Under His Eye - A Handmaid's Tale

A freighting vision of a future shaped by totalitarianism and gender inequality is closer than you think. Through Offred’s and the other handmaid’s story,  and the oppressive society of Gilead, Margaret Atwood’s work mirrors the real world struggles of power, gender rights and environmental crises. The regime in Gilead uses fear propaganda, and the suppression of individual freedoms to maintain its control. Which remains similar to the struggles we continue to face in our own world. Therefore poses the question, In what ways does The Handmaid’s Tale display Gilead’s oppressional structures to reveal how totalitarian structures, gender inequality, and environmental instability intersect; and how are similar dynamics unfolding in today’s world?

Fear is the most powerful tool used by Gilead as a part of their manipulation tactics to stay in control. In the TV show, Gilead’s leaders use violence and surveillance to maintain authority over all citizens who do not bear governmental power. Gilead’s secret police, infamously called “The Eyes” constantly patrol the streets to maintain compliance, displaying how punishments and public executions are used as an intimidation technique. Offred’s own experiences as a Handmaid highlight this fear of punishment like following Gilead’s harsh laws or failing to comply in general.

Citizens of Gilead are under constant surveillance and are subject to harsh punishments for disobedient behavior for the government to remain in complete control. Similar ideas, such as harsh military surveillance such as in “The Eyes of God,” and fear of being hanged to “The Wall,” mirror somewhat similar issues of surveillance in modern-day society. “The Eyes of God” are sworn-in spies in Gilead who enforce the rules of the government. The citizens of Gilead fear the government as they could be turned in by one of “The Eyes” and sentenced to death to “The Wall”. “The Wall” is used as another tactic to keep the country in constant fear, as if one of them misbehaves, they are used as an example to the rest of the country. The tactics used by the military such as the wall being used to create constant fear ultimately keep the  higher-up officials in absolute control. Fear keeps the community from going out of line and fighting back, exemplified in Gilead’s oppressive society. This behaviour of state surveillance and public punishment, such as extreme monitoring and censorship is found in countries such as China, where individuals are constantly being recorded under surveillance, online activity is tracked and logged, and citizens are commonly publicly shamed for critizing the Chinese government. Mirroring the Chinese government actions, rooted through uncertainty and perfectionism, Gilead utilized fear as a tool to keep control despite the harsh environment it put the country through.

At the heart of The Handmaid’s Tale is the brutal treatment and enslavement of women. In Gilead, women are reduced to their reproductive function, meaning in their society, women are only seen as a carrier of life while holding no other value. The normalization of the deprivation of women’s rights highlights the oppressive and totalitarian control that the government holds over its citizens. Additionally, their rights are stripped, and their autonomy is completely erased. Gilead’s government creates a hierarchy where men hold all power and women are subjected to rigid roles and harsh punishments for any and all disobedience. Offred and the other handmaids are forced to bear children for the higher class, while women in other roles of society are denied education, work, and the freedom of speech. Individuals who held no significance in the creation of Gilead were stripped of rights, power and identity. Offred is one of the many women who suffered through the horrors of personal rights and identity being taken away. She endures all the horrifying experiences that handmaids go through; losing her say, freedom, and entire identity to Gilead’s oppressive force. Serving as a symbol of hope and perseverance despite the discrimination towards women. Women in Gilead are stripped of their name and given names based on the men they are enslaved to. Reinforcing male ownership and loss of individuality. The reframing of these people allows for the numbing of the moral outrage of society and furthers the obedience and control on the other end.

The main issue that guides Gilead’s beliefs is the effort to preserve and improve the decreasing fertility rates. With reproductive rights under constant surveillance, handmaids are forced into pregnancy to save humanity from extinction through Gilead's strict laws and policies. “The Ceremony” is a ritualized rape misfortune to address the plummeting birth rates. With Gilead’s entire social structure made to increase the population, the ceremony is aimed to achieve this goal. This drastic and dehumanizing ritual implemented in their society underscored the severity of the fertility issue. The country relies on the idea that the value of a woman lies solely on her ability to reproduce, this reflects a terrifying reduction from identity and choice down to biological function. The Handmaid's Tale’s focus on fertility illustrates how powerful people in charge manipulate fears around infertility and population decline as a tool of control.

In The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood utilizes the themes of the oppression of women's rights, the dangers of absolute power, and the normalization of sexual assault to warn the next generation of totalitarian regimes through the significance of the loss of women's rights, how Gilead has complete control over the country, and the decrease of fertility rates.