Monday, April 13, 2009
Blog #1
This book seems to be interesting so far. I have a hunch that I will end up liking The Left Hand of Darkness better though. Anyhow, this society seems to be a dystopia, with very few people actually happy. The society appears to be an America where ultra-religious and conservative peoples have taken over. Overall I find it quite confusing. I can't understand how the society was established. From the few observations I made, it seems that fertility in women is a rather precious trait that is revered in the story. Other women seem to envy those who are pregnant or even scowl at the handmaids in their red garb. It seems to imply the handmaids, especially those who are pregnant, are rather priveleged in the society. But this raises the question of how the wife (Serena Joy) came to her superior status. Perhaps she was a handmaid who had bore children already. Another confusing part was when the handmaids passed by the Wall. One of those hanged was a doctor, and from the reading it seemed like he had performed an abortion on a woman. This confused me because pregnancy is supposed to be a desirable thing in the society.
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Dystopia was also the first thought to my head as I read the story but different people have their own opinion about dystopia so it feels like the creators of the society wanted it to be simple and according a certain set of rules so that its residents can live in fulfilling lives. But those that are not living in misery are that of the powerful and selected, so it reminds me of the utopia we read about previously in class where everyone is happy and enjoying life except one child who lives in darkness and its own excrement in order for those around him to live a joyous life. The Handmaids are similar to that child, they exist for the happiness of the Commander and their wives so they can be given a child that they yearn for. In regard to Serena Joy's position, she probably has been married to the Commander whom I think has had status from before the regime to the current society so her status was not disturbed.
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