The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood Pre-reading discussion

Agree or Disagree Women are not safe in modern society.

Agree or Disagree Men objectify women and that makes them responsible for the oppression of women.

Agree or Disagree Women are responsible for their own oppression.

Epigraph #1 “And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. And Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said, Am I God’s stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.” - Genesis 30:1-3

This is one of several passages from the Bible that make clear that in patriarchal Hebrew times it was perfectly legitimate for a man to have sex and even beget children by his servants (slaves), particularly if his wife was infertile. It is unknown how widespread this custom was, of having the infertile wife embrace the fertile maidservant as she gave birth to symbolize that the baby is legally hers. Beget:(typically of a man, sometimes of a man and a woman) bring (a child) into existence by the process of reproduction.

And what about Leah? Leah, Rachel’s sister, was also married to Jacob. She gave him ten children. But Rachel was his favourite… Keep the idea of favouritism in the back of your mind as we embark on this novel.

Epigraph #2 “But as to myself, having been wearied out for many years with offering vain, idle, visionary thoughts, and at length utterly despairing of success, I fortunately fell upon this proposal…” - Johnathan Swift, A Modest Proposal

In this essay, Swift highlights the hard-heartedness of the English in allowing the Irish masses to starve by satirically proposing that the Irish should be encouraged to eat their own children for food. What is a satire? A Modest Proposal is considered one of the most famous and well known satires in the Western world. Why do you think Atwood would include this?

What do you think this means? “In the desert there is no sign that says, Thou shalt not eat stones.” - Sufi proverb What do you think this means?

Why do you think Atwood would include this? Does this mean that if something is so obvious, it doesn’t need to be written down? (Like breeding women…) there is no point in prohibiting something that no-one wants to do anyway live with what you have, however terrible or life destroying it is. Or… does it represent the desert-like barren state of Gilead where people are literally barren and can no longer procreate under typical circumstances? Why do you think Atwood would include this?