Then and Now

      In “The Handmaid’s Tale”, our main character has gone through a lot so far. Her past is vastly different than her present story. All things seem to be normal until the war happened. After, our main character and others become handmaids. They are in other words maids for the wealthy families. These two opposite sides give a view as to who “she” was and what she has become as well as the world around her.
      In the beginning of the book, our main character is describing the setting. She is in a gymnasium and telling what used to happen in there. She begins talking about the basketball games and dances that took place in there and the smell of sweat. She then speaks of how the world has changed and the gym has now become a containment facility. The handmaids are held here and around the perimeter of the facility, there are the guardians who guard everyone inside as well as the aunts who are making sure no one talks to each other. As the story goes along, our main character glimpses into the past. Before, she had a significant other named Luke. Unfortunately for her, Luke loved his previous wife more than her and began having an affair with her. She also speaks of a woman who she remembers seeing on tv when she was younger. This memory becomes very important later in the story. These things that are mentioned about the past which are very important to the reader to see what happened and how it has changed.
      Our narrator, who we learn her name is Offred, has been recruited as a handmaid by a household. When she arrives, she recognizes the woman who open the door for her. When she finally realizes who it is, she thinks to herself that it was the woman who I saw on the TV all those years. Her name was Serena Joy. She was the Commander’s wife. She is very stiff and strict. She doesn’t allow her to call her ma’am and bosses her around. Offred resides in a room that is pretty much “everything proof”. There is no glass in the picture frames to prevent her from cutting her wrists, no chandelier to stop her from hanging herself and the glass in the window is shatter proof, to stop her from escaping. When walking to town, she must walk with another handmaid. She is not allowed to talk to men and has one purpose, to have sex with the commander and have a child for the family. Most of these points are based around control. This book seems to be based around control so far.
      Getting a sight of the present and the future gives some perspective on how life worked and works for Offred. In the present, control seems to be huge. Seeing the differences of the them gives two very different perspectives of our narrator’s life.