Torture and fear in the handmaids tale - 990 Words

Torture and fear in the handmaid’s tale. torture noun 1. 1. the action or practice of inflicting severe pain on someone as a punishment or to force them to do or say something, or for the pleasure of the person inflicting the pain. The handmaids tale is a novel by Margaret Atwood, It describes the life of a woman who is documenting her life as it goes on, As the book progresses we are able to see the amount of torture (physical and mental) that the woman of Gilead receive. Offred and other women in Gilead are well aware of Gilead’s rules and Offred acknowledges the punishments and the torture she will endure if she does not obey. Throughout the novel we can begin to see Offred disobey the rules and begin fighting the†¦show more content†¦Physiological torture is very effective in a society such as Gilead as it allows 100% control over what the people do. Gilead also portrays torture by placing disobedient women on the jail wall, hung by their necks. They are placed in public so that everyone is able to see them. The government officials keep control by forcing women attend ‘salvaging’s’ in which they are forced to view the execution of woman who’s crimes are not announ ced. Religion plays a major role in fear. It is used to ensure people fear breaking rules as they would be breaking something that god set them out to do. They are in fear that if they do something in which can result in a consequence, or the fact that they are doing something illegal, they are breaking Gods trust; The Gilead uses that to their advantage as they have greater control if the society is influenced by religion. Gilead follows an obligatory rule in which woman are forced to have a male counterpart, Gilead is a male controlled society but no matter how much woman are disregarded, they are essential for the successors of the society. Being fertile in Gilead is the only form of power a woman receives, infertile woman are often quickly disregarded. Gilead creates an atmosphere in which if you are capable of producing life, you are granted theShow MoreRelatedThe Handmaid s Tale By Margaret Atwood1548 Words   |  7 PagesIn Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Th e theme of gender, sexuality, and desire reigns throughout the novel as it follows the life of Offred and other characters. Attwood begins the novel with Offred, a first person narrator who feels as if she is misplaced when she is describing her sleeping scenery at the decaying school gymnasium. The narrator, Offred, explains how for her job she is assigned to a married Commander’s house where she is obligated to have sex with him on a daily basis, so thatRead MoreThe Handmaid s Tale By Margaret Atwood1684 Words   |  7 Pagesensure the safety of all citizens however; women can be forced to face extremities if the laws and the government are patriarchal. 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