The Messed up truth

The Handmaid’s Tale is a book that unfortunately by parts relates to how society was before the 21st century. The Handmaid’s Tale takes place in the near future in New England. Specifically in a Partichal, white supremacist, dictatorial theonomic state, which is known as the Republic of Gilead. Throughout the book, there have been uncomfortable scenes that symbolize women’s worth in Gilead. Chapters 16 through 25, reveal horrific moments.

In chapter 16 Olfred talks about the uncomfortable moment she is forced to face. Both the commander and his wive; Serena Joy, want to have a child of their own but chose Olfred’s womb to be the one to carry their child. On pg. 94 Olfred says “Therefore I lie on my canopy over my head. I remember Queen Victoria’s advice to her daughter: Close your eyes and think of England. But this is not England. I wish he would hurry up.” This quote just shows that Gilead looks at women, specifically the handmaids as “baby making machines”. That phrase is pretty harsh but is the best phrase I could use to describe this quote in chapter 16. Due to the role Offred has been given, there is no way of escaping this rule. In Gilead, Men have the primary dominicance and privilege over women. Which means, no matter how uncomfortable Offred may be feeling, there is nothing she could do to avoid it or put an end to. This relates to Former Emperor of The french, Napoleon Bonaparte.

Napoleon Bonaparte subordinated women to their father and hubands. He did not approve of women being ones to own their personal property or belongings. Throughout Napoleon’s rules women were forbidden to enter into legal contrats, participate in lawsuits or testify in court. A quote Napolean even said was “Women are nothing but machines for producing children.” While Napolean Bonaparte had been ruling France, It had affected almost every women that lived in france but than women in France decided to take a stand. But even though women had later on took a stand, the emotional damage these women had gone through can never be replaced. Napoleaon had been one of the worst French emperors throughout history due to how he expressed himself about women, and not having equality amongst each other. Always selecting a certain role for a certain group of people.

In Chapter 19, pg. 112 it says; “We didn’t know exactly what would happen to the babies that didn’t get passed, that were declared Unbabies. But we knew they were put somewhere, quickly, away.

I had to re-read this quote multiple of times, because there is clearly something off about it. There is no section in the book that mentions where the “unbabies” are to be sent to or done with. Which just shows even though Gilead isn’t perfect, the rules that have been implemented are to be shape and change how society is in Gilead for the “better”. Gilead does not accept a child that is born with complications or doesn’t fit the standards. This portion of the book specifically resonates with a non-fictional book called the Giver. It’s a dystopian society. Everyone that lives in this society have to follow the rules and if not, one would receive some kind of punishment.

In the book, it talks about how, if twins were born, one immediately has to be dealt with and send to “elsewhere”. Also if the child is born with birth defects or complications, the same procedures will be made. The point I’m trying to make is that these dystopian societies say they want the better for everyone, but it’s the other way around. These dystopian societies are just controlling and allowing fear to build up in certain individuals. Such as women. There was a moment in the book where the aunts spoke about how they were grateful to have gotten their tubes tied. In order to not go through any mishaps. In the book, the Giver, it mentions how each person is assigned to a job, and one has to complete their assessments on time which flows with the Handmaid’s tale, since everyone has a specific role they must meet up to. If not some kind of punishment will be sent to one’s attention.

Overall, the Handmaid’s Tale connects to many different aspects of history, books, and media. One just has to re-read certain phrases in order to understand what the scene is really about because in multiple scenes one can misunderstand a phrase or the overall meaning.