Oppression In The Handmaid's Tale

While the first chapter of The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood is not even two pages long, it introduces two key components to the story--oppression and women. The novel takes place in the Republic of Gilead, a dystopian society that has taken over the United States of America. Where there are oppressors, there are the oppressed, and this group is primarily made up of women. Offred, the narrator, gives insight into her new life, as well as the lives around her. While they are sent to Red Centers to be reprogrammed, fed lies through the television, and taught that Gilead is omniscient, she and other women refuse to forget the ways of the past. Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale showcases various forms of rebellion in different women …show more content…
Her narrative is laced with numerous flashbacks. While some give her joy and others grief, they all serve to remind her of a different time, one in which she was free, valued, and loved. She is often bored, and imagines stories about her husband, Luke, to help her pass the time and prepare for whatever the truth of his fate may be. “But I believe in all of them, all three versions of Luke, at one and the same time….Whatever the truth is, I will be ready for it” (106). She is also constantly reminded of her daughter, and dreams of her. “I dream that I get out of bed...and go out the door, not this door. I’m at home, one of my homes, and she’s running to meet me...I pick her up and feel her arms and legs go around me and I begin to cry, because I know then that I’m not awake” (109). Offred also thinks of her mother, and Moira, a friend of hers college. She remembers them as strong, feminist women, who see no use in men. Offred wonders what has become of them, and wonders about their reactions to the current society, one in which women seldom interact with men, yet are oppressed and objectified. In the end, her memories provide more comfort than the truth does--her mother is cleaning up toxic waste in the Colonies, and Moira is working as a prostitute at Jezebel’s, a shadow of her former …show more content…
The lights remain on, Offred is fully clothed with the exception of her underwear, and she lays between Serena Joy’s legs, their hands clasped together. It is carried out as a responsibility, and nothing more. “It has nothing to do with sexual desire...arousal and orgasm are no longer thought necessary…” (94). Aside from this monthly obligation, Offred is to have no relations with men, especially not sexually. Offred begins having sex with Nick, however, at Serena Joy’s desire. Serena Joy wants Offred to get pregnant, and gives her news about her daughter in exchange for her cooperation. Soon, Offred meets with Nick secretly, one of the few things she has control over. While she keeps her eyes closed when she’s with the Commander, she keeps them open when with Nick. “I want to see what can be seen, of him, take him in, memorize him, save him so I can live on the image, later…” (269). When she is with the Commander, she struggles to name what is taking place; with Nick, she calls it making