Government Control In The Handmaid's Tale And Oryx And Crake

In both, The Handmaid’s Tale and Oryx and Crate, Margaret Atwood creates societies where government control is omnipresent. The Handmaid’s Tale is set in a future dystopian society named Gilead in which people use their power to take advantage of others. In the novel, all aspects of life are watched by The Eyes. They are everywhere and their presence and identities are unknown. This is a main fear for the public. They are used to create a sense of control over the citizens and are used as a threat. Similarly, Oryx and Crake is a novel about Snowman, who could be the last human survivor; the novel is written from his perspective and is about the end of human history. In the confinement of the compound, day to day life is controlled …show more content…
There is no longer a system of checks and balances to make sure the citizens’ rights are not violated. The Handmaid’s Tale, explores the negative outcomes of women’s rights being reversed. The government tries to control the society through fear which is demonstrated by the occurrence of a public execution. This is so the society will know the consequence of a rebellious act, thus preventing them from committing unwanted actions. “It’s the bags over the heads that are the worst, worse than the faces themselves would be. It makes men look like dolls on which faces have not yet been painted; like scare crows, which in a way is what they are, since they are meant to scare.” (The Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood, 36) Similarly, in Margaret …show more content…
In The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood uses language to manipulate an individual’s power and the way in which they obtain it. Offred frequently interrupts the text to debate the meaning of certain words. She often finds that the meanings of words have changed since Gilead was created. This control of language and use of Biblical language plays an important role in the government of Gilead. Aunt Lydia cited the biblical sentiment “Blessed are the meek, but she did not go on, as the Bible does, to add for they shall inherit the earth.” (The Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood, 80) This shows how the government of Gilead will manipulate its language to only share what they want to be heard. Likewise, in Oryx and Crake, manipulation also occurs. In the novel, manipulation is not only used through language, but also occurs between characters within the story. Jimmy is a very manipulative character; he knows what he wants and uses others to get what he wants. This is shown in his relationships with women; including his mother. Jimmy knows how to make women “feel useful” and he chooses women who “need him” (Oryx and Crake, Atwood, 115.) He did the same type of thing with his mother; Jimmy wants to get a reaction from her, either to make her laugh or cry. He does this to get her to feel something that he wants. Both texts show how their