce children. If he were sterile (oh em gee a forbidden word!) he would be stripped of his duty. Serena Joy seems to have power in this man powered world due to her prior status as a singer and occasionally on television. Unlike the handmaids she does not have to have intercourse and produce children like the handmaids, but she does have to watch over them. It is still a bit unclear what separates her from the handmaids, but it's most probably her being assigned to the task of watching over the handmaids and keeping them in a healthy state to bear offspring.
The Commander achieves and maintains his power in the society by continuing to be fertile and able to impregnate women to be raise as soldiers or to be used to create more children. In addition, he is most probably given his duty from a more superior source within the society. Serena Joy achieves her power from outside sources and maintains it by being strict with the girls and not getting to know them like it states in her rules as a Wife.
The purpose of these two antagonists are evident. The Commander is there to oversee the House Wife (Serena) while the role of Serena is to oversee the handmaids and assure the higher power that they are able to bear offspring.
I repeated stuff from my first paragraph because I already stated it, but felt it was essential to back up my pieces. Sooo ya. Lawl.
Naftali Moed
ReplyDeletePosting: Response to Andrew
Andrew’s notion that the Commander and his wife are the source of power within their household is most certainly correct. Moreover, it is through this household image that the reader attains a more global perspective and comes to better comprehend such events of the “Prayvaganza”(Atwood 276) in which a commander presides over the ceremony. In a sense, the household power structure emanates that present in The Republic of Gilead’s overall structure, giving insights into how the republic works. It is through this power structure, in which multiple women are subjected to labor as are the “Marthas”, cooks and the handmaids, that many of the novel’s feminist undertones are revealed. As Andrew argues, the hierarchy depicted within the household demonstrates the roles of each individual and their placement with regards to the power structure.
While much about Andrew’s assessment is true, it is rather clear what separates Serena Joy, a rather symbolic character from the handmaids, societal precedent. While the interaction between Serena and Offred can be somewhat personal and in cases questionable, the societal precedents established by the leaders of Gilead clearly differentiate between the two women. This is clearly depicted at the Prayvaganza where “ranks of folding chairs…for wives and daughters”(277), while a ”rope segregates us [the handmaids]”(277) who are forced to sit on the ground. The set up at the Prayvaganza is rather symbolic in that it places all of the women in their various ranks, visual alluding to the realities of their different classes.
Name: James Cheung
ReplyDeleteResponse: Original Posting
In the Handmaid's Tale, the males are the dominant power in the male chauvinist society of the Republic of Gilead. The males embody the military and police roles of society while the females are simply reproductive tools. Maintaining power is easy for the males given their role as they can brandish weapons. The most notable male is the Commander, one of the leading figures of masculine power. Given his title, the Commander oversees male domination over the females in the Republic of Gilead. When the Commander offers to play a game of Scrabble with Offred, she quickly remembers that "Now it's forbidden, for us. Now it's dangerous. Now it's indecent,"(179), but nonetheless accepts the offer showing the extent of influence he has over the woman despite Gilead laws prohibiting the game. Often in history, woman are often shunned in favor of men, creating a gender struggle between the rival sexes. Throughout the centuries, women fought for equality and rights as human beings. A possibility as why Margret Atwood made the women inferior to the likes of men in The Handmaid's Tale is possibly to outline the unfortunate outcome of the continuing class struggle between the sexes.
Name: Charmaine
ReplyDeleteResponse: Original Post
In the novel The Handmaid's Tale, the men seem to hold the power because the women are subjected to what they are able to do, what they can wear, and when they can leave their "home". The specififc name for the men who have power are the Commanders. These men have accomplished and obtain the power over women by creating a new society, the Republic of Gilead, this society gives the men an opportunity to take over and have control over the women by color coding their clothes and keeping them coped up in one area, the Commanders' compound, so they can keep track of them. In the beginning of the novel Offred explains how the women are identified, "There are women with baskets, some in red...Marthas...red and blue and green and cheap and skimpy...mark the women of poorer men. Econowvies they're called....Sometimes there is a women in all black, a widow. You don't see the Commanders' Wives on the sidewalks. Only in cars,"(Atwood 32). This is one representation of how women are divided, the Commanders' manipulate what they wear in order to figure out their status. In this case the male is the dominant gender, which is expressed throughout the novel of how men carry the superior role and have the advantage to put restrictions on the women and "put them in their place" in society. It is said that the era of this novel is in the future, so this might emulate what is going on now in today's society and how some women around the world aren't treated equally as men and how inferior they are and have been for many years. The author, Margaret Atwood, may have capitalized on this standpoint of how women are treated today in society and her feminist views on it.
Clarissa Silvestre
ReplyDeleteResponse: James &Original
In the novel, it is clearly shown that the men have full power and control over the women in the Gilead society. The shift in inequality of power in the Gilead was first explained to readers during one of Offred’s flashbacks when suddenly out of the blue “women couldn’t hold property anymore” (Atwood 231) and from then on any rights women held in society started to diminish. As stated by James, the women now serve as reproduction purposes only while the men in turn serve as military purposes and are equipped with machine guns. The Commander maintains full power over Offred due to his higher superiority and ability to determine her faith, which greatly affects her decisions to involve in risky actions.
The Commander bears great masculine power and influence over Offred because like other men he obtains the superiority over women. Although Offred knows that the Commander’s request for her to accompany him one night is illegal, she still pursues his request as she reminds herself that “to refuse to see him could be worse. There’s no doubt who holds the real power” (176). The Commander’s power is achieved over Offred because he “owns” her and she is merely only seen as a tool to achieve reproduction. If Offred doesn’t obey the Commander it leads to the fear that she may be an Unwomen or sent to punishment or death. Thus, to avoid those events from happening to her she must obey the Commander’s requests to keep her position in society as a handmaid. Offred knows that the consequences for not obeying the Commander could lead him to “easily give [her] away so easily by a look, by a gesture, some tiny slip that would reveal to anyone watching that there was something between [them] now” (208). The Commander has the ability to automatically turn Offred into the authorities for any inappropriate actions or behavior because of his high status in society. Thus, Offred must obey the Commander’s risky decision even though she knows she may be caught because being turned in by the Commander may be worst. Overall, the Commander holds Offred’s life and what may become of her next. As long as he is Offred’s Commander, his decisions to turn her in or not into the authorities affects whether she can continue living her life as a handmaid or fall into the unfortunate options to make her life worst than it already is.
As James stated, Atwood possibly chose men to carry the power in society rather than women to show the struggle for women’s shared equality for power with men in her novel. Throughout the novel, Atwood emphasizes how women are unequally treated compared to men who are able to posses far more rights than them and thus making them inferior. The enduring struggles for equal rights for women have been seen as a constant issue around the world for centuries. Atwood’s purpose to include gender inequality and women’s struggle for their rights throughout the novel help readers connect to the bigger picture on how this issue may still be happening today in our own society.
At a large glance the men seem to have the power in this novel, based on the laws that are restraining women from reading, dressing freely, holding guns, and much more. However, a more broken down look into the society shows that the power depends on the setting and the situation. The ranks of the citizens now determines the power 'balance'. For example, while the plot is set in the schools, the Aunts have the power. The fact that the Angels "never looked at any of us [the women] very closely, even and perhaps especially not the Aunts..." (171) shows that respect, and even nervousness is evident among the lower ranks to the Aunts (who are female). As the setting changes to the Household, Serena has most of the power, because it is her "territory" (111). This power switch helps support the idea that rank determines the amount of power someone has in the novel. Lastly, it is true that men do have a certain power as well. There power is more political then the women who hold power. Men can read, enter the library, have wives, hold guns, drive, and many more everyday tasks that are now withheld from women. The reason that men do not have complete control is that they still have women that they fear. The Commander for instance knows of the dangers that Serena represents if she were to find out about the 'affair' of him and Offred.
ReplyDeleteThe power is earned through the rank system, but it is kept because of fear. Offred knows that the doctor has an unspoken power, that he can "fake the tests, report me [her] for cancer,"(80) and this keeps her from telling anybody anything, and from showing any offense. This unspoken fear is evident among all the ranks, and it is what keeps each one in it's place, and with it's power.
This multi-layered power system is used in the novel as a reason for suspense. Atwood portrays each character ambiguiously, so that the reader is unsure who they can trust. This unknowing of the possibility of evil or friendship helps move the plot forward, and keep the reader interested. The fact that throughout the novel one cannot be sure whether a character is a protagonist or antagonist adds personal judgement to the book, and keeps the reader connected. It tests not only the new societies morals and philosophies but the readers as well.
Alex Tsang
ReplyDeleteOriginal Posting
In The Handmaid's Tale, the men are the primary holders of power. Since the beginning of the new government it has been decided that “women can't hold property anymore”(Atwood 231). This decision changed the way that women were treated and viewed in society. It effectively took away a massive amount of power that women had, since now that they could not own property, they would have to live on men's property, which put them at a severe disadvantage. This puts the women under the control of the men, forcing them to do what they or told, for fear of getting kicked out. Men also hold control over women because only they can bear weapons. This gives them power because it enables them to enforce any demands that they make. They can also use threats of reporting women to the authorities for various things, regardless if the accusations are true or false, as demonstrated when Offred realizes that her doctor “could fake the tests, report me for cancer”(80) if she refused to follow his wishes. The fact that the men have the power in the novel shows how much of a struggle Offred has to go through in order to survive in the newly created Republic of Gilead. She must stand up against being seen as simply a tool for reproduction in order to get the rights she deserves. This may also be symbolic to how women in history had to fight for rights that they would have had in the first place.
Michael Tamin
ReplyDeleteResponse to all who argue that the men are the holders of power.
While it is true that the men in the Gilead Republic have more power and privilege than their female counterparts, the true holders of power are more specifically the male elites of society [such as the commander of Offred's "household"].
We can see early on in the book that much of the male population (such as the Guardians) are little more than servants and laborers who are "assigned [to tasks such as] ... washing the car" (23), and clearly do not hold much authority in the running of Gilead. They can still be severely punished for "crimes". Only a select few can hold the privilege of being in power.
The reason why the commander of Offred (as well as other commanders and high-ranking officials) have the power is that they were directly involved in the creation of Gilead and its societal structure and ideology. Through their overthrowing of the United States government and the backing of military power, they are able to achieve and maintain political dominance, thus providing them control.
Their having power is a crucial portion of the novel's structure. Without that fact, nothing mentioned in the books (barring segments of Offred's flashbacks) would have taken place. The existence of a powerful group is a vital factor that portrays the act of oppresion that characterizes this book.
Jeffrey Witter
ReplyDeleteResponse to: Michael
I quite agree with Michael. While overall in the novel, men have much more power in the Republic of Gilead then women, the men in power still control most aspects of society. To build upon your ideas, I think that Atwood intended for her book to be set in somewhat of a modern day Christian theocracy. The Commanders might be religious leaders, as it is not really specified what it is they do or are in charge of. Atwood hints at many times as to the religious aspect of the Republic, with porn shops closed, religious wars, and anything that goes against the Bible outlawed. A literal interpretation of the Bible clearly places women below men, and so it would make perfect sense if the Republic of Gilead were a Christian theocracy. When Offred is alone with the Commander, she states “to refuse to see him could be worse. There’s no doubt who holds the real power” (176). It seems that the power varies among men, with servants such as Nick having much less power that the Commander, who can order Offred and others around at his whim. However, the power structure varies among the women, with the Aunts having power over the handmaids. The key power is centered around the mysterious commanders, and I think this is a continuation of Atwood's message of the dangers of the religious right. Atwood wrote this novel during the middle of a radical right shift by the Republican Party in the United States, with religious fundamentalism becoming a key tenant of their party's platform. Atwood warns what happens if you allow religious fundamentalism to grow unchecked, and uses the relation of the power structure to emphasize this message.