The Handmaid's Tale: Discussion Questions

[momebie]

So, I fail at posting things in a timely fashion. No one is surprised. Margaret told me that I had to proclaim my love for her and paper-tzipporah as penance. So, you know. Margaret and Joni are amazing and beautiful. They are the best mods anyone could ever have. And I also wear ribbons in my hair and want to kiss all the boys will love them for always.



Now! Let's get on to some discussing. As I did with The Time Machine, these questions are a mixture of things I underlined in my own copy and things I found on the internet:

• Offred says: "We were a society dying, said Aunt Lydia, of too much choice." Do you feel that choice is inherently detrimental to religion? Could the Republic of Gilead have used choice to their advantage instead of seemingly taking it away from everyone?
  
• Why do you think the Republic of Gilead calls its soldiers Angels? Does that make a statement about how those in charge view the religion before and after the establishment of the theocracy?
  
• Offred and Ofglen meet some Japanese tourists on the street who seem 'undressed' when compared to the way that the Handmaid's live. The translator asks them if they're happy and Offred imagines them wondering how the Handmaid's could possibly be happy. Do you think that Atwood chose to make the tourists Japanese on purpose? How does the way the Japanese tourists see the Handmaid's reflect the way that we currently misunderstand other cultures?
  
• Offred uses words like 'shatter' and 'thud' in the place of emotions when she can't seem to fully explain her feelings. She also recognizes being asked to play Scrabble with the Commander as a small rebellion. Do you think that living in a society where words are a commodity gives them more power?
  
• The Republic of Gilead uses what it views as a woman's worth as a way to reference her--Ie, Marthas, Handmaid's, Econowives--where it uses a man's military rank to reference him. Do you think that the leaders of the Republic of Gilead are purposefully trying to keep the women in contention with one another?
  
• Margaret Atwood has said "This is a book about what happens when certain casually held attitudes about women are taken to their logical conclusions." What do you think those individual attitudes are and is there a way to actively change them?

It has been a long day for me, so I will leave you with that. Please feel free to discuss anything though, because I find the whole of the book intensely interesting and it would satisfy my selfish desires if you did. I know Margaret in particular must have some choice things to say. ;)