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.
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I was surprised to find that the Handmaid’s purpose was to give birth to the next generation too. That’s not the only thing they do though. They go shopping for the household’s groceries. I also found it awkward that the Wives stood next to the Commander and the Handmaid while they were in their “rituals”. I think it’s not right for the Wives to be there during the “ritual” because I’m sure it takes away the feeling of a mother from the Handmaid. It is unfair that the baby goes to the Commander and Wife and not to the Handmaid. The Handmaids have to breast feed the child for the required breast-feeding period. Still, the child should stay with the mother to have the best care.
ReplyDeleteTransition is part of childbirth. The definition from answers.com is: A period during childbirth that precedes the expulsive phase of labor, characterized by strong uterine contractions and nearly complete cervical dilation. The wiki did help me understand some terms and concepts better.