("Tumblr.") ("The Handmaid's.") ("Margaret Atwood.")
Mitchel Coon
Mrs. Rutan
AP Literature and composition
19 December 2014
Mrs. Rutan
AP Literature and composition
19 December 2014
What would life be like without second chances? Children who refuse to share at a young age would never be allowed to play again. Students who fail one class wouldn't be allowed to graduate. The at-fault driver of an accident would die without a license. And yet, our society frowns upon second marriages, failed attempts, and losing efforts. It seems we hold second chances to a double standard; sometimes multiple chances are expected while others are times they are degraded. Margaret Atwood has a theme of second chances throughout her dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale. In this book, Atwood argues that nonjudgmental second chances are deserved in nearly all situations--especially those with severe consequences. |
The protagonist of the The Handmaid’s Tale--Offred--is persecuted for legally marrying a divorced man before the theocratic government took power. In the eyes of the new leaders, their marriage was sinful and declared void. Arrested while trying to flea, Offred receives a most undesirable punishment: an occupation as a sex slave.
The unjust punishment for an infraction we do not consider a crime--especially because Luke (Offred’s husband) “[fled] from his [first] wife” (50)--creates sympathy for Offred. Atwood demolishes our societies--particularly the church’s--double standard on second chances. By intensifying the circumstances and consequences of remarriage,
Atwood reveals the flaws in our society's ideology. She argues that mistakes can still be made in serious commitments and penalizing those who try to fix the error is illogical. |
Luke 1:38: Then Mary said: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word." And the Angel departed from her. ("Luke 1.")
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Moira--Atwood’s foil character of Offred--is repeatedly given the chance to escape the Aunt’s domain; after several attempts, Moira breaks out. Here, Atwood reveals the benefits of recurring opportunities. Over the course of several months, Moira travels towards the Canadian border where she is eventually recaptured and seeks refuge in prostitution. This idea is particularly undesirable, yet Moira seems to enjoy it. While Moira's freedom is restricted, her happiness demonstrates that while second chances are usually deserved, their success is occasionally limited.
Despite faulty morals, Gilead--Atwood’s dystopian society--offers multiple opportunities when it comes to their highest priority: childbirth. Commander Fred was our protagonist’s “third” (15) sperm donor. Janine, a minor character who is also a handmaid, is paired with at least three commanders as well--her “second [miscarriage]" (215) being a lengthy plot point. Even an extreme theocracy somewhat understood the concept of trying again after failed attempts. It is with these details that Margaret Atwood exposes that not allowing second chances is a waste and judging those who take them is promoting misuse.
Atwood’s epilogue reveals a risk of giving second chances: you do not know what the result will be. On Offred’s second escape attempt from Gilead, Atwood never reveals whether she survived or was recaptured; the readers must decide. Despite the possibility of the protagonist's demise, running away again was clearly the most opportune way to survive--lack of escape insured death. It is with this final plot point that Atwood sums up her argument that our
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society should remove its hypocritical double standard
on taking chances.
Atwood is clearly vouching for those who need multiple opportunities at happiness and against those that denounce persistence. Her message is especially applicable in present America where over a third of marriages involve divorcees (Kreider). It is through her satire and others like it that the real world has grown and will continue to grow until the double standard is overcome.
Work Cited:
Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid's Tale. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1986. Print.
Kreider, Rose M. Cohabitation, Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage in the United States. Hyattsville, MD: Dept. of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, 2002. Remarriage in the United States. US Census Bureau, 10 Aug. 2006. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.
<https://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/marriage/data/sipp/us-remarriage-poster.pdf>.
Le Sueur, Eustache. The Annunciation. Digital image. Medjugorie Website. Medjugorje WebSite, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://www.medjugorje.ws/en/pictures/angels/>.
"Luke 1." Catholic Public Domain Version. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2014.
"Margaret Atwood on Science Fiction, Dystopias, and Intestinal Parasites | WIRED." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <http://www.wired.com/2013/09/geeks-guide-margaret-atwood/>.
Motivational Poster, Harper Creek High School Counselors Office. Personal photograph by author. 2014.
"SAMOSATE." SAMOSATE. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://skepticos.blog.lemonde.fr/>
"The Handmaid's Tale Summary - ENotes.com." Enotes.com. Enotes.com, n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014. <http://www.enotes.com/topics/handmaids-tale>.
"Tumblr." Handmaid's Tale. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <https://www.tumblr.com/search/handmaid's+tale>.
Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid's Tale. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1986. Print.
Kreider, Rose M. Cohabitation, Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage in the United States. Hyattsville, MD: Dept. of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, 2002. Remarriage in the United States. US Census Bureau, 10 Aug. 2006. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.
<https://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/marriage/data/sipp/us-remarriage-poster.pdf>.
Le Sueur, Eustache. The Annunciation. Digital image. Medjugorie Website. Medjugorje WebSite, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://www.medjugorje.ws/en/pictures/angels/>.
"Luke 1." Catholic Public Domain Version. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2014.
"Margaret Atwood on Science Fiction, Dystopias, and Intestinal Parasites | WIRED." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <http://www.wired.com/2013/09/geeks-guide-margaret-atwood/>.
Motivational Poster, Harper Creek High School Counselors Office. Personal photograph by author. 2014.
"SAMOSATE." SAMOSATE. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://skepticos.blog.lemonde.fr/>
"The Handmaid's Tale Summary - ENotes.com." Enotes.com. Enotes.com, n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014. <http://www.enotes.com/topics/handmaids-tale>.
"Tumblr." Handmaid's Tale. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <https://www.tumblr.com/search/handmaid's+tale>.