How Is Language Used In The Handmaid's Tale
Ifeanyi Durham
Ms. Milliner
EES21QH.21
10-19-16
In the novel The Handmaids Tale, author Atwood creates a world where access to all forms of language is a privilege. The oppressive society of Gilead strips women of their engagement in forms of language such as, reading, writing and even restricts how they speak. Which, naturally made language a desire by women, because it's degrading to not have freedom of speech. Atwood utilizes literary elements point of view, dialogue and diction, to convey how powerful language is in this world.
The protagonist of this story, Offred is a prime example of how powerful language is. She states how uses language daily by making mental notes throughout the day forming a story. Offred gives insight to her thoughts and mentions “I would like to believe this is a story I’m telling. I need to believe it. I must believe it. Those who can believe that such stories are only stories have a better chance. If it’s a story I’m telling, then I have control over the ending. Then there will be an ending, to the story, and real life will come …show more content…
after it. I can pick up where I left off.” (Atwood 39)This quote is Offred’s personal interpretation and point of view on her life which she refers to now, as a story. Her perspective is, what she must endure currently is only fictional, when it's not . Offred is a woman who has had multiple traumatic experiences such as her child being taken from her. Also she is essentially a sex slave and belittled in many ways.In result she has developed the habit to mentally tell a story as she completes her day. She utilizes languages power uniquely by using it as a means to falsify reality and relieve stress.
Additionally, language is impactful through conversation between characters throughout the novel. It either empowers some folk, while other due to positioning cannot speak and interact the same way. Also, some characters who have heavy influence make statements such as “Ordinary, said Aunt Lydia, is what you are used to. This may not seem ordinary to you now, but after a time it will. It will become ordinary.” Offred remembers these words spoken to her, at the sight of an execution. While attempting to repress her instinctive reaction to the site, dialogue from Aunt Lydia successfully aids her to do so. Language is so powerful in this novel that it has the ability to force an apathetic reaction to a dead body. Instead of an intensively more remorseful and frightened reaction, which would be consider the norm outside of Gilead.
As mentioned earlier, certain words are banned for people to say.
There even songs you are not allowed to sing in Gilead, the reasoning being it would promote to much freedom. One example of a song the main character mentions is amazing grace. Although, in addition to restricition some phrases have been forgotten and . Offred says, “mayday used to be a distress signal, a long time ago…for pilots whose planes had been hit, and ships-was it ships too?...I wish I could look it up” (Atwood 44). This shows how language has the power to change over time in this novel. Two words that were once a meaningful phrase put together reduced to a mere description of day. The government has done so well in having influence on people’s choice of words and how they interpret varying situations. This how Atwood utilizes diction, in her voice of using the phrase mayday to sparatically trigger a definition in offred’s
mind.
Ultimately, there are many ways in which language is used as a form of power in this novel. Also there varying literary elements included in the novel to clearly depict how language is utilized as a power. When some thing is taken away, automatically takes value increases. So when language was taken from women it became more precious and powerful, because they could not use it to its full capacity. Yet, the protagonist Offred, cleverly uses language to her advantage by telling herself that her life is a story. She mentally tells a story each day as a defense mechanism to ensure the harsh reality she faces.
Ms. Milliner
EES21QH.21
10-19-16
In the novel The Handmaids Tale, author Atwood creates a world where access to all forms of language is a privilege. The oppressive society of Gilead strips women of their engagement in forms of language such as, reading, writing and even restricts how they speak. Which, naturally made language a desire by women, because it's degrading to not have freedom of speech. Atwood utilizes literary elements point of view, dialogue and diction, to convey how powerful language is in this world.
The protagonist of this story, Offred is a prime example of how powerful language is. She states how uses language daily by making mental notes throughout the day forming a story. Offred gives insight to her thoughts and mentions “I would like to believe this is a story I’m telling. I need to believe it. I must believe it. Those who can believe that such stories are only stories have a better chance. If it’s a story I’m telling, then I have control over the ending. Then there will be an ending, to the story, and real life will come …show more content…
after it. I can pick up where I left off.” (Atwood 39)This quote is Offred’s personal interpretation and point of view on her life which she refers to now, as a story. Her perspective is, what she must endure currently is only fictional, when it's not . Offred is a woman who has had multiple traumatic experiences such as her child being taken from her. Also she is essentially a sex slave and belittled in many ways.In result she has developed the habit to mentally tell a story as she completes her day. She utilizes languages power uniquely by using it as a means to falsify reality and relieve stress.
Additionally, language is impactful through conversation between characters throughout the novel. It either empowers some folk, while other due to positioning cannot speak and interact the same way. Also, some characters who have heavy influence make statements such as “Ordinary, said Aunt Lydia, is what you are used to. This may not seem ordinary to you now, but after a time it will. It will become ordinary.” Offred remembers these words spoken to her, at the sight of an execution. While attempting to repress her instinctive reaction to the site, dialogue from Aunt Lydia successfully aids her to do so. Language is so powerful in this novel that it has the ability to force an apathetic reaction to a dead body. Instead of an intensively more remorseful and frightened reaction, which would be consider the norm outside of Gilead.
As mentioned earlier, certain words are banned for people to say.
There even songs you are not allowed to sing in Gilead, the reasoning being it would promote to much freedom. One example of a song the main character mentions is amazing grace. Although, in addition to restricition some phrases have been forgotten and . Offred says, “mayday used to be a distress signal, a long time ago…for pilots whose planes had been hit, and ships-was it ships too?...I wish I could look it up” (Atwood 44). This shows how language has the power to change over time in this novel. Two words that were once a meaningful phrase put together reduced to a mere description of day. The government has done so well in having influence on people’s choice of words and how they interpret varying situations. This how Atwood utilizes diction, in her voice of using the phrase mayday to sparatically trigger a definition in offred’s
mind.
Ultimately, there are many ways in which language is used as a form of power in this novel. Also there varying literary elements included in the novel to clearly depict how language is utilized as a power. When some thing is taken away, automatically takes value increases. So when language was taken from women it became more precious and powerful, because they could not use it to its full capacity. Yet, the protagonist Offred, cleverly uses language to her advantage by telling herself that her life is a story. She mentally tells a story each day as a defense mechanism to ensure the harsh reality she faces.