Margaret Atwood 42 books; 10 novels Postmodern author B. 1933

Margaret Atwood 42 books; 10 novels Postmodern author B. 1933
The Circle Game (1966, poetry) Survival (1972, non-fiction) The Edible Woman (1969, novel) Surfacing (1973, novel) Lady Oracle (1977, novel) Dancing Girls (1977, short) Life Before Man (1979, novel) Dancing Girls and Other Stories (1982, short stories) Bodily Harm (1982, novel) The Handmaid's Tale (1985, novel) Bluebeard's Egg (1987, short stories) Selected Poems: (1987, poetry) Margaret Atwood B. 1933 One of Canada’s finest living writers 42 books; 10 novels Postmodern author Numerous literary awards, including the Booker Prize, the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and the Governor General’s Award, twice. Concerned with Canada’s cultural identity Feminist

Margaret Atwood She calls her writing “speculative fiction”
Selected Poems II: (1987, poetry... US) Cat's Eye (1989, novel) Wilderness Tips (1991, short stories) The Robber Bride (1993, novel) Good Bones and Simple Murders (1994, short stories) Alias Grace (1996, novel) A Quiet Game(1997, The Blind Assassins (2000) She calls her writing “speculative fiction” Interest in women and the female experience emerges clearly in her novels Futuristic, cautionary, science fiction novel

#patriarchy The Handmaid’s Tale is dominated by an unforgiving view of patriarchy and its legacies. As Barbara Holliday wrote in the Detroit Free Press, Atwood “has been concerned in her fiction with the painful psychic warfare between men and women. In The Handmaid’s Tale...she casts subtlety aside, exposing woman’s primal fear of being used and helpless.” Atwood, however, believes that her vision is not far from reality: “The Handmaid’s Tale does not depend upon hypothetical scenarios, omens, or straws in the wind, but upon documented occurrences and public pronouncements; all matters of record.”

The Handmaid’s Tale Published: 1986
Plot: The simple, constrained life of a handmaid and her memories. Narrative Voice: Offred Setting: Gilead (fictional location~ located in the near future where Boston is now) Conflict: Critique of patriarchal control~ how does the handmaid resist?

Initial Discussion Freedom to … Freedom from …
Do we, here and now in US society, have too much choice? (Think of arguments for both sides, but do take a side.) List the things the U.S. government gives you freedom to do and things it gives you freedom from. Freedom to … Freedom from …

A note to the reader from Atwood: Dear Reader, Every book is a sort of mushroom cloud thrown up by a large substance of material that has been accumulating for a lifetime. I had long been interested in the histories of totalitarian regimes and the different forms they have taken in various societies; while the initial idea for The Handmaid's Tale came to me in 1981, I avoided writing it for several years because I was apprehensive about the results--whether I would be able to carry it off as a literary form. In form, the book is a dystopia (negative utopia). A cognate of A Clockwork Orange, Brave New World, and Nineteen Eighty-Four, it is the story of one woman's altered circumstances, presented as a first-person narrative novel. The roots of the book go back to my study of the American Puritans. The society they founded in America was not a democracy as we know it, but a theocracy. In addition, I found myself increasingly alarmed by statements made frequently by religious leaders in the United States; and then a variety of events from around the world could not be ignored, particularly the rising fanaticism of the Iranian monotheocracy. The thing to remember is that there is nothing new about the society depicted in The Handmaid's Tale except the time and place. All of the things I have written about have--as noted in the "Historical Notes" at the end--been done before, more than once. It is an imagined account of what happens when not uncommon pronouncements about women are taken to their logical conclusions. History proves that what we have been in the past we could be again.

Cultural Catylist Atavism: (n) a tendency to revert to ancestral type
a : recurrence in an organism of a trait or character typical of an ancestral form and usually due to genetic recombination b : recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity <architectural atavism> 2: one that manifests atavism : throwback, vintage — at·a·vis·tic adjective — at·a·vis·ti·cal·ly adverb In The Handmaid's Tale, the United States has been replaced by a theocratic totalitarian nation.

Historical Context Atwood herself has indicated that part of the book was inspired by a trip to Afghanistan in the late 1970s. She and her husband were impressed by the beauty of the country and by the silence of its women, who rarely spoke or looked directly at them. The novel was published in 1986 during a backlash against the feminist movement. The defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment, the rise of the religious right, and the election of Ronald Reagan led writers like Atwood to fear that the antifeminist tide could not only prevent further gains for women, but turn back the clock. The US tide had turned in favor of conservative values, and religious fundamentalism experienced a period of rapid growth of power and influence.

Iranian Revolution (a. k. a
Iranian Revolution (a.k.a. Islamic Revolution or 1979 Revolution) انقلاب اسلامی Date January 1978 – February 1979 Causes Westernization Discontent with the Shah's rule Exile of Ayatollah Khomeini Social Injustice Goals Overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty: replaced a pro-Western semi-absolute monarchy with an anti-Western authoritarian theocracy Methods Demonstrations Strikes Civil resistance Result Overthrow of Mohammad Rezā Shah Pahlavi Establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran Iran hostage crisis Iran–Iraq War

Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal rights for women. In 1923, it was introduced in the Congress for the first time. In 1972, it passed both houses of Congress and went to the state legislatures for ratification. The resolution in Congress that proposed the amendment set a ratification deadline of March 22, 1979. Through 1977, the amendment received 35 of the necessary 38 state ratifications. Washington ratified the amendment on March 22, 1973 Five states later rescinded their ratifications before the 1979 deadline, though the validity of these rescissions is disputed. WA did not rescind In 1978, a joint resolution of Congress extended the ratification deadline to June 30, 1982, but no further states ratified the amendment before the passing of the second deadline, leaving it three short of the required threshold.

Equal Rights Amendment
Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.

So … by now … have we passed the Equal Rights Amendment?
The amendment has been reintroduced in every session of Congress since 1982. On March 5, 2013, the ERA was reintroduced as S. J. RES. 10 by Senator Bob Menendez (D, NJ) This amendment has not yet passed. AMENDMENT XIX Passed by Congress June 4, Ratified August 18, 1920. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Discussion Questions What are the consequences of motherhood in our society? Of fatherhood? What are our norms regarding marriage, and why do these change? How equal are women to men in our country, in other countries, eras, etc.? What effects have political and religious structures had on women? Men? Within specific religions, are expectations the same for members of both genders? If there are different expectations, what are the reasons for them?

Genesis Epigraph: Analysis
Genesis 30:1-3 is one of several biblical passages that make clear that in patriarchal Hebrew times it was perfectly legitimate for a man to have sex and even beget children by his servants (slaves), particularly if his wife was infertile. It is unknown how widespread was the custom described here, of having the infertile wife embrace the fertile maidservant as she gave birth to symbolize that the baby is legally hers. Atwood extrapolates hyperbolically from this point, as is typical of dystopian writers: It is highly unlikely that the puritanical religious right would ever adopt the sexual practices depicted in this novel. She argues that patriarchal traditions which value women only as fertility objects can be as demeaning as modern customs which value them as sex objects.

Swift Epigraph: Analysis
She compares herself to Jonathan Swift, who in 1720s A Modest Proposal highlighted the hard-heartedness of the English in allowing the Irish masses to starve by satirically proposing that they should be encouraged to eat their own children. Atwood uses reductio ad absurdum, a theoretical exercise designed to stimulate thought about social issues rather than a realistic portrait of a probable future It is not so obvious what the application of the third epigraph is to this novel. It seems to say that no one needs to forbid what is undesirable. Can you interpret it any further? We’ll return to it at the end of the novel and see if we can pull any further meaning from the text.

Setting: Biblical Allusion
Gilead is the name of two places and three people in the Bible Gilead was a mountainous region east of the Jordan River divided among the tribes of Gad and Manasseh, and situated in modern-day Jordan. (Genesis, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Psalms) In Hebrew, Gilead can also mean a memorial site Do you see some irony in the naming of this new society “Gilead?” The Hebrew Bible repeatedly mentions a "balm in Gilead" or "balm of Gilead", references and symbolism which have appeared repeatedly in Western culture In Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven," the speaker asks the spectral bird: “Is there balm in Gilead? —tell me—tell me, I implore!” In The Handmaid's Tale, the United States has been replaced by a theocratic totalitarian nation. One character sings the spiritual, substituting “balm” with “bomb.”

Make comparisons between Miller’s The Crucible and The HMT.

Author’s Craft: Writing Style
In your table groups, discuss and describe Atwood’s writing style, the mood she creates, and the attitude her tone reflects. Point of view? Perspective? Compare and contrast her writing with that of Woolf and Schlink. Select one or two sentences from the first three chapters that had an effect on you.

Cultural Catylist Atavism: (n) a tendency to revert to ancestral type
a : recurrence in an organism of a trait or character typical of an ancestral form and usually due to genetic recombination b : recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity <architectural atavism> 2: one that manifests atavism : throwback, vintage — at·a·vis·tic adjective — at·a·vis·ti·cal·ly adverb In The Handmaid's Tale, the United States has been replaced by a theocratic totalitarian nation.

Gilead’s Caste System Women: Wives Handmaids Daughters Marthas Aunts
Commanders of the Faithful Eyes Angels Soldiers—Guardians of the Faith Gender Traitors Un-Persons: Women Men Babies Women: Wives Handmaids Daughters Marthas Aunts Econowives

Chapter 1: Discussion Questions
Read the first sentence. What can you tell about the period just from this sentence? People generally sleep in gymnasiums only in emergencies, after disasters. But this "had once" been a gymnasium, which implies that it was converted to its present use a long time ago. Some major change has taken place, probably not for the good. A "palimpsest" was created when a medieval scribe tried to scrape clean a parchment in order to reuse it. Sometimes the scraping process was not complete enough to obliterate all traces of the original text, which could be read faintly underneath the new one. What is suggested by the fact that the immediate supervisors of the girls are women but these women are not allowed guns? What is suggested by the fact that the girls have to read lips to learn each others' names?

Chapter 2: Discussion Questions
The setting has shifted. It is now much later. What is the mood created by the narrator’s observation that “they've removed anything you could tie a rope to?” What is implied by the sentence, “Nothing takes place in the bed but sleep; or no sleep?” “Ladies in reduced circumstances” is a 19th-century expression usually applied to impoverished widows. How does the narrator pun on it? In the gospels, Martha was one of two sisters. She devoted herself to housework while her sister Mary sat and listened to Jesus. The irony here is that Jesus praised Mary, not Martha; but the patriarchy chose Martha as the ideal. What is suggested by the existence of “Colonies” where “Unwomen” live? What are the crimes the Martha's gossip about in their “private conversations?”

Chapter 1-3: Discussion Questions
What evidence is there that the revolution which inaugurated this bizarre society is relatively recent? What questions have arisen for you about this novel? What is unChristian about this society? What is suggested by the existence of “Colonies” where “Unwomen” live? What are the crimes the Martha's gossip about in their “private conversations?” Describe the relationship between Serena Joy and Offred. Why does Aunt Lydia say that being a handmaid is a “position of honor”? What is suggested by the fact that the immediate supervisors of the girls are women but these women are not allowed guns? What is suggested by the fact that the girls have to read lips to learn each others' names?

Serena Joy (p. 15) alludes to 70s’ evangelist Tammy Fay Bakker.
American televangelist Tammy Messner married fellow devout Christian Jim Bakker, and together they hosted television ministry shows in the 1960s and '70s, including The 700 Club and the Praise the Lord Club. In 1980, scandal ensued when Jim Bakker was caught having an affair with his church secretary, Jessica Hahn. Numerous other affairs surfaced, and the Bakkers fell from grace. In 1989, Jim Bakker was convicted of fraud and conspiracy. During the tumultuous six-week trial, the federal government succeeded in proving that Jim solicited a total of $158 million from followers of the PTL ($3.7 million of which he used for personal means). He was given a 45-year prison sentence, which was later reduced to six years. Jim Bakker was paroled in 1994, and has since re-established himself as a minister. Around the same time, Tammy filed for divorce, which was finalized in Afterward, she remarried, worked on a short-lived TV show and published an autobiography. Tammy succumbed to lung cancer on July 20, 2007, at her home in Missouri.

Homework Read and annotate chapters 4-6 of “The Handmaid’s Tale” for Friday’s class.

“‘What inspired The Handmaid’s Tale. ’ I’ve often been asked
“‘What inspired The Handmaid’s Tale?’ I’ve often been asked. General observation, I might have said. Poking my nose into books. Reading the newspapers. World history. One of my rules was that I couldn’t put anything into the novel that human beings hadn’t actually done.” ~Atwood Identify shocking or unpleasant aspects of life in atavistic Gilead that might be one of the things Atwood is referring to. Reference specific events, characters, and conflicts from chapter 1-7 in your response. I’ll be checking Annotations

English Vernacular Develops

The Canterbury Tales is a collection of 24 stories—over 17,000 lines—written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400 Structure: largely linear, one story after another In the General Prologue, Chaucer describes not the tales to be told, but the people who will tell them, making it clear that structure will depend on the characters rather than a general theme or moral. Presented as a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral mostly written in verse, although some are in prose Chaucer does not pay much attention to the progress of the trip, to the time passing as the pilgrims travel, or to specific locations along the way to Canterbury. His writing of the story seems focused primarily on the stories being told, and not on the pilgrimage itself

The Title The Handmaid’s Tale is reminiscent of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales – it conjures an antiquated atmosphere. Much like the Chaucer, the novel is written in first person, as an interior monologue Her thoughts are the story; her strength lies in insight, not action. Note the double entendre on the word, “tale” – the dual meaning establishes the conflict: the protagonist versus a world that sees her as a sexual object void of sexual autonomy.

Practicing for Paper 2: Compare & Contrast Expositions Small-Group Assignment
Work together with your table group to create a three-column chart where you analyze the significance of at least two pieces of quoted evidence—exploring the language, structure, technique, and style the author use—from the exposition of all three Paper 2 novels To The Lighthouse The Reader The Handmaid’s Tale Then, select two of the novels that compare and/or contrast in a significant way, and write a thesis statement responding to the following Paper 2 prompt: A writer once said that the reader should be able to return to the first page of a novel…and find resonances of the entire work. With reference to at least two works you have studied consider the style and significance of the beginning of the work. Poster Scoring Guide: Evidence Selection: 5 points Analysis of Language: 10 points Neatness, originality, and creativity: 5 points

Read chapter 7-11 in Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for MONDAY.
Homework Read chapter 7-11 in Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for MONDAY.

Chapter 10: Close Reading
“I go to the window and sit on the window seat, which is too narrow for comfort. There's a hard little cushion on it, with a petit point cover: FAITH, in square print, surrounded by a wreath of lilies. FAITH is a faded blue, the leaves of the lilies a dingy green. This is a cushion once used elsewhere, worn but not enough to throw out. Somehow it's been overlooked. I can spend minutes, tens of minutes, running my eyes over the print: FAITH. It's the only thing they've given me to read. If I were caught doing it, would it count? I didn't put the cushion here myself.”

Sarah, the aged wife of Abraham, was barren and so she gave Hagar, their Egyptian slave, to Abraham in order to bear her a son. Genesis 16:1-16;21:1-21

Rachel and Leah: Biblical Allusion to Genesis 29 & 30
Jacob fell in love with Rachel and agreed to work seven years for Laban (Rachel’s dad) in return for her hand in marriage. On the night of the wedding, the bride was veiled and Jacob did not notice that Leah, Rachel's older sister, had been substituted by Laban for Rachel (who was more attractive, but the younger sister). Later, Jacob confronted Laban, who excused his own deception by insisting that the older sister should marry first. He assured Jacob that after his wedding week was finished, he could take Rachel as a wife as well, and work another seven years as payment for her. When God “saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb”, (Gen 29:31) and she gave birth to four sons. Rachel remained unable to conceive. Rachel became jealous of Leah and gave Jacob her maidservant, Bilhah, to be a surrogate mother for her. Bilhah gave birth to two sons that Rachel named and raised (Dan and Naphtali). Leah responds by offering her handmaid Zilpah to Jacob, and names and raises the two sons (Gad and Asher) that Zilpah bears. After Leah conceived again, Rachel was finally blessed with a son, Joseph, who would become Jacob's favorite child. Joseph and Benjamin later helped father the twelve tribes of Israel (along with their brothers).

Chapter 7: Close Reading
P. 39 “I know I lost time. There must have been needles, pills, something like that. I couldn't have lost that much time without help. You have had a shock, they said. I would come up through a roaring and confusion, like surf boiling. I can remember feeling quite calm. I can remember screaming, it felt like screaming though it may have been only a whisper, Where is she? What have you done with her? There was no night or day; only a flickering. After a while there were chairs again, and a bed, and after that a window. She's in good hands, they said. With people who are fit. You are unfit, but you want the best for her. Don't you? They showed me a picture of her, standing outside on a lawn, her face a closed oval. Her light hair was pulled back tight behind her head. Holding her hand was a woman I didn't know. She was only as tall as the woman's elbow. You've killed her, I said. She looked like an angel, solemn, compact, made of air. She was wearing a dress I'd never seen, white and down to the ground.”

7-11 Discussion Questions
Compare and contrast Offred & Moira’s college experience with Offred’s life as a handmaid. What has she lost? Has she gained anything? Describe when Offred’s mother takes her to a book burning. Why does Atwood include this scene? Predict what Nolite te bastardes carborundorum means. Why is the phrase significant, whether or not you know the exact translation? When and how does Atwood use it? Why is Offred startled at the end of chapter 8 when she realizes she has called the room "mine"? Describe the mood of the interaction in chapter eight when Offred interacts with Nick? The Commander? What do readers learn in chapter nine about the origin of Offred’s marriage to Luke? What feelings does she have as she looks back on the early days of her affair with Luke? Why are the words to the hymn Amazing Grace now considered subversive? Who did Aunt Lydia blame for the "things" that used to happen to women? What do we learn about the Handmaid system during the scene at the doctor's office? What does he want? Would be the consequences of their decision if they got caught? What does Offred decide and why? Is Offred a coward? Is the narrator’s physical safety is so important to her that she sacrifices her moral integrity?

Homework Read and annotate chapter in Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for Wednesday. Ch 16: optional/graphic diction Bring your comp book Wed FOA presentations Tuesday 3rd: Tfung, Audrey, Saad 4th: B Khoo, Rachna 6th: Siddhu, Victoria, Noah W

Chapter Questions Aunt Lydia regrets that old sexist society reduced women to mere physical objects. Has this changed? Who did Aunt Lydia blame for the "things" that used to happen to women? How does Janine’s rape story show misogyny? What associations are aroused by the tattoo now on Offred's ankle? What does Offred suggest by saying of the attempted kidnapping of her daughter “I thought it was an isolated incident, at the time?” What do her dreams about her husband and daughter have in common? What does she mean by saying at the end of the chapter “Of all the dreams this is the worst?”

Ch Objectives Explain why widespread infertility was the catalyst for the Giledian regime. Analyze how the handmaids are a fundamental part of the Giledian society’s attempted solution. Explain why The Handmaid’s Tale is not anti-Christian

Is The Handmaid’s Tale Anti-Christian?
Within the novel, the militaristic ruling class uses snippets of Biblical scripture and hymns to provide justifications for their policies and actions. These Biblical excerpts are often just that: portions of verses, devoid of context, used in a way totally counter to their original intention. “Blessed are the meek (who won’t inherit …)” In The Handmaid’s Tale, the language of faith has been twisted and misappropriated for nefarious means, just as Ham’s disobedience was once used to justify slavery in the United States and as Hitler claimed his genocide was God’s will. “resettlement had begun for the children of Ham” Understanding the capacity that humanity has shown to use false piety to validate oppression is a fundamental moral lesson in this novel

Determine when and why the Giledean Regime uses and abuses the Bible.
On the most obvious and superficial level, the Bible plays an important role in the naming of objects and people in the Republic of Gilead. The men, according to their role in society, are called “Commanders of the Faithful”, “Guardians of the Faith”, who are the members of the police force, “Angels” or “Eyes of the Lord”. The “Angels” are the soldiers of the army, and they have names like “Angels of the Apocalypse” or “Angels of Light”. Whereas the word “angel” suggests something innocent or holy, the “Angels” in Gilead fight in wars. #irony The names seem to suggest that it is a religious war they fight. The “Eyes” are the secret police who are supposed to spy on the people in Gilead. “Eyes” is also taken from the Bible.

Is The Handmaid’s Tale Anti-Christian?
This book is only anti-Christian if you happen to believe that Jesus was all about wielding obscene levels of wealth and power against the meek. Jesus was not about that at all. Just so that we’re totally clear. This book is anti-radicals-who-use-faith-to-manipulate-and-oppress The religious fundamentalist theocracy depicted in the book uses certain imagery found in Christianity as a tool to maintain militarily-enforced rules of society.

Exit Slip: show your understanding
Explain why The Handmaid’s Tale is not Anti-Christian. Complete the statement as many ways as you can … Atwood’s narrative is anti- …

Homework Read chapter in Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for Monday. *Chapter sixteen describes “The Ceremony” is very graphic and explicit. You don’t have to read it if you don’t feel comfortable and there will be no penalty to your grade.*

Today’s Objectives Analyze Atwood’s rationale for and purposeful use of graphic diction in chapter sixteen

Chapter Sixteen’s Graphic Diction
The scene is shocking, the language explicit. Atwood literally wanted you to feel horror when you read chapter sixteen. In Atwood’s attempt to capture the horrors that exist in places where women’s rights are ignored and women themselves treated, as Atwood’s narrator puts it, as “incubators with legs,” she uses very graphic diction to portray the very graphic nature of the abuse women suffer in captivity.

Chapter Sixteen’s Graphic Diction
Atwood makes us consider our own Puritanical atavism when she shocks us with the portrayal of “The Ceremony.” Should the content of this chapter be more shocking than, for example, learning about the Rwandan Genocide or seeing the horror of the Holocaust film “Night and Fog?” Exposure to a shocking thing [or shocking language] is not equivalent to promotion of that thing. If that were so, then The Iliad would be a promotion of violence and destruction, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would be a promotion of racism, and Lord of the Flies would be a promotion of savagery and murder.

Analyze to Show Your Understanding
Discuss the purpose for Atwood’s use of graphic diction in chapter sixteen: why?

"Violence against Women. " WHO. World Health Organization, n. d. Web
"Violence against Women." WHO. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 04 Nov < Recent global prevalence figures indicate that 35% of women worldwide have experienced either intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime. Globally: 30% of women who have been in a relationship report that they have experienced some form of physical or sexual violence by their partner as many as 38% of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner

64% of instances of U.S. rape are not reported to the police
Planty, Michael. Female Victims of Sexual Violence, Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Web. Rape - Forced sexual intercourse including both psychological coercion as well as physical force. In , 78% of sexual violence involved an offender who was a family member, intimate partner, friend, or acquaintance. 64% of instances of U.S. rape are not reported to the police According to the U.N., in Europe only 14 per cent of women reported their most serious incident of intimate partner violence to the police, and 13 per cent reported their most serious incident of non-partner violence to the police 77% of women who are raped receive no medical or legal assistance to deal with their tragedy In the U.S.A., things are improving: From 1995 to 2010, the estimated annual rate of female rape or sexual assault victimizations declined 58%, from 5.0 victimizations per 1,000 females age 12 or older to 2.1 per 1,000. - See more at:

Sexual Violence Varies by Culture "Violence against Women. " WHO
Sexual Violence Varies by Culture "Violence against Women." WHO. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 04 Nov < 15% of women in Japan and 71% of women in Ethiopia reported physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime International studies reveal that approximately 20% of women and 5–10% of men report being victims of sexual violence as children. The first sexual experience for many women was reported as forced – 17% in rural Tanzania, 24% in rural Peru, and 30% in rural Bangladesh.

A federal law called the Clery Act requires colleges to inform students of crime on and around campus. The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, also known as the Clery Act, is a federal law that requires institutions of higher education to have in place certain security and safety policies, and to disclose certain crime statistics.

Atwood’s Graphic Diction: Purpose
Women were stoned to death in 2014 in Syria for adultery According to the U.N., more than 133 million girls and women have experienced some form of female genital mutilation (FGM) in the 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East where the harmful practice is most common. Trafficking: According to the U.N., women and girls represent 55 per cent of the estimated 20.9 million victims of forced labour worldwide, and 98 per cent of the estimated 4.5 million are forced into sexual exploitation.

Review: Today’s Objectives
Analyze Atwood’s rationale for and purposeful use of graphic diction in The Handmaid’s Tale.

Chapter 14-17 Discussion Qs
We are finally told that the narrator is called “Offred,” though it isn't her real name. Why does Atwood withhold her real name? To what extent is Offred religious? Why was Offred’s family warned not to look too happy when they are trying to escape Gilead? Why was Moira punished so badly at the center? Does this instance of violence reveal Moira’s evil or that of her captors? Why does the commander keep the Bible locked up? Why might Puritanical cultures keep Bibles routinely sequestered from the general population? The “ceremony” scene ends with Second Chronicles 16:9. Why is this verse altered to fit the needs of the commander and Gilead? “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.” Explain why The Handmaid’s Tale is not Anti-Christian. Complete the statement as many ways as you can— “Atwood’s narrative is anti- …” and prove your statement is true with evidence from the text. Analyze the biblical allusion to Rachel and Leah in Ch 17, and analyze the significance of that Genesis story in HMT. Justify the interaction between Offred and Nick in Ch 17.

Homework Read and make useful notes about chapter for Friday’s class.

Explain why widespread infertility was the catalyst for the Giledian regime.
Atwood indicates what caused the mass infertility in Gilead. Restate that, and ascertain Atwood’s position on environmentalism as a result of that plot piece. Problem: Women in the United States stopped getting pregnant. Fear and social hysteria became widespread (Crucible!) The US Government couldn’t solve the problem, and therefore were considered weak Power vacuum and war to fill the need for government A radical fundamentalist Christian sect looked to the bible, and made two assumptions: Commanders inferred that infertility was a plague delivered by God due to the allegedly unholy behavior of “modern” women, so female rights should be abridged. Commanders believed that the story in Genesis 29 about Rachel and Leah—who used handmaids to beget children—was a solution. Solution: Gilead—this radical sect used violence to take over and instilled a radically conservative—even atavistic—regime to “restore” a failed society.

Language, Power, and The Handmaid’s Tale
Atwood calls attention to Offred's survival through a focus on the motif of language. In order to stay alive, Offred learns to use the new language of her own time so as to seem part of the new order that the language reflects. She quickly understands how much she had failed to value language as Gilead deprives her of word and text. She then learns to read the subtext of the new culture and so to subvert the illusion of absolute power created by its language. Bergmann, Harriet F. "'Teaching Them to Read': A Fishing Expedition in The Handmaid's Tale." College English 51 (1989):

In Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, the narrator, Offred, regularly interrupts the narrative flow of the text to contemplate the meaning of certain words and phrases. Often she finds that the meanings of words have changed since the revolution in Gilead, the fictional society in the novel. Process: Students examine Atwood's use of Offred’s language musings, as well as neologisms and Biblical language, in an assigned chapter. Students then share their findings with the class. Objectives: Students analyze the integral role that control of language and abuse of Biblical language play in the totalitarian government of Gilead and the specific ways that Offred challenges that control by the simple act of thinking and writing about language.

You will examine three categories of language in HMT: Neologisms—words that are invented or given new meaning in Gilead Biblical Language—phrases that sound Biblical, are said to be from the Bible, or are lifted from the Bible and have become part of every day interaction (pay particular attention to what Aunt Lydia says) Language Musings—words that Offred contemplates the meaning of (italicized in the text)

Write up a list of your chapter’s use of language in legible, digital-camera-projectable form. Neologisms—words that are invented or given new meaning in Gilead Biblical Language—phrases that sound Biblical, are said to be from the Bible, or are lifted from the Bible and have become part of every day interaction (pay particular attention to what Aunt Lydia says) Language Musings—words that Offred contemplates the meaning of (italicized in the text) Present your group’s response: What purpose do neologisms serve in Gilead/your chapter? Analyze the significance of a few examples from your chapter and a few examples from a chapter that is not 2, 4, 8, 12, and 15. How is Biblical language used in Gilead/your chapter? What is the significance and purpose of Offred’s musings about language in your chapter/the novel? How do they affect the story, the reader, and Offred? What might be a larger, symbolic, significance to Offred thinking about language? What general observations about the use of language in totalitarian socieites or radical theocracies can you make based on looking closely at language use in your chapter? The text as a whole? What significant connections to The Reader or To The Lighthouse can today’s exploration of language and power generate?

Homework Read chapter for Wednesday’s class.

Ch 17-19 Table Top Conversation: Passing the Group Notes
Take out a piece of lined paper for the whole table group and your copies of The Handmaid’s Tale Decide which group member will write first The first scribe will write sentences that respond to the first question. Pass the group note paper to your right. The second scribe will write sentences that respond to the second section, and so on until all five questions have been adequately answered. Write your initials next to the question(s) for which you served as the scribe.

Ch 17-19 Table Top Conversation: Passing the Group Notes
Analyze the biblical allusion to Rachel and Leah in Ch 17, and make connections between that Genesis story and HMT. Restate and analyze the interaction between Offred and Nick in Ch 17. Predict what The Commander wants from Offred. Summarize the three versions of Luke Offred describes in Ch 18. Which is most likely to be true? Differentiate between the role of the Handmaid’s leading up to another handmaid’s delivery and the role of the Wives.

Homework Read chapter 20-22 for Friday’s class.
Chapter presentations will be on Friday.

Homework Read chapter 23-25 for Monday’s class.
Chapter presentations will be on Monday.

Reading Check Quiz 20-25 Please take out a note card.
Write your name and the chapters of the reading check quiz on the top line. Respond briefly to each of the five easy reading comprehension questions that are worth two points each.

Reading Check Quiz 20-25 What gender was Ofwarren’s [Janine’s] baby? Was it healthy? What does the Commander do with Offred when they first meet at night? At the end of their first meeting, what does the Commander want? How does that make Offred feel? Why does Cora scream and drop the breakfast tray when she brings it to Offred? What does Cora think has happened and what actually happened? What two banned products does the Commander offer Offred during their meetings together?

Key: Reading Check Quiz 20-25
What gender was Ofwarren’s baby? Was it healthy? A girl- yes “a keeper” What does the Commander do with Offred when they first meet at night? Play Scrabble At the end of their first meeting, what does the Commander want? How does that make Offred feel? A kiss, “like she means it.” She pities him. Why does Cora scream and drop the breakfast tray when she brings it to Offred? What does Cora think has happened and what does Offred say happened? She thinks Offred has killed herself. Offred says she fainted. What two things does the Commander offer Offred during their meetings together? A Vogue magazine and some generic lotion.

Use two of these Biblical verses to justify or explain a specific incident in “The Handmaid’s Tale”
“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.” (Second Chronicles 16:9) "Give me children, or else I die." (Genesis 30:1) “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5) “ For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels. Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God. Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered? Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him? But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering. (1 Corinthians 11:6-15) About death as a punishment for adultery: “At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.” (Deuteronomy 17:6)

1974 Renee Russo Photo Credit: Richard Avedon

Homework Read chapter 26-29 for Tuesday’s class.
Chapter presentations will be on Tuesday.

Satire, Biblical Language, and Ch 30
There is a traditional Jewish prayer for men which thanks God for not having made them women. THESIS: Atwood uses satire to ironically alter the prayer to show another way that the fundamentalist theocracy has altered biblical teachings to manipulate the desirably-mindless masses.(204) Few Jewish religious texts have provoked as much indignation and discomfort as the brief passage that is recited by traditional Jewish men at the beginning of the daily morning prayers: "Blessed are you, Lord, our God, ruler of the universe who has not created me a woman." The text in question appears as part of a sequence of blessings, found in the Talmud, that are meant to accompany activities that are performed in the course of waking up in the morning, such as opening one's eyes, stepping on the ground, getting dressed, etc. For many, it expresses a quintessential misogyny that lies at the core of a patriarchal religion. Contemporary apologists insist that it is not intended to disparage women or imply that they are inferior, but merely to express gratitude for the fact that men are obligated to perform more religious commandments. Dr. Eliezer Segal is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Calgary. A native of Montreal, he holds a PhD in Talmud from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Board Talk Guidelines Write on every sheet of paper
Be analytical, specific, and factually accurate Make your own original comments, or begin a text-based discussion on the poster paper with another comment Use quotes, paraphrased evidence, and images to explain your complex thinking Write your initials next to each of your marvelous comments Try to stay as quiet as possible Have your book with you to refer to quotes and to confirm that what you’re sharing is true

Board Talk: The HMT and Common Dystopian Themes
Dehumanization Isolation Lack of efficiency Pressure to conform Violence Illiteracy Environmental disaster Totalitarian government

Read chapter 30-32 for Wednesday’s class
Homework Read chapter for Wednesday’s class Ch presentations due Wednesday

What do you know/feel about arranged marriages?
What do you feel about arranged marriages? Do you think arranged marriages are more likely to result in successful partnerships or divorce? Why do you think so? Arranged Marriage What do you know/feel about arranged marriages? Do you think arranged marriages are more likely to result in successful partnerships or divorce? Why do you think so?

What do you feel about arranged marriages?
Do you think arranged marriages are more likely to result in successful partnerships or divorce? Why do you think so? Arranged Marriage Statistics Sources: UNICEF, Human Rights Council, ABC News 4/17/15 What do you know/feel about arranged marriages? Analyze the statistics presented below. Do you think arranged marriages are more likely to result in successful partnerships or divorce? Why do you think so? Arranged Marriage Statistics Data Average divorce rate globally on arranged marriages 4.2 % India divorce rate 1.2 % Global divorce rate for arranged marriages 6.3 % Average number of years older the male is from the female in an arrange marriage 4.5 years Percent of marriages in India that are arranged 89 % Percent of marriages in the world that are arranged 54 % Percent of U.S. men between the age of 40 and 50 who have never been married 14 % Percent of U.S. women between the age of 40 and 50 who have never been married 10 % Percent of girls who were forced to marry before a certain age Percent South Asia before age 18 46.4 % Bangladesh before age 15 27.3 % Africa before age 18 42 % Niger before age 15 26 % Kyrgyzstan before age 18 21.2 % Kazakhstan before age 18 14.4 %

Ch 31-35 Discussion Questions
What is the Women’s Prayvaganza for? How does Atwood create a particular atmosphere during this scene? The commander notes that “Better never means better for everyone” … and “It always means worse, for some.” (222) Who are things better for in this novel? Worse? Why? Analyze many characters/castes. How has Atwood revealed the commander to readers? Who is he, really? What is the impact of Janine’s loss on Janine and the other women? Discuss Atwood’s use of flashbacks in recent chapters. Analyze the significance of the picture Serena offers. How do you imagine Serena Joy's offer affects Offred? Is Serena helping or hurting Offred? Nick? Herself? The Commander?

Read and annotate chapter 36-40 for Monday’s class
Homework Read and annotate chapter for Monday’s class

Underground Femaleroad
Chapter 36-40 As I check annotations, discuss Atwood’s introduction or progression or resolution of the following topics: Jezebel’s Moira The Colonies Offred’s Mother Underground Femaleroad

Jezebel: Suffragette or Whore
Jezebel: Suffragette or Whore? Objective: Analyze Atwood’s biblical allusion to Jezebel

Jezebel (from the Bible)
Scripture References—1 Kings 16:31; 18:4-19; 19:1, 2; 21:5-25; 2 Kings 9 Jezebel was a Phoenician princess in the 9th century Her family worshipped many gods, most importantly Baal, a nature god. While Jezebel was growing up, Israel crowned a new king. To create an alliance with Israel, the king arranged for his son Ahab to wed Jezebel. Their marriage cemented a political alliance, but it was a dramatic event for the young woman. After enjoying a life of luxury, she was suddenly taken into a conservative society and made to oversee it. Jezebel eventually became Israel's Queen. She continued to worship the god Baal, and in doing so, earned many enemies. At her citizens' expense, she brought 800 Baal prophets to Israel and ordered the murder of several Yahweh prophets. At this major moment, Elijah, a Christian prophet, appeared. According to the biblical book of Kings, Elijah gave a prophecy: That terrible draught would come upon Israel. Famine spread across Jezebel's land, according to the story.

Jezebel, cont’d Several years later, Ahab died in a battle against the Syrians, and a man named Jehu was promised the crown if he killed Jezebel and her son, thus taking Jezebel's power. As the story goes, Jehu made his way Jezebel's palace to murder her, and she, expecting him, applied make-up and dressed herself in finery. Some people believe she was simply dressing for a dignified death. Others believe she was "painting" herself in hopes of seducing Jehu and becoming his mistress. #Gertrude In the end, she was thrown out of her bedroom window, trampled by horses and eaten by dogs. Jezebel's name has been used for thousands of years to describe cunning, ruthless and reprehensible women. Some believe she typifies evil. Others believe that Jezebel was one of the first suffragists.

“The death of Jezebel” by Gustave Doré (1866)
Defenestration

Ultimately, … Write one paragraph from an individual characters’ perspective to answer each question in your comp book: Is it worse to be a handmaid or to work at Jezebel’s? Is it worse to be a wife or a handmaid?

Ch 36-40 Discussion Questions
What is the Commander's rationale for the existence of places like Jezebel's? What does Moira say the advantages are in working at Jezebel's over being a Handmaid? What is the significance of the “The Underground Femaleroad?” What kind of work do the women in the Colonies do? How does the experience at Jezebel’s change the relationship between Offred and the Commander? Who are the victims in this novel? Who refuses to be a victim? Who in the novel deserves forgiveness? For what? From whom? Why? How has Serena changed things between Offred & Nick?

Annotate chapter 41-44 for Tuesday’s class
Homework Annotate chapter for Tuesday’s class Annotate and the “Historical Notes” section for Wednesday’s class. Socratic seminar: W-F

Read chapter 37-39 for Monday’s class
Homework for Monday Read chapter for Monday’s class Ch Presentations due Monday

Read chapter 40-42 for Tuesday’s class
Homework Submit your in-class write to turnitin.com if you haven’t already done so Read chapter for Tuesday’s class Ch Presentations due Tuesday.

Analyzing Dominant Themes
5 minutes: Determine a dominant theme of The Handmaid’s Tale that stands out above all the rest as what the author was trying to communicate to readers 10 minutes: Select quoted and/or paraphrased evidence to support your theme 20 minutes: Create a theme poster that provides support (paraphrased or quoted) for your thematic thesis statement

A Title that Reveals Theme
Dominant-Theme Thesis Statement Nuanced analysis of the best evidence from the book to support your thesis [Rubric for evidence:] Excellence: Nuanced, quoted evidence you analyze for both theme and literary technique Solid: Paraphrased evidence you analyze for theme Not Quite: Valid paraphrased or quoted evidence that is not analyzed for connection to the theme in thesis

Read chapter 43-44 for Wednesday’s class
Homework Read chapter for Wednesday’s class

Homework for Thursday If you didn’t submit yesterday’s write—do so TODAY BEFORE MIDNIGHT!! Finish the novel, including the “Historical Notes” section for tomorrow. Begin to review for Friday’s Socratic Seminar if you haven’t already using the document on my file attachments page. Decide which two texts you’ll compare and contrast for your semester paper, and write an initial thesis for Monday’s class.

The Historical Notes The end of the book is written as if scholars in the future are studying Gilead. It is written in a completely different tone and voice than the rest of the novel. [Read this section very carefully! It is not optional.]

The Handmaid’s Tale Haiku
Describe a specific scene in The Handmaid’s Tale using Haiku. Can be from anywhere in the novel A traditional Japanese haiku is a three-line poem with seventeen syllables, written in a 5/7/5 syllable count. The philosophy of haiku: the focus on a brief moment in time; a use of provocative, colorful images; an ability to be read in one breath; and a sense of sudden enlightenment and illumination.

Tuesday’s Socratic Seminar
Fishbowl Style: two groups Three to five questions each 25 minutes per group for discussion Grouped based on prior participation Reflection & Most Like Socrates Awards after the seminar Two HMT Culminating Grades: Soc Seminar and Semester Compare/Contrast Essay

Lack-of-Resolution Reading Quiz 
What ultimately happens to Ofglen? Describe the cliffhanger ending of Offred’s narrative. Why was the academic conference in the “Historical Notes” section of the book being held? In what form was Offred’s story found by researchers? What is the “Particicucution ceremony” shared in the “Historical Notes” section and what was its purpose? What new cause of Gilead’s widespread infertility is shared in the “Historical Notes” section?

What ultimately happens to Ofglen? She takes her own life Describe the cliffhanger ending of Offred’s narrative. She gets into a van, hopefully with “Mayday” on Nick’s advice. Why was the academic conference in the “Historical Notes” section of the book being held? To study and discuss the Giledian Era

4. In what form was Offred’s story found by researchers? Cassette Tapes 5. What is the “Particicucution ceremony” shared in the “Historical Notes” section and what was its purpose? To tear men limb from limb; to relieve Handmaid’s hatred and oppression 6. What new cause of Gilead’s widespread infertility is shared in the “Historical Notes” section? Chernobyl-Style Pollution

Lack-of-Resolution Reading Quiz Ch 40-end
What happens to Ofglen? Why does Serena confront Offred? Who specifically comes to get Offred at the end? Are they good or bad? Why was the academic conference in the “Historical Notes” section of the book being held? In what form was Offred’s story found by researchers? What new cause of Gilead’s widespread infertility is shared in the “Historical Notes” section?

Lack-of-Resolution Reading Quiz Key
What ultimately happens to Ofglen? She commits suicide (but you should suspect she was murdered) Why does Serena confront Offred? She finds O’s Jezebel costume and threatens to report her Who specifically comes to get Serena at the end? Are they good or bad? A black van, including Nick, allegedly from “Mayday”

Lack-of-Resolution Reading Quiz Key
7. Why was the academic conference in the “Historical Notes” section of the book being held? To study and discuss the Giledian Era 8. In what form was Offred’s story found by researchers? Cassette Tapes 9. What new cause of Gilead’s widespread infertility is shared in the “Historical Notes” section? Chernobyl-Style Pollution

Lack-of-Resolution Discussion
University of Denay, Nunavit: Pun! What do you immediately notice in the “Historical Notes” section that shows how much times have changed between Gilead’s era and the 6/25/2195 academic conference? How is Atwood’s tone different in this appendix-style addendum to the novel? What “pressures” or “factors” are the academics in the epilogue free from that plague Gildeadean society? Do you agree with the statement that “no new system can impose its self upon a previous one without the incorporation of many elements found in the latter?” What elements of older systems remain in American culture today? Offred seems the have a superficial understanding of politics. She seems to be a character that is more concerned with her life and the life of her family rather than larger political structures. How does this free her and similarly condemn her? What are the main methods of control in the Gileadean regime and how are these portrayed?

Exit Slip: Respond on a note card in several sentences.
Front of Card: To what extent has this novel made you think differently about the position of women in our society and in the world? Back of Card: Evaluate this book from 1-5 stars and explain your evaluation.

Socratic Seminar Practice
Create a large circle guaranteeing everyone in the class equal access to the conversation Bring your copy of the book and your notes to the circle Discuss your participation goals for today’s discussion with the people sitting next to you

Socratic Seminar Practice
The commander is ignorant about certain things. What are they? Why does Atwood characterize him in that way? Analyze the significance of specific incidents in the relationship between Serena and Offred. Do you feel empathy for Nick? Why? What games are characters playing with each other in the novel? What are the main methods of control in the Gileadean regime and how are these portrayed? To what extent has this novel made you think differently about the position of women in our society and in the world?

HMT Socratic Seminar Reflection
Place your participation today on the scale below and thoroughly explain your assessment. X_____________________________________X Too Quiet Eloquent Participation Too Aggressive Pick one MLS (Most Like Socrates) from your group and one from the other group. What qualities made each eloquent? What would you do differently in our next Socratic Seminar?

Characters: Offred Offred is the narrator who belongs to the class of women known as Handmaids. Handmaids are fertile women forced into surrogate motherhood for elite, barren couples. She struggles to maintain her faith in the face of her rigidly repressed status in Gilead.

Characters: The Commander
The Commander is the head of the household where Offred is stationed as a Handmaid. He establishes an unorthodox relationship with Offred by spending time alone with her. He has a callous attitude toward women. He is a member of the Gileadean elite and is most likely one of the architects of Gileadean society.

Characters: Serena Joy
Serena is the Commander's Wife who belongs to the class of women with the greatest symbolic status in Gilead. Before Gilead, Serena sang on a Sunday religious television program and give anti-feminist speeches stating that a woman's place was in the home. She is unhappy and jealously guards her small claims to status, while being vengeful and cruel to the Handmaids in her household.

Characters: Moira Moira was Offred's best friend before Gilead.
She was a staunch, bisexual feminist. She represents a rebellious, courageous, resourceful heroine. She escaped from the Red Center, but the Eyes recaptured her. She chooses to work as a prostitute at Jezebel's rather than going to the Colonies. Her final fate is unknown.

Characters: Luke Luke was Offred's husband before Gilead came to be.
Although he is loving toward Offred, he is often sexist in his behavior and beliefs. Neither Offred nor the reader find out what happened to Luke after his capture.

Characters: Aunts Aunts are the class of women assigned to the task of indoctrinating the Handmaids into Gileadean ideology. Aunts are permitted greater freedom of movement than other women. Unlike other women, they are permitted to read, write, and carry weapons. Aunt Lydia is a sadistic Aunt at the Red Center. Aunt Elizabeth is another one of the Aunts at the Red Center. Moira attacks her and steals her costume during her escape from the Red Center.

Characters: Ofglen Ofglen is also a handmaid who is Offred's shopping partner. She reveals the existence of a subversive underground resistance. Her identity as a subversive is discovered, and when she sees the black van of the Eyes of God coming for her, she hangs herself in order to protect her fellow subversives.

Characters: Nick Nick is a member of the Eyes of God, the Gileadean secret police. He is also a subversive rebel. Serena Joy orchestrates a sexual encounter between Nick and Offred because she thinks her husband is sterile. Nick and Offred soon begin a covert sexual affair. Nick orchestrates Offred's escape from Gilead.

Margaret Atwood 42 books; 10 novels Postmodern author B. 1933

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Margaret Atwood 42 books; 10 novels Postmodern author B. 1933

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