Religion/Belief/Ideology and Sexual Exploitation in Atwood's Handmaid's Tale

Book Review Instructions:

Essay 4
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood presents a dystopian society, post United States, in which women's rights are largely squashed in the service of procreation after near complete environmental collapse. Atwood's novel questions the morality used to justify authoritarian, theocratic governments. Most importantly, all that Atwood includes has basis in history and it has occurred at one point in time or another. Atwood's critique presents if the most "moral" government as completely inept at dealing with crises of environmental disaster. Significantly, Atwood's text was written post World War II and during the Cold War but before COVID 19 so the work is informed by the atrocities of the Holocaust without knowledge of how a global pandemic could actually damage society.
For this Assignment
We have yet to discuss the presence of religion and belief/ideology in examining this text and what that theme holds for how we understand Atwood's commentary on contemporary society, our society. For your essay, I would like you to examine how Atwood use of religion/belief/ideology combines with one of the other themes we have discus so far. For example, you might discuss religion/belief/ideology as used to justify a handmaid's sexual exploitation, or you might examine religion/belief/ideology as tied to the creation of a handmaid's identity, a subservient woman. I leave the interpretations up to you so long as you can provide evidence from the text. Word of warning, only choose one theme. You'll need to focus your essay.
Second, consider that Atwood's use of religion/belief/ideology is similar to disease; it is a cancerous agent running loose in society, and it is used to oppress women in many ways. How does Atwood's epidemic of religion/belief/ideology change the way in which characters understand their world, their idenity? In a world like Gilead, how is change possible? In what existential ways does Offred experience change? What about Serena, Nick, the Commander?
Finally, as you prepare to write your essay, do not lose sight of the themes we have worked with so far in the text:
Identity
Good vs. Evil
Morality and Moral Conscience
Sexual exploitation and personal power
Ideology and theocracy
While you do not need to incorporate all of these themes in your essay, using one or two of them to help you explain the larger context of religion/belief/ideology. Each of these themes provides a perspective on Gilead's society.
To help you get started, please do some research regarding Atwood's text. I would like to see you include at least two scholarly sources in this essay in order to ground your ideas in current scholarship. I strongly encourage you to use the library databasesLinks to an external site. for your research. I would encourage use of Academic One File, Project Muse, or JStor databases for your research. PCC Librarians have also put together a Literature and Literary Criticism Research GuideLinks to an external site. with helpful links, video tutorials, and other information.
Expectations
Essays should be thesis driven with introductory, body, and concluding paragraphs.
Supporting evidence in the form of textual analysis, meaning quotes, and visual analysis of graphic elements of the text is expected.
In addition to the text, students should conduct outside research and use reliable sources, preferably scholarly, to support their arguments. Two outside sources are expected.
Essays should be written in MLA format with Times New Roman 12pt. font.
A works cited page is required.
Essays should be five pages in total. (I stop reading after page five.)

Book Review Sample Content Preview:

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Literature And Language
Examine How Atwood Use Of Religion/Belief/Ideology Combines With Handmaids Sexual Exploitation
Atwood uses religious symbolism and allusions to criticize how religion can be used to justify oppression. Religion is one of the two main means of control used by the regime, where the scriptures of the bible are used to find precedents for laws and regulations that the regime has created. In the book, people with power use certain passages from the bible to help them feel that they are morally upright even when they are committing violence. Handmaids are being assaulted sexually. For example, a girl is raped, becomes pregnant, and is forced to be silent. They rape onscreen, which can have ominous real-life repercussions. Atwood uses their religion, beliefs, and ideology to insult handmaids (Atwood.pp73). They quote passages from the bible to make them feel morally upright even when they do wrong or commit violence. The execution of priests is made public and an open testimony to what will happen to the one who will go against the religious beliefs of the government. Handmaid’s tale argues that it is wrong to control women’s reproductive freedom morally and politically legally. The republic of Gilead has subjected women and has reduced handmaids by offering sexual slavery and using the scriptures to insult them.
Sexual oppression in the society has been continuously affecting many individuals hence making it the most common form of oppression. In various societies, there are many situations whereby women have been held back from achieving similar opportunities to men. In Atwood’s artistic work, The Handmaid’s Tale, she demonstrates how men dominate women, which occurs mostly through sexual exploitation. Handmaids are involved forcefully in sexual acts with the aim of bearing children. Women are given names such as “Offred and Ofglen” and are made to wear headwear red in color as a symbol of menstrual blood that relates to their purpose. The headwear completely obliterates their faces, keeping them from seeing the world around them. Marthas are women of a higher rank than Handmaids who are unable to bear children and hence forced into servitude and have a slight amount of freedom. The regime in Gilead controls each aspect of a woman’s life through fear to force women to conform to their societal roles. The handmaids are subjected to harsh punishment in case they are infertile. Atwood’s creativity creates an image of how women are used as sexual objects in society and are, in most cases, taken advantage of through exploitation (Atwood.pp90). The author fearlessly communicates how women are viewed and valued in society. The ideology and belief that women are inferior to men in society facilitate the oppression of individuals in various ways, including sexuality.
How Does Atwood’s Epidemic Of Religion/ Belief/Ideology Change The Way In Which Characters Understand Their Word, Their Identity?
An environmental disaster has led to infertility in most women, and the small number who can become pregnant are forced to become handmaids, owned by the ruling power like the commanders, and sometimes raped to p...

Updated on January 26, 2024

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Religion/Belief/Ideology and Sexual Exploitation in Atwood's Handmaid's Tale

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