One genre that goes beyond
everyday life and takes the reader into a world of magic, imagination, and
science is speculative fiction. Not only that, but it is exceptional at
bringing attention to social and political problems. Speculative fiction is
able to illuminate these humanistic problems with fantasy in a way that makes
them realistic enough for the reader to believe. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood does just that by
highlighting specific social concerns such as terrorism, feminism, and the safety
of the environment.
Some of Atwood's ideas about
repressive laws in Gilead are quite similar to those of
some Islamic societies and fundamentalist groups. Such groups wish to
see strict Islamic attitudes imposed universally, including segregation of the
sexes, very modest dress for women and a ban on dancing. Perhaps more notorious
in the Western world is the Taliban or terrorist groups such as ISIS, which are
extreme Islamic fundamentalist groups. Their views include a refusal to allow
girls to be educated, insistence on women being fully covered by a head-to-toe
veil or burqa, and the imposition of brutal sentences, such as amputation and
public stoning to death of both men and women, for what are perceived as
breaches of Sharia Law. Echoes of the attitudes and methods of such
fundamentalist groups can be seen in the strict dress codes imposed in Gilead
and the public punishments and executions which the main character Offred witnesses.
She notes in chapter forty-two that reading would be punished by having “…only
a hand cut off” (275). The actions and views of extreme fundamentalist groups such
as the Taliban and ISIS are feared by many, causing anyone in their presence to
obey no matter what is asked of them in fear of their lives. They have caused
the world to live in fear, for no matter where they go danger from their
actions may lurk around any corner. There is no such thing as going to a big
city or popular event without feeling completely comfortable and secure about
your safety anymore due to the violence and terror these types of groups bring.
Feminism is a strong
component of The Handmaid’s Tale, just
as it is currently becoming a strong and popular movement as well. The recent
movement deals with issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity
leave, equal pay, sexual harassment, sexual violence, and more for women. The
degrading actions against women have been kept quiet for many years, and now
people are starting to speak out. In music, movies and television shows women
aren’t always looked at as people, but rather as a prize or possession. This is
shown in The Handmaid’s Tale as well on
a larger and much more drastic scale where
women are treated as if they were property instead of human beings.
Another major plot point
in The Handmaid's Tale is
all of the chemicals, toxins, rays, and radiation in the environment has
rendered people sterile, or made it nearly impossible for women to give birth
to healthy babies. The harmful effects of environmental toxins on
reproduction aren't quite as extreme as Atwood envisioned (yet, at least),
but the world’s population has done irreparable and life-threatening
damage to our planet in myriad other ways since The Handmaid's Tale was published. The well-being of the
environment has been quite worrisome in recent years, just as it is for the
female characters in The Handmaid’s Tale
in order to give birth to healthy and thriving babies. With serious issues of
global warming, climate change and natural resource depletion at hand, people
are beginning to fret for their own safety and health as well as the safety of
our planet. This goes to show that if the Earth isn’t taken care of better soon,
the same situation or other ones may possibly arise in real life, not just in a
fictional book.
Terrorism, feminism and the
safety of the environment are current issues that is relevant almost anywhere. Bringing
up these problems allows the reader to theorize what the world would be like if
what happened in The Handmaid’s Tale
were to actually occur in real life. The reader is able to imagine not only how
life would be, but also how it got to that point. Atwood’s book served as a
warning of what could possibly come, but will hopefully never happen.
2 comments:
Hannah, I thoroughly enjoyed your post! First, I found your comparison between Gilead and terrorist groups such as ISIS very fascinating. On the one had, I agree that there are many similarities between they're treatment of women, as well as the harsh punishments they put in place for what appear to be very simple offenses. However, I noticed that you failed to make what I believe is a critical distinction between Gilead and radical Islamic terror groups, which is there motivations. While the Taliban and ISIS are motivated to act in the way they do by religion, in the case of Gilead there are other factors, such as the need for order and the desire to prevent anything out of the routine from occurring. While this may appear to a minor difference, I believe it is central to understanding the book and us a major distinguishing factor between Gilead and Islamic fundamental groups. However, I found your connection between the modern feminist movement and the situation of fe laws in Gilead to be spot on. I had not thought about the book from the feminine perspective before, and your analysis opened my eyes and gave me a new understanding and appreciation for this novel. Your input also left me wondering if that message was what Margret Atwood intended to send, or if the connection only becomes apparent after recent successes in executing the feminist agenda. Therefore, in conclusion I thought this was an all around great post. Nice work!
Hey Hannah,
To begin I would like to say good job on grammar and the use of intellectual words! Everything that I noticed was used perfectly and greatly helped your post flow. Next, I completely agree with the environmental aspect of your blog post. Similar to a book I read, The Road, included bad problems such as radiation and things of that nature. I read the Handmaid's Tale before The Road and as soon as I began it I saw the correlation. On another note, when I read this book I did not really compare it to terrorist groups and Islamic traditions, but as I read your blog post I realized more and more how close it really correlates. After reading what you wrote I completely agree with that aspect and thought you did a fantastic job diving deep into the real world of Islamic traditions and relating it back to the book, providing very strong examples to support what you wrote. You really opened up my eyes to how much more this book related to the outside world! Lastly, the way you connected the feminist perspective in the book to the real world was great. Again, while reading this book I noticed the feminist views but did not really think about the, but your post (as well as for Fish) really showed me how big of a role it had in the book. Maybe the book was trying to show what will happen to the world if change is not made! All in all it was a quality post!
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