Saturday, November 9, 2013
Rebellion and Revolution
There will always be rebels in society, no matter how perfect it seems. There will always be a few individuals that want to create chaos or disobey the rules of society. Ofglen and her organization, for example. Or the Commander and his deliberate disobedience of the rules of Gilead by having Offred with him, creating a relationship with her, and by keeping forbidden objects. Ofglen and her organization want to overthrow Gilead, to create a good life for everyone. The Commander only does it for personal gain. Do you think the Commander does it for only his gain, or for the Handmaids that he sees as well? He does get them almost anything they want, and he gives them presents, usually things forbidden to them such as magazines and lotion, in Offred's case. Do you think that he would care if Offred was shipped to another house, or do you think he would do the same with the next Handmaid? Do you think that he genuinely cares for Offred? Ofglen's organization is very underground. Do you think that there are participants in all occupations in Gilead? Also, if you were a part of the society, and you were indoctrinated just as the rest of the country, would you rebel, or would you follow all of the rules?
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Everyone has some amount of rebellion in them. What makes us different is what triggers that rebellion. When people are unhappy with a society or situation, they tend to rebel. Most of the time, people do not rebel without reason. Rebellion can be considered bad or good depending on the situation. If many people feel rebellious towards the same cause, it could be the cause of a revolution. Our country was founded when the Colonialists rebelled against the British Government. While this rebellion may have been considered bad by the British and even some colonialists at the time, it is the cause of everything we now know and love. In the Handmaid's Tale, I believe that the Commander's rebellion cannot be considered good due to its lack of reason. Ofglen's rebellion seems to be for a good cause for the entire country. I believe that everyone of us would rebel against something for a good enough cause.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to define good and bad rebellion because everyone will always have a different opinion. Like with the American Revolution as an example, there were two very different opinions at the time: the Patriots and the Loyalists. Each side felt strongly about the side they were on and they both felt that it was the good cause. It broke apart friendships and even families when it came down to what one supported. The rebellion of the American Revolution seems to almost any american today that it was a good rebellion, but at the time it broke down so many people. That could never be a good thing to have so many people who should be working towards the same cause fighting against each other. In The Handmaid's Tale, the readers are sort of biased to think of Gilead as a bad society just because of Offred's opinions and views. The reader will most likely take the side with Ofglen in supporting the rebellion. It is so prominent to the audience that the rebellion would be a good thing that it is hard to look past and think about those who would be offended by it. Many inhabitants in Gilead most likely love living under that government and in that society where they are protected and given all that they would need. Some are solely satisfied with their physiological needs and do not feel the need to go further and obtain true love or deep relationships with people. There would be many members in Gilead who would be Loyalists to the society, just as there were Loyalists to the British Government in the time of the American Revolution. Either side taken, there will be conflict and battle to reach a new ground to stand on in compromise.
DeleteNo society could completely please every inhabitant in it. When some inhabitants in our country are not pleased with our president, they unfortunately may assassinate him. When inhabitants in this world are not pleased with the United States, they may unfortunately turn to terrorism to add their two cents. There is so much horror that could be caused from rebellion, but the rebels never stop to think past the gain for themselves. Rebellion is selfish. The commander is very selfish for making Offred meet with him individually. He is solely gaining personal perks and it is only for his own benefit. It does not give Offred anything except something to worry about. The rish of being caught is tremendous and the commander would not be reprimanded at all, Offred is the one who would have to face punishment. She would be sent to the Colonies, the commander would get assigned a new handmaid, and he would act the same way with her. He just has a need to be close with a woman, and he goes about it just like one would go about cheating in our society. He does it behind Serena Joy's back and uses objects to bribe Offred so to make sure she keeps coming back. His selfish ways of desire and rebellion against the proper way of Gilead will only hurt Offred in the long run.
ReplyDeleteIt is most likely those who have the greatest advantage in Gilead who remain loyal to it. The Commander, for example, loves the new society and thinks it is a great improvement from the previous society. It can be assumed that the Handmaids hate the new society and the positions they have in it; in the story, committing suicide was a common happening for Handmaids until all utensils were removed. If one feels power as well as security, they will be happy with their way of life. On the other hand, Handmaids must constantly bare the threat of being punished. The feeling of being trapped can erode one's emotions after a while.
DeleteI really like the point you took. The Commander feels like he needs to rebel in order to show he still has power. He is selfishly asking Offred to come meet with him just becasue he is bored and feels like rebeling. He knows what will happen to her if they are caught, and if he really cared about her he would not aske her to come any more.
DeleteThe Commander is a very self centered figure in Gilead's society. Much like a Lord, he has a much higher authority over many people in the society. He can control whatever he wants to in his own home and he will face no consequences for the rules he breaks. I think that his reoccurring visits with Offred are strictly for his own pleasure rather than for Offred's pleasure. If Offred were shipped to another house, he would seduce the next Handmaid with his trinkets and games. I tend to be a passive person. I hate conflict or breaking the rules. If I were placed in a society such as Gilead, I would most likely go along with it no matter how unhappy I was. I also tend to go with the crowd, however, so if my friends or the people around me decided to rebel, I most likely would too.
ReplyDeleteWhat you described for yourself I view as what many people would feel if they lived in Gilead. I could see a rebellion in Gilead being started by a few, and then moving to a hive mind, with more and more inhabitants following their friends and family as they rebel and take more steps toward freedom. I imagine the resistance would be small, until this happened, then the most resistance would come from the Handmaids and the lower classes of people.
DeleteI agree with you that The Commander just uses Offred. Some people just rebel for no reason at all. Some of us rebel for a larger cause. I think that all of us would rebel if we felt it necessary. This difference between us is what makes us all unique. Some of us would speak up another. Usually I tend to speak up when there is something I do not like when others just go along with what is happening.
DeleteI think that the Commander starts out using Offred, just as he would a regular handmaid. But, when they go to the club, he rents a hotel room and wants to have a romatic reationship with her. To me it seems that he grows fond of her as he spends more time with her. He is more willing to get her stuff and enjoys her company. Following all the rules would be harsh. We had an example of this at the beginning of the school year. We came back to find that all the rules were now to be enforced, when we had grown used to the relaxed enforcement. This seemed like a slap in the face, but now that the school year has continued the rules seem more reasonable. We got used to the new rules and no longer feel the need to rebel against them. Although, in the beginning, we were ready to hold a full protest.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Commander is becoming more relaxed with Offred and lets more rules slide. But, I don't think that Offred is special to him. She is just a way to please himself. He has to keep her happy if he wants her to keep his secret. As soon as the Eye finds out what he has been doing and takes Offred away, he will slowly convince the new Handmaid to break the rules with him. He makes the Handmaids feel special. This gives him a sense of power that grows each time he has an affair with a handmaid.
DeleteThe Commander enjoys the power he receives from rebelling. He is not the only one rebelling, he is also forcing Offred to rebel. Offred does not object to his offers so that implies that she is happy to rebel. I do not think that the Commander helps the Handmaid's rebel to benefit them. He does not care about any Handmaid in particular. I get the feeling that he cares while they are there, but he knows that he will get caught eventually and when the next Handmaid comes along, he will start the process all over again. The society that is set up has many opportunities for an individual to rebel. We see rebellion again with Ofglen. She rebels for a cause. She does not do it for her own personal gain. On the other hand, there is Serena Joy who tells Offred to have sex with Nick. She is rebelling against society for her own personal gain while she does not care what could happen to Offred or Nick if anyone found out.
ReplyDelete