Monday, November 5, 2007
my thoughts on The Handmaid's Tale
I'm not sure if I hated or liked The Handmaid's Tale, it is certainly a weird one to appreciate on a personal level. What I did think Atwood did an amazing job of was make Offred seem like such a believable character that, as a reader, I was driven with empathy for her. I hated to hear her horrific story, but also wanted to find out what happened to her in the end. Atwood succeeded in creating a story that was nearly unbelievable, however, frightening in a sense that Gilead could be created after one social and political disaster. Offred's life before Gilead was like ours; she had freedom as a human being and as a woman. Gilead's oppressive society was a paradox to the world in which we live. What made the story even the faintest bit believable was the fact that Gilead came out of a free society. Out of chaos came oppression. Some think this may never happen in our well-educated society, however after September 11th did we not slowly give away some of our personal freedoms to ensure our safety. The Patriot Act is an example of this. What Atwood does it create a dystopia of such unbelievably, however the means of its creation are certainly something to consider.
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4 comments:
Hey! I love how you compared the terrorist attack on 9/11 to the society of Gilead because you make an excellent point. I really enjoyed this novel, but I read it with the mind set of "yeah, this could never happen to our civilized society." You bring up an excellent point with the Patriot Act and our trust in the government to not only protect out country but our personal freedom, as well. Scarey, but logical parallel.
sorry for my typos :] that should say "our country" and "scary"
I really like your insight on the Handmaid's Tale and our own society. We tend to believe that we are safe-guarded in our comfort zone and we are untouchable to horrible things that other nations and people endure on a daily basis. The lifestyle that Atwood creates does not seem so far fetched when we look at the history of human nature, and our tendency to sacrifice the rights of people to gurantee stability.
We want to be protected, and we have the desire to have everything be fair and just, regardless on how absurd the rules are to make it that way.
Just because a society is overrun with rules and regulations does not mean that its methods are civilized. To go along with what elle and you said, our own society is not sheltered from the lifestyle of Gilead.
As I began reading this post, I thought of 9/11. I find it effective that you made the comparison. There is definite parallelism among the two. As an American who has lived through 9/11, I remember the reaction of society. People were scared and confused and unsure of what to do. They were waiting for answers or a sense of direction. For this reason, I do not find it that difficult to believe that the society could have such a drastic shift after a political disaster. I commend you on your opinion and deliverance of thoughts. Nice support in bringing up the Patriot Act.
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