The Handmaid's Tale - General Conclusion Blog

This book made me realize some important things about my reading. I often read for plot and don't analyze the text enough. Before we started the propaganda activities, I didn't even realize that propaganda existed in the book. I also realize I don't ask enough questions while I'm reading. I seem to read through confusing parts hoping for an explanation soon after. If i don't find an explanation, I deem that part too confusing and move on. This, I now know, doesn't help me at all. If I don't understand something, I should mark it and ask questions until I understand it. Although there may be no answers to my questions, there can be some guesses I can make or deduce some answer from the feeling i get from the rest of the book. I also learned to pay attention to neologisms, which are words created by the author because those terms do not yet exist in our world. Neologisms give off a hint of what's truly important in the book and can help the reader understand the character development, setting, and plot even better.

The Handmaid's Tale (up to end of story) - Blog for 4/27

I felt that the conclusion of the book was weird. What did the Wife really want to do to Offred? Did she even have the power to do anything horrible, or just make her life miserable in the household? Was Nick really helping her at the end or was it just a scheme by the Eyes? Were the people from the black van really people from this secret "Mayday" community that helps the Handmaids out of tight situations? Where did Offred really go in the end? If the people on the black van were those who were helping the Handmaids, does this mean that Ofglen suicided on the wrong impression of a black van? There are so many questions left unanswered in this cliffhanger ending. (Is that what it's called?)

Overall, I was at first bored by the book, then disgusted after reading the really detailed parts about the Ceremony. But after reading more than half of the book, I finally grew used to their society and was interested, but only about their history and their future. Their daily life, to me, was still a bit too sad to handle. I really wished for some sort of happy ending. For example, the success of their resistance, Offred's meeting with Luke, or Offred's reunion with her daughter would have been a nice close to the story. I would rate this book an 8 out of 10.

Handmaid's Tale (up to Chapter 40) - Blog for 4/23

Now I'm getting confused about the story. I mean to an extent the novel is actually fairly clear right now as I have an idea of what happened, what is going on, and can even try to make some predictions of the future. But there are some key facts that I want to get clear. Did Offred fall in love with Nick? Did Moira really die trying to escape or rebel again?

These few chapters gave me emotional swings back and forth. I felt a kind of sadness for Offred when she found out from Moira that her mother was in the Colonies and was probably going to die sooner or later cleaning up radioactive waste and chemicals. I felt happy that Offred finally met Moira again after having separated all this time. I felt sad again when Offred tells us that she never saw Moira again after a few meetings.

But now i wonder. Has the Commander (Fred) fallen in love with Offred? If so, will he try to keep Offred in the household and not ship her off to some other place? How will the "love square" between Serena Joy, Fred, Nick, and Offred work out? I'm actually really surprised that I'm thinking about these things in a story with such a serious and tense mood... I really hope that there will be a happy ending.

The Handmaid's Tale (up to ch 31) - Early blog for 4/21

Up to this point in the novel, I think I've grown more accustomed to the society in Handmaid's Tale. Just like how I took a while to get used to the life in Gethen, I can now read about the events that occur in this book without getting too much of a shock. As I read on, however, I realize that there are a lot of illicit activities that go on despite the new rules. The Commander plays Scrabble and allows Offred to read magazines without his wife or the government knowing. The Wife is suggesting that Offred have a baby with some other man without her husband knowing. I found these secret exchanges to actually be quite ironic, funny even. Fred and Serena Joy each have something they are doing behind their spouse's back. I found it mean, however, that Serena knew about Offred's daughter's whereabouts and did not reveal to her a single clue. No one should keep a mother from seeing her own children; I feel that it's morally unjustified.

Nolite te Bastardes Carborundorum actually meant "don't let the bastards grind you down." While the Commander thought it was just a mere joke, I think that the previous Handmaid wrote the phrase for a different reason. It was probably meant for the next Handmaid, who ended up being Offred, to keep her spirits strong and not give in to the oppression of the female gender.

Handmaid's Tale (up to Ch 28) - Blog for 4/17/09

So we finally get an idea of what happened before the time the novel takes place. Apparently, there was a catastrophe in the United States in which the President and Congress were killed and the army declared a state of emergency. During this time of emergency, the army basically took over the country and deprived women of their employment and property rights. According to Offred, however, the army was at some point replaced with another one. I'm glad we finally get this background story because it makes the book and the current circumstances in their society easier to understand. I just learned in these last few chapters that the Wall was actually the gate into the university, which now serves as headquarters for the Eyes. I didn't understand what the paintings in the Library within the university meant. Death and Victory must have some of symbolic meaning that relates to the entire plot. Why does Offred say that they would not be destroyed by the current authority?

I also found the Soul Scroll "store" to be quite interesting. The five kinds of prayers that included death and sin was surprising because I thought this was a highly religious society. A store with a machine and no person inside sounds quite suspicious - what could be the significance of this place?

Blog Post - Handmaid's Tale for 4/15/09

After reading more chapters of the novel, I understand more about the society. Handmaids are truthfully women used in the book for purposes of giving birth to the next generation. What I disliked about the system was that despite the fact that the Handmaids are the ones who engage in "rituals" with the Commanders of the households, the Wives are always there with them. The Wives are also present when the Handmaids give birth, which I find a little bit awkward. The child that was born is given to the Household (the Commander and his Wife) - and that is my biggest dislike. I feel that no matter what the circumstances are, the child should not be separated from his or her birth mother. I feel that it's the only way to give the child the best care. The Wives, after all, can become envious, and secretly kill the children, (even though that is highly unlikely in their oppressive society.)

Quick question: Can anyone tell me what "in transition" is? Does it exist in our society, and is it an actual stage of pregnancy?

Other than that term, I found quite a bit of neologisms and play on words in these few chapters (21-23). I can't wait until our class wiki is finished, when we can use it as a glossary to lookup terms and concepts we are unfamiliar with.

The Handmaid's Tale: Chapters 1-17

In the beginning of The Handmaid's Tale, I only felt confusion as I read. I had no idea what was going on in the story and the jump from chapter one to chapter two was a bit sudden. As I read on, I slowly got more and more of the entire picture. After a few more chapters, I was able to ask questions like: "What are handmaids? What are "Marthas? Why has the United States become like this? What are the purposes of the different clothing styles, especially those of the handmaids?" So far I know I would not want to live in a society as theirs, with so many strict rules and enforcements thereof.

After reading the entire seventeen chapters, I understood what confused me primarily about this book: the structure. The main character or narrator, Offred, talks about life in her "present" but often gives sudden flashbacks. The life in her flashbacks is the United States we know and something must have happened that triggered a religious war, which resulted in the society we are currently reading about. When I finally got the answer to the purpose of the handmaids, I realized i was better off not knowing. They apparently are the childbearers of men and exist only for that "important" purpose, which is respected by all the other citizens and causes jealousy in the men's wives. Last but not least, the sexual "ceremony" in chapter sixteen was a bit too descriptive; I wish I had more warning before I got to that part. -_- I really hope there won't be parts as detailed later on in the book...

Reflections to "When It Changed"

At the beginning, I thought the story was going to be about some sort of journey or some kind of trip. But that actually had nothing to do with the main focus at all. The narrator of the story keeps mentioning "three duels" but I'm not too sure what it means. Can anyone please clarify for me?



As for my thoughts on the story, I primarily thought that this was a society that I was used to and considered "normal." Later, I realized the truth that gender is again the removed social construct as in The Left Hand of Darkness. I felt that it was strange to have a gender completely eliminated and nonexistent in a society. Apparently, the male gender died out for six hundred years and since then, the women renamed their planet in order to forget about the loss of the other gender. I find it somewhat strange to think about my gender dying out. I also understand that it would be even stranger to have a missing gender return after six centuries. Still, I guess as a male, I can't help but to see from a point of view that is similar to that of the men from Earth in the story. I can't see a society with only women, reproducing with other women, to be normal or natural. Actually, I never even thought that kind of reproduction ("merging of ova") was possible. But then again this is science-fiction we are talking about.

Reflections for 3/25/2009

It finally comes down to the 5th and possibly last blog for reflections on The Left Hand of Darkness and I actually feel like I'm going to miss both blogging and reading the book. I would certainly like to continue blogging in the future, but hopefully not every night. I felt sad that the book came to an end, though I didn't even really understand the ending. While we were discussing in class today, we came up with ideas as to what the ending really means. Some people said that it meant that Genly finally encountered someone (Estraven's son) who finally asked about Terrans and life on Earth. Others thought it connected to the Handaratta belief of ignorace is bliss, that ignorance has ended and questions started to arise.

This book has taught me many important lessons. The first and foremost of which is: "Don't judge a book by its cover, but most importantly, don't judge a book by its first few chapters." I remember hating the book when I first started to read it. I felt completely awkward reading about their kemmer cycles and gender fluidness. After a while, however, I got used to it and began to accept it as part of their society. I guess you could say I went through the same change of thought Genly experienced. In the end, I felt like the book was hard to put down. This lesson also has a figurative side. Genly's distrust in Estraven in the beginning was due to prejudice and first impressions. He should have taken time to understand Estraven more before he jumped to conclusions. I feel that everyone in the world should learn that lesson - get to know someone before you conclude anything about them.

Having read up to chapter 17, I have to say...

The book got quite interesting with all the escaping action, but somewhat died down a bit in the chapters I've read more recently. I find the topography of Gethen ever more interesting. I can't believe they have volcanoes, and active ones at that, in an icy cold planet in the midst of an Ice Age. I'm also amazed at the glacier (Gobrin Ice) that sits several thousand feet (was it?) above sea level. I've always imagined glaciers to be close to the level of the land around them, but never considered an area at which the glacier seems to be a wall or mountain itself.

One of the chapters I've most recently read, chapter sixteen, was also interesting for the comparisons between Earth and Gethen, and between the people that reside within each respective planet. I liked how the chapter was written in a journal entry form. Though it seemed to give more minute details, I felt that it gave me a different perspective of the story. I felt as though I were part of the story, side by side with Genly and Estraven as they travelled. I admit reading every single detail about their trip got boring and repetitive after a while (since Estraven just kept mentioning the weather and the travel conditions), but it was a nice change in point of view from somewhat being all-seeing to getting personal. Estraven even enters kemmer in the chapter, and I was certainly glad that he wasn't all over Genly like the Gethenian in the truck on the way to the Orgota farm. Estraven seemed to have control over his kemmer, despite the fact he admits that he gains a lot of spontaneity and starts to ask weird questions.

Chapter seventeen just seemed confusing to me. I wasn't too sure what the meaning behind it was except that it was probably a myth or story of how Gethen was created. The ending of the chapter seemed very pessimistic, however, with Edondurath's kemmering saying, "In the end when were are done, the sun will devour itself and shadow will eat light, and there will be nothing left but the ice and the darkness."

Reflections 3/13/09

Chapter Fourteen in The Left Hand of Darkness was amazing! It is undoubtedly my favorite chapter in the book so far. Estraven went through a lot of adventure and a lot of risks for Genly. I enjoyed reading about Estraven's plots and schemes, his fast thinking and reaction, and his willingness to sacrifice himself for Genly. While reading his actions, I was able to get a feeling of his strong friendship with Genly. I found it saddening and ironic, however, reading the part where Estraven tells Genly that he is the only person on Gethen who believed Genly, yet he was also the only person Genly completely distrusted. I was glad to see this distrust and misunderstanding slowly melt away in Genly; otherwise, all that Estraven did for him would have been pointless. In fact, I was so affected by this part of the chapter because I felt that this connected to myself a bit. Personally, I feel that sometimes I too take some risks for the benefit of my friends. Yet I have come to realize that sometimes no matter what I do for others, I could never gain their trust. Not only that, it seems the more I do for my friends, the more distant they become. For this, I have to say that I feel dumb and stupid. Yet when I ask myself if the risks I take for my friends are worth it, I tell myself "yes" every time. With this connection to my life in mind, I really hope that Genly starts to trust Estraven more and not let all that Estraven has done for him go to waste.

Reflections 3/9

As i continue reading the book, i feel more and more comfortable with the vocabulary and ideas. Although i still feel quite awkward when i read about things like their sex cycles, i can now take it as part of their culture and accept it. I feel extremely glad that while the author discusses the issue of gender quite a bit, she also goes into describing the two nations of Karhide and Orgoreyn. They seem more and more like two, at least different if not opposite, systems of government to me; Karhide seems to be becoming a dictatorship under Argaven's cousin Tibe while Orgoreyn has maintained a socialistic/communistic society. I could be just imagining things, but this difference in the societal systems makes the book extremely interesting and that much more captivating to me. I originally thought that the book was going to be about a single alien society with everything same and equal throughout, as with the gender issue.

I am also liking the mysterious effects the author creates. I can't help but to ask myself questions such as:
- Is Estraven really a traitor to Karhide?
- What is the real intent behind the Ekumen's uniting of mankind?
- Will Orgoreyn and Karhide accept Genly's proposal? Or will Genly have to return in another generation?

Although i am enjoying the book more and more, i am beginning to think that i need more time to digest the information. I am happy with the weekend assignments of reading 20+ pages over three days, but during weekdays, reading 25 pages or so in one night can sometimes leave some parts unclear. But i guess that's what the class discussions are for...

Reflections 3/1/09

In the beginning, when Ms. Aaland said that this book was going to contain certain activities between aliens [and humans] as in Bloodchild, I was shocked and disgusted. I was worried that i would not enjoy reading this book at all. But after reading the first few chapters, i learned that the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" really is true! I started to find the plot and setting very interesting. I liked the parts with flashbacks and historical stories that helped me understand the plot. The only thing i dont like while reading The Left Hand of Darkness is the Karhidian vocabulary and measuring systems (time, places, names, etc). They make the book more convoluted than it needs to be and confuses me while i am trying to read it.

I found that reading this book becomes more interesting if i imagine viewing the scenes with my own eyes, similar to what we had to do in class with the storyboard worksheet. While i read, i also try to imagine being in the characters' places and to imagine the courses of action they are going to take. It makes reading more interactive and less like a boring chore. Although i am not a big participant in class, I really hope that we can discuss the book more in detail so that i can get my classmates' points of view about the text and use it to add to or modify my own ideas. I have a feeling that will enhance my comprehension of any confusing parts/names in the book that tend to throw me off while i'm reading.