Offred's Hope

For this close reading, I would like to connect two passages from The Handmaid’s Tale. One, rather lengthy one, from the beginning of the 30th chapter and the very last line of the book. They are as follows:

“Night falls. Or has fallen. Why is it that night falls, instead of rising, like the dawn? Yet if you look east, at sunset, you can see night rising, not falling; darkness lifting into the sky, up from the horizon, like a black sun behind cloud cover. Like smoke from an unseen fire, a line of fire just below the horizon, brushfire or a burning city. Maybe night falls because it’s heavy, a thick curtain pulled up over the eyes. Wool blanket. I wish I could see in the dark, better than I do” (Atwood 191)

“And so I step up, into the darkness within; or else the light” (Atwood 295).

Immediately, when I read the first quote from the text, I was intrigued. The way she focuses on the concept of night and darkness so intently made me reread her lines over and over; what could be meant by that? From her use of negative imagery such as a fire burning a city and a curtain being pulled over one’s eyes, it can be interpreted that she is not a fan of the darkness. After all, there are plenty of good things that come out of the darkness such as the emergence of stars but she chooses to focus on the menacing aspects of night. A contrast comes in at the end of the book when Offred talks about getting in the van. In this situation, it could be very easy to see the negative but she ends by thinking of light.

It is very interesting to me that she goes from one extreme, being pulled into darkness by the mere thought of nighttime, to seeing the good or “light” in a situation that, for all she knows, could be her end. I think that this sense of hope comes from the relationships that she is beginning to form. She has spent a lot of time with the commander by the end and although it is not clear if she actually likes him, it does seem like she has made some kind of connection with him. Along those lines, she has made what seems to be a deep connection with Nick; at least the deepest connection that she has made in this new world. Even though she is still very cautious with these relationships, any kind of relationship is one that can bring hope when all hope is lost. It is a psychological fact that humans are social creatures that crave intimacy and connections; so when Offred gets the opportunity to create these human companionships, she is able to let her guard down and allow herself to feel hope and positivity that she has not felt in a long time.


Comments

  1. UnknownDecember 3, 2017 at 1:39 PM

    The symbolism represented from both of these excerpts in relation to Offred and her feelings on the situation as a whole are fascinating to me, too. As readers, having a glimpse into the internal and external conflicts that she faces is vital to overall comprehension of the text. Much of the Republic of Gilead could have been the focus of the darkness, but I genuinely think her connection to Nick and the authenticity of it was what kept her going when the darkness was looming.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What We Hunger For: Deep Thoughts

"Just because you survive something does not mean you are strong." To be completely honest, this story was one that I could almost watch in my head. Perhaps part of that was because it was written vividly with strong imagery and diction; perhaps because I could see a reflection of myself in Gay's story. This year has been a transformative one for me, as I have learned to become more self-aware and acknowledging that there is immense power in naming our struggles. I am consistently told by my friends how "strong, courageous, and unfuckwithable" I am... which, I think, genuinely stems from my inability to be comfortable. I've survived too much. I've been exposed to and made it through too much... and apparently, the fact that I managed to make it "out" of those immediate situations is seen as strong. However, I am very thankful that Gay made the comment above. To me, I've always seen strength as how people cope with the long-term effects o...
Read more

Macbeth´s reaction to lady Macbeth's Death (Act 5 sc 5)

She should have died hereafter; There would have been a time for such a word.  To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow , Creeps in this petty pace from day to day To the last syllable of recorded time, And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage And then is heard no more: it is a tale Told Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.  Looking at this paragraph, I am looking at lines it seems as though Macbeth does care about his wife dying before her goes to battle. I would think from a man that the husband would be more sympathetic about his wife dying. By him saying “ she should have died hereafter” seems like he doesn’t care about his wife. But I think that Macbeth wanted to her to die after the battle so that he would have time to morn the death of his wi...
Read more

Building Each Other Up

In Gay's essay, "How to be Friends with Another Woman" she talks about the competitiveness between women. Almost anything is fair game when it comes to tearing one another down behind each other's backs. But why is this necessary? We're all in the same position when it comes down to it. In order to rise above our oppressors, we must stop judging other women so harshly, and start building them up. We are all guilty of passing judgement over other women who are dressed differently than us, or like the same guy as us. Everything has become such a competition, that we are unable to realize the benefits of helping one another become the best version of themselves.
Read more