,1. Discuss the role of the Aunts and of Serena Joy in the novel. How do they relate
to other women, and how does this make them fit into the hierarchy of Gilead?
2. Is the Commander a sympathetic character, a monster, or both?
3. Is Atwood’s novel ultimately a feminist work of literature, or does it offer a
critique of feminism?
4. What role does Moira play in the novel? How does her significance change as
the story progresses?
How does Gilead create and use a new vocabulary to buttress its
totalitarian order?
How does The Handmaid’s Tale depict the intersection between politics and sexual
reproduction? How is Gilead’s political order defined by this intersection, and how does it affect
the lives of women?
,
,
to other women, and how does this make them fit into the hierarchy of Gilead?
2. Is the Commander a sympathetic character, a monster, or both?
3. Is Atwood’s novel ultimately a feminist work of literature, or does it offer a
critique of feminism?
4. What role does Moira play in the novel? How does her significance change as
the story progresses?
How does Gilead create and use a new vocabulary to buttress its
totalitarian order?
How does The Handmaid’s Tale depict the intersection between politics and sexual
reproduction? How is Gilead’s political order defined by this intersection, and how does it affect
the lives of women?
,
,
