The Handmaid’ stale thinking
The Gilead patriarchal belief designs the society into an order that define women as subservient. Offred’s life becomes restrictive, and she gets angry with the condition. However, she is torn between two ideologies. While pre-Gilead offered a matriarchal society where women operated equally as men, it upsets the cosmic order (Bouson, 2010). According to her Aunt Lydia, the distraction of the social order would undermine women space and safety in the society putting in constant lane of competition with men. In the same light, the Handmaids tale appears to reveal the thoughts of women concerning the Gilead ideology. In particular, Offred representation of women’s bodies in the scene of birth mobile strives to challenge Gilead’s patriarchal beliefs but agrees to be a subject of man.
Offred is seen to be a passive victim. She fails to take a stand but appears to advocate for women rights. She is ambivalent about violence against women but insists on the typical order. Admittedly, Offred shows no urgency when she forgets her deal with Ofglen and starts to sleep with Nick; at this point, it is easy to distinguish Offred’s motives towards the feminist agenda(Bouson, 2010). Therefore, one can say that she is not up to an absolute fight against gender violence. On the same note, it clear that she detests the concentrated power on men that makes them abusive.
In conclusion, Offred is not entirely against Gilead’s patriarchal beliefs but attempts to draw a line between these ideologies about the female bodies. While she shows less urgency in objecting Gilead’s idea to use women for reproduction control, she is aware of the social order. Therefore, she takes heed of her aunt, Lydia and demonstrates rationality in her approach in the feminist politics. Her representation of the women’s bodies indicates her thinking about the ideal patriarchal society.
References
Bouson, J. B. (2010). Critical insights: The handmaid’s tale by Margaret Atwood.