From the group discussions we had in our small literary circles many different topics were mentioned and discussed as we tried to make sense of the novel and the different events that were taking part as the plot went along. We came to realise from these conversations that the reality experienced by the people of Gilead is not as distant from where we are now as it might seem. In fact, many places have very similar realities to the one in The Handmaid’s Tale. The story is told from the perspective of a woman who sees her world get turned upside down from what corresponds to our reality nowadays to something only imaginable in nightmares. The American government gets murder and overruled, women are robbed of their right to own property and private ownership, and are forced to rely solely on men as the providers. In this story women are the most oppressed and impacted gender as they are reduced to objects and serve the single purpose of carrying powerful men’s children and reproducing in order to maintain the human species alive.
As mentioned previously the reality experienced in Gilead is not very distant from the one we are living in now. For example, in chapter 28 women’s accounts and assets were frozen and passed to their husbands or sons this was a measure taken by the new government to limit the independence of women and make sure that men have the final say over what they can and cannot do. This decision was also made to make sure that women are not able to escape the country and purchase goods they thought were inappropriate. In many cultures and religions, just like Margaret Atwood’s novel, the role of decision-making belongs to the man and women are confined to domestic chores and reproduction as well as a pleasure object for the husband. In the novel we are frequently exposed to the objectification and degrading of women, which is not at all far from what we currently have in our world. We often see advertisements that depict women as being weak, fragile, powerless beings that are meant solely for sexual pleasure and reproduction. Of course, unlike in Gilead, this message isn’t conveyed directly at us but it can it present we if look at the smaller details such as the clothes the women wear, the position they are in, the facial expressions that many times resembles one of sadness and emptiness, as well as the contrast between the position of the man in regards to the woman in the advertisement.
Another big issue faced by the people of Gilead that corresponds to our current world is the problem of immigration. In the novel we are presented to this topic when Offred, the protagonist, tries to escape along with her family looking for a better option and is denied that right, leading her to try and escape illegally getting caught in the process. This incredibly similar to the problems we have now concerning immigration. Many countries impose very strict restrictions on the immigration process that makes this option harder than it should be, which forces people to remain in the uncomfortable and unhealthy circumstances they are currently facing in the country they’re currently living in. They aren’t able to seek asylum in countries with higher standards of living or escape conflict in order to protect their lives and those of their children. The author not only speaks about immigration but also about the weakness of different, and somewhat outdated, government systems, this being dictatorships. The author makes use of wrongful imprisonment, capital punishment and the death penalty to show the injustices of dictatorships.
With this novel, the author tries to push readers to act on the issues she mentioned, by showing what the world could possibly look like if we don’t do so immediately.
Márcio's blog 