Workbook

SECTION:I      NIGHT
TASK 1:
Who is speaking?
Where are they exactly?
Why are they where they are?
What is the purpose of the Angels and Aunts?

DEFINITIONS:
Palimpsest-a piece of writing material or manuscript on which later writing has been written over the effaced original writing

Aunts-women like prison warders, who instructor the handmaids

Angels-outside,armed guards

Section IV-Aunt Lydia

Section IV-Aunt Lydia

Chapter 7-Story Telling

Chervaughn Archibald- William

Offred’s Story-Telling in Chapter 7

 ‘But the night is my time out. Where should I go?

Somewhere good’- This quote begins Offred’s story telling of her past. They appear in very descriptive flashbacks that tell a little about her past lifestyle.

The character she tells about, in her first bit of story-telling, seems to be her best friend named Moira. It also seems to be taken from her early adulthood age as she mentions having papers due which usually occurs in college or university days and going out for beers. The effect this story has on the reader is that Offred had freedom to do anything she wanted at anytime and that she was ‘properly’ educated and was not just a Handmaid. She also seemed very happy in her own space with her best friend.  These are a contrast of how Offred is living her life at present. Offred may be exploring these memories because she is lying alone on her bed and wished she could have company like she did of herself and Moira.

Another character Offred tells about is her Mother. This memory was taken from her adolescent years because her mother was controlling what she could have seen; the porn magazines. A mother with a young child would censor what their children see. Offred may be exploring these memories because she is longing to have her mothers’ comfort or her assuring safety.

‘But then what happens, but then what happens.’ This quote connotes that seeing the porn magazines being burnt may imply that that lifestyle was not what she wanted to be but in turn became her fate-Handmaid.

First person narratives suggest that the person is speaking about themselves to someone else or even to themselves.

In these story-telling parts Offred tells in past tense reinforcing and alerting when she is speaking about her personal histories. It does not seem to the reader that she is writing down her memories in the form of a diary entry but because she is re-calling the memories to herself but for the intent for the reader to understand her story.

Chapter 3-Perceptons of Serena Joy

Chervaughn Archibald-William

Chapter 3-Explore how the perception of the Wife/Serena Joy is built through the chapter.

Serena Joy, who is the Commander’s Wife at the household that the Handmaid is at, says very little throughout the chapter but the reader gets a perception of her from the very beginning of the chapter to the very end of it. This commentary entails the perceptions that the reader gets while reading through chapter three.

Serena Joy can be seen as territorial. This is shown in the first encounter with herself and the Handmaid. She blocks the Handmaid from walking through the door until she moved. The Handmaid also says, “She wanted me to feel that I could not come into the house unless she said so”. This connotes that she tried to impose her status in the home over the Handmaid. The reader can see that that was the intent of Serena Joy; to make the handmaid feel unwelcomed into her household .Serena Joy probably is probably used to many Handmaids ‘passing’ through her household seeing as she says to the Handmaid, “You’re the new one”. She wants it to be known that she is in charge of the house. This is also rude on the Wife’s part because this is their first encounter.

A perception of The Wife is that she can be seen as insecure. She uses her garden to compensate her not having children, “Many wives have gardens, its something for them to order and maintain and care for.” The verbs order, maintain, and care can be associated with the growing-up of children. They do not have children of their own so the garden can be called as her ‘baby’. The reader may feel empathy for Serena Joy. She uses the garden to replace this unfortunate issue, thus, the reader gathering the perception that she is insecure.

Another perception that the reader gets of The Wife is that she likes to be creative both in the garden and in her knitting. The reader gets this impression from the way Atwood describes her involvement in the garden and how she makes extravagant scarves for the Angels. This creativity in her can also be connected to her being lonely or again not having children. Doing these things occupies her time away from being on her own and not just doing anything.

Serena Joy admires and is proud of her work. “Sometimes the Commanders Wife has the chair brought out, and just sits in it, in her garden”. The personal pronoun, her, when speaking about her garden connotes that she takes charge and commands this part of her life seeing as she has a lot of time on her hands. For someone to sit and watch their work shows that they are self-righteous which can also be said for The Wife.

Section Headings and Chapter One Analysis

Chervaughn Archibald-William

The impression the reader gets of the section headings on the contents page is that the section entails what it is. It acts as a “brief summary” of the section. For example, the second section heading is named ‘Shopping’ and in that section the handmaid goes out food shopping for the household. There are many ideas that come to mind on what the sections are about based on the section headings.

Another example, the majority of the headings are named ‘Night’. The impression that the reader gets on this is one that suggests mystery. The noun ‘night’ connotes darkness, uncertainty and mischievousness, thus, the reader feeling that what goes on in those sections have something to do with those and may also not pleasant.

The author, Margaret Atwood, communicates information and attitudes in the first chapter. She does this by using a variety of literary devices.

She transmits the idea of loneliness and restriction by using imagery to allow the reader to get a clear picture of the handmaid’s surroundings. The idea of being patrolled with weapons and living in fear reinforces this.

Another literary device she uses is oxymorons. For example, Atwood refers to the handmaid’s ‘carers’ as Aunts but they are patrolling the handmaids with electric cattle prods. The noun, Aunt, connotes that they are warm and loving but yet they are patrolling their ‘nieces’ in a closed environment.

Atwood’s sentence structures when describing vivid memories of the handmaid are quite long as they contain lists.

The form that this novel appears to take is one of a dystopia and definitely implies that the narrator’s life is somewhat a dystopia in itself. We can interpret that the narrator speaks in first person because from the very beginning the handmaid speaks about her past using the pronoun, I. She constantly remembers and speaks about her past life as if it were her current life still.

More in Epigraphs

1.       Biblical Allusion

The Bible is a collective of books that teaches the beliefs of Christians and the ways of God. This holy book influences the way that people live their lives because God specifies through the commandments and the anecdotes in the Bible, the better way of living thus people wanting/changing their lifestyles to suit.

The quotation in the epigraph does not offer a sound model for a happy life because having a maid bear children for her employers does not sound like it would have a good effect on the household. Specifically, Rachel does not present a reasonable argument because everyone may not agree to what her proposal. If everyone agreed with her proposal then maybe the situation could be considered.

2.       A Modest Proposal

Swift wrote this essay because he maybe wanted to show the stupidity of the people in the society he lived in. The Modest Proposal is said to be a satire which purpose is to create irony, sarcasm and ridicule. The fact that some people took to the idea about poor people fattening their children for their tables of the rich tells us that the Irish were in serious problems that they would consider such an act or that his society was not very educationally or financially wealthy.

3.       Sufi Proverb

The Sufi proverb means that even though one is not told about something, common sense should be used first before doing that something. The underlying message is things should not be spelt out for someone instead the person should think about the situation.

Epigraphs in The Handmaid's Tale

Chervaughn Archibald-William
Epigraph Analysis
Number 1


And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.
And Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said, Am I in God’s stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?
And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.

The epigraph means that even in the times of the Bible, women were pressured to give birth by themselves as well as by their husbands. They would go by any means possible to have a child in their family unit.
Thoughts given to me are that in the novel there would be some sort of need for child reproduction or it would be forced upon women to have children.


Number 2


But as to myself, having been wearied out for many years with offering vain, idle, visionary thoughts, and at length utterly despairing of success, I fortunately fell upon this proposal...

The epigraph means that a suggestion or idea would come upon someone when they been through turmoil on a certain circumstance. It also brings to mind that there would always be a light at the end of the tunnel.
Thoughts given to me are that in the novel there may be an escape attempt or the characters may have some kind of triumph at the end.


Number 3


In the desert there is no sign that says Thou shalt not eat stones.

The epigraph means that although one is not told what to do, and they want it, they should pursue whatever it is.
Thoughts given to me are that there may be a rebellious act in order to achieve something.


I think that all three epigraphs imply a happy ending.