Handmaids chapters 5-12 Flashcards
what is the significance of the moral majority?
page 25 “we were dying said AL of too much choice”
the liberal politics of the 60s was a direct catalyst for the moral majority of the 80s, this worked against the left-wing view that the advantages of liberal politics outweigh the disadvantages.
what is the significance of the ey quotes “she’s a flag on a hilltop”
this is a distorted used of Timothy 2;15, “she shall be saved in childbearing”, the text in reality means that women should feel free to marry and bear children, the regime can be seen to literally “save” handmaids as they are forced to not give birth
the reference of the flag on a hilltop may also be a reference to the ww2 marines raising a flag during the battle of Iwo Jima.
what is the significance of the Japanese tourists?
the handmaids can be seen to reflect the amish: they try to stay separate from modern society
their communities attract tourists interested at a glimpse of their life, Atwood uses satire to reflect this
what is the translation of memento mori?
this is a latin phrase that means remember you must die
what is meta narrative?
referring to itself to to the conventions of its genre, this draws attention to how the text works
Tale as construct
Atwood makes it clear that this tale is a construct, Offred states in chapter 23 that “its impossible to say a thing exactly the way that it was”
Offred also states in chapter 40 “all I can hope for is a reconstruction”
what are key ways that we can refer to Serena Joy?
controlled/ordered: chapters 3/4 and the references to the garden
hyprocritcal- chapter 8 “her speeches were about the sanctity of the home… she didn’t do that herself”
We may feel sympathy for her “they are defeated women”
supercilious towards offered “doesn’t acknowledge my presence in any way”
young woman presented as old “her cane is beside her, on the grass”
