Atwoods The Handmaids Tale A Study of Rebellion Essay Example For Students

Atwoods The Handmaids Tale: A Study of Rebellion Essay Rebels defy the rules of society, risking everything to retain their humanity. If the world Atwood depicts is chilling, if God is losing, the only hope for optimism is a vision that includes the inevitability of human struggle against the prevailing order. -Joyce Johnson- Margaret Atwoods The Handmaids Tale analyzes human nature by presenting an internal conflict in Offred: acceptance of current social trends victim mentality -vs- resistance for the sake of individual welfare and liberties humanity. This conflict serves as a warning to society, about the dangers of the general acceptance of social evils and boldly illustrates the internal struggle that rebels face in choosing to rebel. Offred is a Handmaid in the republic of Gilead and while she seems unhappy about this, she is confused about her identity and even starts to accept the role that has been imposed upon her. It seems strange that one might accept such radical changes so easily. Offred has been manipulated into believing that this sinister system was designed for her own good. Peter S. Prescott says: Offred at first accepts assurance that the new order is for her protection. 151She must lie on her back once a month and hope that commander makes her pregnant because her sole purpose is to act as a vessel. She even starts to measure her self-worth by the viability of her ovaries and this negatively affects her self-image. This is how Offred characterizes the deporing act : The commander is *censored*ing. What he is *censored*ing is the lower part of my body. I dont say making love because thats not what he is doing. Copulating too would be inaccurate because it would imply two people,when there is only on e. Nor does rape cover it. Nothing was going on here that I havent signed up for. There wasnt a lot of choice, but there was some and this is what I chose. Atwood,121 This statement is very dangerous. It shows how Offred has convinced herself that this deploring act rape is not so bad. It also shows how she is beginning to embrace the system and justify the violations that are being commited against her. By calling it a choice she has shifted the blame from her oppressors to herself and labeled the blatant crime as a mere ritual. Offred shows signs of a developing victim mentality where she accepts defeat and associates the regimes will with her own. The danger lies in her complacency because if she accepts this role as being her choice she eliminates any need to rebel. This mentality provides her with a false sense of security which will impede her ability to fight back. We can try to argue tht Offreds unwillingness to resist was due to fear, but theres more to it than that. In the novel she is afraid that spies eyes are everywhere and that trust is a lost luxury. Maybe she was afraid to fight by herself. This seems understandable, but Offreds reluctance to fight back is  more complicated than just fear. By coming to accept her role in the new society she clouds her perception of freedom and her need to rebel at all. Ehrenreich argues: Offred cries alot and lives in fear of finding her erstwhile husand hanging from a hook on the wall, but when she is finally contacted by the resistance she is curiously uninterested. 155 Ehrenreich also argues that Offreds unwillingness to embrace the resistance is due to her changed mentality; the system has been embedded in her. She states: Offred has sunk too far into the incestuous little house she serves. 155 So we cant say shes stuck in this alone others have revealed that they too want to fight. Its her altered character and acceptance of social evils that makes her weak. Gayle Greene calls her a Good German rather than a freedom fighter. Unlike Moira she doesnt have the rebel simmering in her from the beginning. Offred doesnt have Moiras strenghth, but she needs to believe in it.159 Offred even says herself ,I dont want her to be like me. Give in, go along, save her skinI want gallantry from her, swashbuckling heroism. Something I lack. Atwood,327 At least Offred identifies with rebels, but she is either too scared or too conflicted. She wants others to rebel for her. Does that make her a coward? The internal conflict stems from two places. The effects of media violence on children EssayThis conflict teaches us an important lesson about the danger of not fighting against social evils. Peter S. Prescott says Atwoods theme is caution , current social trends are dangerous to individual welfare. (151) In studying Offreds rebellion we can see that she suffered an internal conflict. Johnson states: Offreds plight is always human as well as idealogical and so is the inevitable assertion of her needs. (148) The struggle to resist oppression is something that all rebels face. Victoria Glendinning tells us that ,Whatever the accepted norms there will always be dissidents and our handmaid is one of these. What has been overlooked by the regime is the subversive force of love.(146) Rebellion is an instinct and all people have. Its an inherent thrust for fighting oppression. Offred is driven by a thirst for freedom to love and be loved. People dont die from lack of sex, but from lack of love(Atwood,131) All true rebels have a caus e and this is Offreds. By studying her conflict in choosing to rebel we can see the great danger in having a victim mentallity. Mary McCarthy argues: It is true that a leading trait of Offred was her unwillingness to stick her neck out and perhaps we are meant to conclude that such unwillingness, multipled, may be fatal to a free society.(150) The role of a rebel is crucial when it comes to bringing about change, but it is the majoritys acceptance that determines what changes will really last. It is a great sacrifice that rebels make for the sake of their fellow man. Thats why we must respect a rebel who stands up for his cause while sacrificing his own well being for the sake of others. A rebel like Offred had to win an internal battle in order to start and external one. Offred won this conflict and decided that her humanity was worth the risk and Atwood wants us to do the same. Dont just accept things because society says so take a moral stand. Be your own dictionary, define yours elf.