Context Flashcards
Who was Perry Miller?
Her professor at Harvard.
She taught her about these women who is an expert in the 1960s
Who is Mary Webster?
Allegedly an ancestor of Atwood’s, who says of her: ‘If there’s one thing I hope I’ve inherited from her it’s her neck’.
Hanged for witchcraft but survived.
Instead of killing her again they were too scared to do anything so she survived.
What was the New Right in America?
Throughout Reagan’s presidency the country embraced Christian conservatism
Proposed changes to the constitution to restore organized prayer in schools
Aligned himself with 2 right-wing Christian political organizations who fueled fears about things like women’s access to abortion- The Religious Right
What was the American Plan?
US Government incarcerated tens of thousands of ‘promiscuous’ women in the 20th century
Started around WW1 in an attempt to protect soldiers from STDs
Women suspected of having STDs were locked up in reformatories, workhouses and jails
Treated with ineffective, toxic remedies like arsenic and mercury
Sometimes they were sterilized out of fear of their promiscuous nature
How are public executions seen in THT and where have they been seen in society?
‘Particcutions’ are a specific type of execution or ‘salvaging’.
A blend of ‘participation’ and ‘execution’.
Wordplay suggests it enforces involvement in executions
Salem witch trials
In Sharia Law, public executions are seen as an effective punishment for married women who are stoned to death or adultery
What is puritanism and where is it seen in THT?
Puritan preachers in the 17th century reference women as ‘Handmaid’s of the Lord’. Many practices connected with childbirth in THT- the birthing stool or the gathering of all the women during labour as witnesses to birth- are allusions to Puritan practices. Others include:
Plain and functional clothing
No mirrors
Women are inferior to men
Names
How is the bible used?
All the negative traits of Gilead come from the Bible legitimizing the violence and misogyny
How has Genesis been used to form Gilead?
Genesis acts as a precedent for Gilead
Religion is the justification
Leah (can conceive)- Handmaids
Rachel (barren) - the wives
Zilpah and Bilhahad- Marthas
God’s purpose- Leah to conceive
The story legitimizes the idea of women having different roles
Gilead could happen because of infertility rates
