Characters
The main character's best friend from the "time before". She escaped from the Red Center.
Who is Moira?
To act as each other's spies.
Why do the handmaids always travel in pairs?
The class of women in Gilead who perform cook and clean.
What is a Martha?
The male-centric model of society on which Gilead is built.
What is patriarchy/misogyny?
"He's just that. My husband. I want that to be perfectly clear. Till death do us part. It's final."
Who is Serena Joy?
The narrator's walking partner and fellow handmaid.
Who is Ofglen?
Never being declared an Unwoman, never going to the colonies.
What is the reward for producing a healthy baby?
She is sent to the colonies.
What happens to a Handmaid if she fails produce a child during her "trial period"?
Name for the movement or era of advocacy for women during which The Handmaid's Tale was written.
What is Second-wave feminism?
"I enjoy the power; power of a dog bone, passive but there."
Who is Offred?
They are the only females who can read and write, overseers and teachers in charge of training Handmaids.
Who are the Aunts?
Blessed be the fruit.
Gender treachery, doctors who once performed abortions, and Catholic priests.
What kind of people are persecuted on the Wall?
The Handmaids are constantly watched, restricted in movement, and forced to follow strict routines
What is control?
"This is a reconstruction. All of it is a reconstruction..."
Who is Offred?
It's the technique handmaids use to communicate even it it's forbidden to.
What is to lip-read?
To keep her (or any other Handmaid) from harming themselves or others. It is a sign of their autonomy being kept from them.
Why is Offred not given a knife for her meals? Why is the glass in her room shatterproof? Why has the overhead light fixture in her room been removed?
Public punishments, the Wall, and the news broadcasts are used to make people obey without question.
What is fear as a tool of power?
"Who's doing the bath?... I got to tenderize this bird."
Who is Rita?
Nick, Offred, Rita, Cora, Serena Joy, Commander
Who make up the household?
The "present day" plot is often interrupted by Offred's memories of this.
What is the time before the war / before the Republic of Gilead, the "time before"?
To assert some sense of self, of ownership. To rebel. To leave something for the next Handmaid.
Why does Offred want to steal something?
The news broadcasts and propaganda highlight this theme by shaping how citizens think and what they are allowed to believe.
What is manipulation of truth?
"'Here,' she said, 'toss it in, quick.'"
Who is the narrator's mother?