#the handmaids tale
I just started watching hand maid’s tale hopefully my mental health isn’t completely demolished <3
in conclusion The Handmaid’s Tale is an interesting story with a powerful message ruined by the protagonist’s rampant heterosexuality
the handmaid’s tale: “night” (1x10)
[you cannot convince me this was not exactly what was happening here]
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When it comes to discussing favourite characters, we all know the phrase ‘love at first sight’. But what I appreciate even more is that characters you may not love immediately, but grow to.
During the first season of the Handmaid’s Tale I hated Serena Joy. She seemed wicked and took delight in others suffering. I now think the truth about Serena is far more complex.
It was only till I rewatched parts and looked closer- I realized Serena is actually pretty darn fascinating. She isn’t cruel in a MWAHAHA way, but because she’s anxious and paranoid. She wrestles with her complex feelings and thoughts with Fred, Gilead, June and everything she believed in. She also has a creative streak (writing a book) that I appreciate. But what makes Serena spectacular is the choices she makes. Whether it’s giving her “child” to June, showing a Bible to the Gilead men, leaving Canada, or goes behind Fred’s back- she is fascinating to watch because despite having little agency, she makes the damn most of what she has.
You get the feeling watching her scenes that her choices will shape the show’s future. And I love that! She’s a character with plenty of dramatic weight.
I went from dreading her screentime to thinking she’s one of- if not THE best character on the show. I love Serena so much. It took me time to appreciate her- but I’m glad I do.
I started (binge)watching The Handmaid’s Tale yesterday, and I was prepared to hate it. Everything I had heard and read about the show prepared me for thinly disguised liberal propaganda constantly bashing Christians, Conservatives, and Pro-Lifers. The premise, as I understood it, would be “this is what happens if the Christians/Conservatives/Pro-Lifers get their way.” This came especially from everyone who jumped straight to “Trump is going to make this come true.”
I was wrong, and so are a lot of the liberals who think that The Handmaid’s Tale supports their ideology.
Warning
If you haven’t watched the show, my warning to you is that rape is a constant theme in the show, and you will see multiple rapes per episode. Generally they are not physically violent, more on the side of coerced compliance. As such, these scenes are fairly “quiet,” which I think makes it all the more disturbing. Do not watch the show if that is something that will cause you significant emotional distress.
The Premise
The Republic of Gilead, a terrorist group of “Christian” fundamentalists, has taken over much of the United States. Other nations regard them much the way we regard North Korea. They are vaguely aware of the human rights injustices in Gilead, and have mostly responded with trade embargoes and other sanctions.
In the world where this takes place, infertility is a global crisis. Most women can’t get pregnant, and those who do often miscarry or give birth to babies who die soon after delivery. Gilead’s solution to this problem is to enslave those women who can have healthy babies and force them to act as surrogates for “the faithful,” aka the leaders. In a twisted misinterpretation of the Biblical story of Rachel asking Jacob to father children via her maid, these women are raped by the men they are assigned to while laying in the lap of the man’s wife. I honestly cannot overstate how disturbing these scenes are. Ugh.
But it’s not just the Handmaids who are enslaved. Virtually all citizens of Gilead have lost all of their civil and human rights, including the “elite” who appear to be living “the good life.” The government is socialist, in that it controls all means of production and distributes goods to the people through ration cards. There are shortages of many items, such that the characters get excited when the grocery store is carrying oranges. However, it is apparent that higher-up leaders can get things that lower-ranking party members might be denied. Jobs and marriages are also distributed by the government.
Everyone is under near-constant surveillance through a network of state spies and neighbors who will report you for fear of being “complicit.” Interrogations are conducted using cattle prods, and guilty verdicts are reached by a judge asking the accuser to swear he’s telling the truth and then saying the equivalent of “well, okay, if you say so.” Death sentences are handed down and carried out almost instantaneously.
Religion
An emphasis is placed on the religious aspect of Gilead society. As mentioned before, the Handmaid system is based on Rachel asking Jacob to father children through her maid. The characters have call-and-response greetings and phrases that come from Scripture or general Christian language. It can be very tempting to consider Gilead “Christians Gone Wild.”
However, there is something very interesting that disrupts this interpretation that I noticed in the very first episode. There are no clergy. Anywhere. No pastors, no priests except one who has been executed for his crimes, presumably speaking against the state. We see a church being demolished, and two Handmaids talk about churches they knew from “before” that have been destroyed.
What this tells us is that no Christian church got on board with Gilead. No churches, no clergy, nobody. This is a case of a relatively small group of absolute nut jobs managing to take over the government and control the masses through fear and brainwashing.
The show also makes it clear over and over again that all of the Scripture used by Gilead to justify their actions is taken completely out of any context whatsoever. The Rachel, Jacob, and Bilah story used to justify the Handmaid system is a prime example. The people of Gilead treat this story like a direct command from God to rape women so you can have children. It is so incredibly not that. Really, the whole story, in context, is a warning about why polygamy is a terrible idea. God never condones Rachel’s solution to her infertility, and in other places He explicitly condemns similar situations, such as when Sarah tells Abraham to sleep with Hagar.
Most importantly, the characters in The Handmaid’s Tale leave out of the story the part where Jacob gets mad at Rachel for even suggesting the idea, and she has to talk him into it. His first reaction to her suggestion is the right one: “Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, ‘Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?’“ (Gen 30:2). The end of Genesis 29 tells us that God made Rachel barren and made Jacob’s other wife, Leah, fertile to protect her. Jacob loved Rachel and hated Leah, so God let Leah have children so Jacob would have to treat her better. When Rachel proposes having Jacob impregnate her servant, she is trying to circumvent God’s will.
We also see instances where only part of a verse is quoted, such as “Blessed are the meek,” which is used to tell the Handmaids to “know their place.” Offred, the main character, finishes the verse in her head: “for they will inherit the earth.” The Handmaids are reminded to “remember their Scripture,” which seems to refer to selected fragments of verses used to control them, as they are not allowed to read the Bible (or anything else) themselves. In fact, the only Bible I’ve seen in the show so far is kept in a locked box by the Commander, only taken out for the “ceremony” (the monthly ritual rape intended to impregnate Offred). At this point, only the verses about Rachel, Jacob, and Bilah are read, and then not the complete passage. The Commander reads Genesis 30: 1, 3-5 (King James Version), skipping verse 2 that talks about Jacob being angry because Rachel was trying to circumvent God’s will.
Civil Liberties
I think the big warning for us is not about “religion run wild.” It’s about our civil liberties and the dangers of socialism. In fact, I think The Handmaid’s Tale makes an excellent case for Libertarianism. We see this in how the Republic of Gilead manages to take over the country and strip the people of their rights. They do this through coordinated terrorist attacks which destroy all three branches of government (they bomb Congress, the White House, and the Supreme Court and basically kill everyone) and convince the people to give up their rights and submit to martial law.
Once this is achieved, Gilead leaders take control of the banks and essentially all industry very quickly and in a very strategic way. They ban women from having jobs or owning property all at once, freezing every woman’s bank account and credit card before the people realize what’s happening. They start shooting protesters and anyone who opposes them, shutting down resistance before it can get organized.
Offred remarks in the show on how she didn’t see this coming because she wasn’t paying attention. She had her own life and her own problems, and she didn’t speak up or take action when her rights were taken away. In fact, it is made clear that most people didn’t realize what was going on until it was way too late. In this story, the complacency of Americans with tyranny and their disregard for their own rights was America’s downfall.
Gilead happened not because of religion or Conservative ideology. It happened because people were willing to give up their liberty for a promise of temporary safety. They ended up with neither.
Bringing back this post from 5 years ago in light of Margaret Atwood claiming that the end of Roe would bring about Gilead ♀️
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Rating: 9/10
Set in a dystopian world and military dictatorship called the Republic of Gilead, the novel explores themes such as censorship, oppression and rebellion; a society where women have extremely limited freedoms and are assigns ‘roles’ such as being an Agatha – a cook and house servant or Handmaid – to provide children for powerful households through ‘the ceremony’ whereby Housemaids have sex with the male head of the household with his wife present due to the decrease in births as a result of sexually transmitted diseases.
Religious fanaticism is an undertone that runs throughout the novel, with the regime having doctored the Old Testament to legitimise and empower their cause. The narrator Offred is a Handmaid and often flicks between past and present events as well as memories throughout the novel to allows the reader to have insight into the events leading up to the patriarchal takeover. Events such as the burning of lingerie due to their ‘hyper sexualisation’ of women and the new view that the female body must be covered at all times with exposure leading to execution. In the new regime, women are robbed of many basic rights such as the freedom of speech, banned from talking to anyone outside of their household and reading.
I absolutely loved this book, it was such an interesting read and the way the novel is structured means that you are constantly drip fed new information from how the Republic was established and Offred’s life Pre-Gilead with her husband and daughter. This is one of the few books that I would definitely read again and again because the concept and execution are so captivating that you can’t help but be enticed and drawn in by it. To me the novel echoes satire of politics and social constructs in the 1980’s at the time of Atwood’s writing and can be critically analysed through feminism, politics, sociology and the hierarchal structure of society – more specifically regarding the patriarchy.
Overall this was an intensely captivating and interesting read that I can’t recommend highly enough. Deserving of 9/10 because I really really enjoyed this book and didn’t want it to end! I definitely will be reading it again, and you should definitely give it a try if you’re looking for something that’s going to get you thinking this summer!
Make sure to check out my giveaway ending 11th August if you haven’t already!
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Death and the Handmaiden 11x17 pen and ink on Bristol Board. Digitally painted in Photoshop.
My apologies.This isn’t the time for subtlety.
This woman is prepared to do real damage.
She’ll have a hand in dismantling to Affordable Care Act.
If the election is contested she’ll be the one to throw the election for Trump.
Along with Judges Thomas and Alito she will assuredly nullify legal Gay marriage.
Black people and people of color won’t be safe either. Hard fought civil rights will be under renewed attack.
And as someone who won’t even acknowledge the reality of climate change, she’ll vote against the survival of the planet but for corporations who pollute and contribute to the climate crisis.
Want to mitigate some of the damage?
VOTE. Vote for a DEFINITIVE UNCONTESTED BIDEN WIN.
And once he’s won? Apply pressure on day one. Democrats have no choice but to increase the number of progressive judges to the Supreme court to mitigate the damage this woman is prepared to do.
VOTE.
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by Margaret Atwood
What’s it about?
It’s set in a future America taken over by religious maniacs, who reform all public institutions to an Old-Testament style theocracy. As fertility rates crash, women’s bodies have been co-opted by the government. This is the story of one of these women.
Wait. Is this a feminist thing?
Yes. This is a feminist thing. As with Nineteen Eighty-Four, it’s a warning about what it means to have certain opinions and support certain politicised ideologies.
I don’t want to be bashed over the head with a “message”.
You would only feel like that if you have some problem with women, in which case, you’re probably not reading this blog. If you’ve read Game of Thrones and you think The Handmaid’s Tale is too rough in its treatment of women, you should present yourself to the relevant authorities at first light.
What should I say to make people think I’ve read it?
“I’ve just made a donation to Planned Parenthood.”
What should I avoid saying when trying to convince people I’ve read it?
“Make Gilead Great Again.”
Should I actually read it?
Yes. This book is becoming more important and more relevant every day.
Hey, think The Handmaid’s Tale is the book that best explains where we’re headed as a country? May I suggest to you the slightly-less-extreme-and-therefore-perhaps-even-more-terrifying Red Clocks by Leni Zumas?
This is what the country looks like 6 months to a year after a nationwide full ban on abortion. Be ready.
The Farm
by Joanne Ramos
At one day past my due date, I am currently in either the best or the worst position to review Joanne Ramos’ thought-provoking page-turner The Farm.
At the moment, the slightly-too-plausible premise of farming out pregnancies via pricey surrogacy does not seem so bad. Having endured morning sickness occurring all times of day that does not cease after 1st trimester, exhaustion tantamount to being hit repeatedly by a bus, never-ending constipation and pains in places I didn’t know existed, might I hire someone to trade places? Tell me where to VENMO.
And yet, in a way, this isn’t even what The Farm is about. The bookstore employee suggested it was like The Handmaid’s Tale, perhaps in an effort to warn my obviously gestating self that it might not be the best time to read it. In fact, it is only really like The Handmaid’s Tale in that there are pregnant women at its center.
It’s also not about the price of motherhood, the high-achieving women who are penalized at work for having children, nor about the fact that the US is the only developed country without paid maternity leave. These topics could have doubled the size of the book - and I would have gladly read more.
WhatThe Farm is about is far more personal and insidious - a sort of collective history and culpability woven into the fabric of the American flag - Betsy Ross stitching in her trinity kitchen all the while going blind.
The story follows Jane, a young Fiipina mother, trying to survive in NY. Her cousin presents her with an opportunity: interview at Golden Oaks, a resort-style surrogate facility, where the wealthiest clients pay top dollar to outsource their pregnancies. The facility provides comprehensive nutrition, weekly prenatal massages, yoga, wellness tracking and …alpacas. There she meets Reagan and Lisa, two caucasian “hosts,” who pull her into their orbit. With the payouts for healthy babies so huge, each “host” has her own reasons for signing up for 10 (yes, look up how long pregnancy actually is) months of incarceration, so to speak.
In addition to a brilliantly-paced speculative fiction thriller, what starts to unfold is a social commentary about opportunity, access, immigration, and skin tone. And by the end of the novel, as Jane marvels at her own brave smart daughter, I start to wonder about the American Dream - who has been duped and who is benefitting from doing the duping. We expect it to pay its dividends in one lifetime. Come “your huddled masses yearning to breathe free” not well,…three generations down the road. And when my own great-grandmother emigrated, gnawed family photo in hand, I wonder if she ever thought about three - and any day now, four - generations down the line, and where her sea voyage would lead.
And perhaps it’s not that the American Dream is dead - perhaps we just always thought it was free. What if it’s always been pricey? And the questions are: how much are you willing to sell?Andhow much are you willing to pay?
Let the bidding begin.
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Vox
by Christina Dalcher
Vox made me angry. I tore through it in 48 hours and felt my rage rise by the page. But oh, the satisfaction in reading a book so infuriating. It stoked all of my justified feminist rage.
Imagine a world like ours where puritanical values prevail, - wait, a little too close to home for your taste? Well, in this world, females are relegated to a word count of 100 or less a day. The words are tallied by a nifty and strategically marketable (Look, Mom, it comes in purple!) wristband which electrically zaps the woman at increasing volts with each additional infraction. And it starts in childhood, so little girls no longer learn to read and write. Naturally, work outside the home is impossible, as is any reading, writing, access to language and computers, and well, you’d be astounded by just how much of our lives incorporates words. It’s a little Handmaid’s TalemeetsAll Rights Reserved.
Our protagonist, Jean, is not only a mother of boys and a girl, but a highly-regarded doctor and expert in aphasia. Restless and stuck at home, when an aphasia-related tragedy rattles the government, who but our doctor can save the day? Add in a forbidden romance, and really, Vox is a veritable politically-charged speculative page-turner.
My one complaint: The book ended too soon; I could have read another 100 pages - or I could, at least, until the government fits me with a wristband.
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So while I not-so-patiently wait for The Handmaid’s Tale Season Five to drop, I recreated the kitchen and dining rooms from Fred and Serena’s house in the first few seasons (before a certain wife decided to burn it to the ground…*ahem*).
One of the things I love about this game are all the small details one is able to create. In this case, Offred’s scarf on the bench, Serena Joy’s sweater hanging by the door, Rita’s baked goods, the oranges and chocolate bar from the Mexican diplomat episodes, and muffins (because y’all know muffins mean “YES”).
I’m missing the split-level step from the kitchen and the pendant lamp from the ceiling in the dining room because platforms suck and the lighting ruined the hazy aesthetic, but yeah.
Thank you for looking. Much love.
Some cc creators include: @novvvas,@pinkbox-anye, minc, and a whole host of others for their meshes, recolors, and conversions.
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More and more laws have been restricting and banning abortions across the U.S., here’s what’s happening and what you can do about it.
What happened in Alabama?
- Tuesday, Alabama’s state senate passed a ban on abortion, making it a crime for doctors to perform the procedure, at any stage of pregnancy.
- Doctors could face up to 99 years in prison for helping their patients terminate unwanted or unviable pregnancies.
- This law was decided on by 25 white men, and passed by a vote of 25 vs 6. The 3 women on the state senate all voted against it. However, the law was written, and signed, by two women.
- These senators refused to add exceptions for cases of rape or incest, by voting against democratic amendments. The text only allows an exception when the pregnant woman’s health is at serious risk. This gives women lesser rights than those of rapists or abusers, and makes the abortion ban the strictest in the US.
- Wednesday, Alabama’s Republican governor, Kay Ivey, signed it into law.
- This does not immediately outlaw the procedure (which is currently still legal). The measure would take effect in six months, if it passes.
- These anti-abortion politicians want to overturn Roe v Wade, the landmark ruling that legalized abortion nationwide in 1973, by taking this ban to the supreme court. In other words, they’re working to make abortions illegal across the country. So, if you think this bill doesn’t concern you, IT DOES.
- Alabama is one of 16 (Republican controlled) states to introduce or pass anti-abortion laws. This represents a growing push against women’s reproductive rights in the U.S., fuelled by right-wing, republican Christians, and made worse under Trump’s presidency.
What are we doing to stop this?
- State senator Vivian Davis Figures fought hard against this bill. She told the male lawmakers: “You don’t have to raise that child. You don’t have to carry that child. You don’t have to do anything for that child, but you want to make the decision for that woman.” She proposed amendments to expand Medicaid, force legislators who voted for the measure to pay the state’s legal bills, or make it a crime for men to get vasectomies. All were rejected.
- Pro-choice activists have promised to challenge the measure in court. The ACLU said it will file a lawsuit (with Planned Parenthood) “to stop this unconstitutional ban and protect every woman’s right to make her own choice about her healthcare, her body and her future.” The legal battle could stop the restrictions entirely, or at least delay them.
- They also acted against the spread of fear and misinformation. Staci Fox, CEO of Planned Parenthood Southeast Advocates, stressed that abortion is currently still legal in all 50 states. And the ACLU of Alabamatweeted “PLEASE REMEMBER: This bill will not take effect anytime in the near future, and abortion will remain a safe, legal medical procedure at all clinics in Alabama.” Don’t forget to also share this message for people who might need to read it.
- Democratic leaders reacted with outrage, and pledged to fight for abortion rights. This includes Joe Biden, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren.
What can you do?
If you want, and are able to help, please donate to:
- Planned Parenthood, which provides sexual health care and education.
- The ACLU, which defends individual rights and liberties in the US, including reproductive rights.
- The National Abortion Federation, which promotes safe, legal, and accessible abortion care.
- The Yellow Hammer Fund, which helps patients seeking care at one of Alabama’s 3 abortion clinics.
- The Abortion Funds, which gives patients facing financial and logistical barriers access to safe abortions.
- Emily’s list, which gets pro-choice Democratic women elected to office.
- The Democratic Party, which pledged to “protect a woman’s right to safe and legal abortion".
Here are some more things you can do right now:
- You can participate in the online donation campaign Democrat senator Cory Booker created to help some of the organizations listed above to protect access to abortions.
- You can check and share this Twitter thread to know which organizations help provide safe abortions near you.
- You can write to Alabama’s Governor Kay Ivey via Planned Parenthood, here.
- Also, if you’re from Alabama, support and vote for Vivian Davis Figures, who fought this bill in her state senate, pledged to “continue to stand for the rights of ALL women to use our God given free will”, and is running for re-election in early June.
Please share any additional information or ressources, and spread this shit like wildfire.
ACT NOW. SPEAK UP. THIS IS NOT A DRILL!
Sources: New York Times,CNN,The Guardian,NPR, The Huffington Post, The Week, Well and Good
Hello! Looking for someone to recap The Handmaid’s Tale. If interested, please email [email protected].
tarot card/my edit❌
