If Serena Joy knew about Offred’s daughter all along

If Serena Joy knew about Offred’s daughter all along why didn’t she tell her? Why are women so cruel to one another if they are all suffering? Aunt Lydia said the goal of Gilead was to create camaraderie between women. Is it working? Is this a current societal issue? Do women keep other women down?

If Serena Joy knew about Offred’s daughter all along

For this essay, choose one of the topics below. Discuss thoroughly and completely, using The Handmaid’s Tale, our society, and outside sources to prove your position.

Essay Topics:
• If Serena Joy knew about Offred’s daughter all along why didn’t she tell her? Why are women so cruel to one another if they are all suffering? Aunt Lydia said the goal of Gilead was to create camaraderie between women. Is it working? Is this a current societal issue? Do women keep other women down?

• At Jezebel’s, the Commander states that men need a variety of women to be satisfied. If we believe this, then what is the point of marriage? Do you think Atwood is suggesting that all marriages include infidelity at least by the man? Are women exempt from this need? What else does this suggest about society (theirs and ours)?

Moira seems changed at the club after being caught.

What does this tell us about the ability to resist? How does this change how we think about resistance movements? When is it important to resist?

• The commander suggests that men in pre-Gilead lost the ability to feel because of feminism and the sexual revolution. They had no purpose. Is it an inborn instinct for men to protect women and for women to care for children? If yes, then what might this say about a woman as president, women in the military, or polygamist sects like the ones in Texas or Utah?

• What are some examples of where men are breaking the rules? How are men mistreated in this society? Does this relate to our world? Why is that significant?

• How are the eyes of Gilead like the eyes of God or Big Brother? Who watches us now? Think of how surveillance and the idea of surveillance has changed in the past 70 years. How does surveillance affect the novel? How will privacy change in the near future? Why is that important to our lives?

• Can you die from lack of love? Is freedom necessary for life?