Literature Log #1 The Handmaid's Tale

From the first page of The Handmaid’s Tale, the main character, Offred, blatantly lacks many human rights. She is treated barbarically and almost like an animal. She is degraded as such in the gymnasium. The handmaids are at the very bottom of the Gilliad hierarchy with by far the least rights, authority, and respect. Despite this, they are vital to the continuation of the human race. This leads to an interesting dynamic throughout the story as the handmaids are stripped of their humanity yet protected as royalty. Offred thinks about her complex situation at the beginning of chapter 13, “Like a prized pig” (pg. 69). That she chooses a pig of all animals is meaningful. Pigs, unlike cows or chickens, which produce milk and eggs, are only used for their meat. Offred is also only needed for one thing: to make babies. Other than that, she is treated as swine. In my drawing, Offred is at the center in her handmaid robes. She is in a pig pen surrounded by mud and a wooden fence. Though she is being treated as a pig, she is protected by an armed guard. This is a figurative depiction of Offred’s situation, but also how she has been brainwashed to think of herself. The guard is a very important part of the drawing because he looks out of place at a farm protecting a pig pen. But this is the same as in Gilliad, where handmaids are protected from the outside world because they are vital to the future of mankind, despite having no control over their own, much like a prized pig to a farmer.
Another important element of the art is the pig ball that Offred is kicking around the pen. On page 70, Offred goes into intense detail about what a pig ball is. Through her description, the reader can easily make the connection from the pig ball and the handmaids: “for pigs who were being fattened in pens… the pigs liked to have something to think about.” Offred was “fattened” in the gymnasium, and in the same chapter speaks about her boredom and the disregard she has been given. What makes the pig symbolism even stronger is when, at the end of this paragraph, Offred says, “I wish I had a pig ball.” She has been broken down to a point where, in her mind, even a muddy farm toy would be suitable and entertaining.