The Handmaid's Tale Chapter Summaries
Summary: Chapters 1-13
- The narrator and protagonist Offred lives in the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian government who controls everything
- There is a flashback to Offred’s past which outlines her conditions as a handmaid
- Narrator, named Offred describes how women lived in the time
- Forbidden to talk to each other
- Learned to read each other’s lips
- Laps around the former football field
- Armed guards called Angel’s patrol the outside
- Scene changes from the past to the present
- “Nicer” room fitted with curtains, pillow, a window which does not open completely
- Aunt Lydia believes that Offred’s circumstance is a “privilege”, instead of a prison
- Handmaids are dressed entirely in red, except for their white wings framing their faces
- Household servants are called Marthas in …show more content…
- Acceptance for intercourse outside of marriages gave more freedom
- The Handmaid’s Tale illustrates the consequences of a reversal of women’s right
- Things that women had fought for in the 1970’s which were considered great triumphs, such as legalization of abortion, increasing political influence of female voters had all been undone
- Sole purpose for women was to reproduce
- A rise in Christian fundamentalists during the 1980s undermined some of the progress women had recently gained
- Shows how a literal interpretation of the Bible can lead to oppression of women
- With the sexual revolution, many religious groups were opposed and wanted to return to the traditional gender roles and family life
- As an environmental activist, Atwood marks the decrease in human fertility as a result of environmental pollution and degradation
- Colours of uniforms were chosen because:
- Wives were the blue of purity, from the Virgin Mary (the Mother of Jesus)
- Handmaids were red, from the blood of parturition (blood of giving birth), but also from Mary Magdalene (a Jewish woman, who according to texts traveled with Jesus as one of his followers)
- Red is easier to see if you happen to
- The narrator and protagonist Offred lives in the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian government who controls everything
- There is a flashback to Offred’s past which outlines her conditions as a handmaid
- Narrator, named Offred describes how women lived in the time
- Forbidden to talk to each other
- Learned to read each other’s lips
- Laps around the former football field
- Armed guards called Angel’s patrol the outside
- Scene changes from the past to the present
- “Nicer” room fitted with curtains, pillow, a window which does not open completely
- Aunt Lydia believes that Offred’s circumstance is a “privilege”, instead of a prison
- Handmaids are dressed entirely in red, except for their white wings framing their faces
- Household servants are called Marthas in …show more content…
- Acceptance for intercourse outside of marriages gave more freedom
- The Handmaid’s Tale illustrates the consequences of a reversal of women’s right
- Things that women had fought for in the 1970’s which were considered great triumphs, such as legalization of abortion, increasing political influence of female voters had all been undone
- Sole purpose for women was to reproduce
- A rise in Christian fundamentalists during the 1980s undermined some of the progress women had recently gained
- Shows how a literal interpretation of the Bible can lead to oppression of women
- With the sexual revolution, many religious groups were opposed and wanted to return to the traditional gender roles and family life
- As an environmental activist, Atwood marks the decrease in human fertility as a result of environmental pollution and degradation
- Colours of uniforms were chosen because:
- Wives were the blue of purity, from the Virgin Mary (the Mother of Jesus)
- Handmaids were red, from the blood of parturition (blood of giving birth), but also from Mary Magdalene (a Jewish woman, who according to texts traveled with Jesus as one of his followers)
- Red is easier to see if you happen to