Hope in The Handmaid's Tale

Although Margaret Attwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale is a dystopian novel, its message is ultimately one of hope. Discuss with close reference to the text.

World Literature 5
Word Count: 1,121

Margaret Attwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale is widely regarded as a dystopian novel; presenting society in a distinctly negative light through its themes of oppression and human misery. Its heavily biased depiction of the Republic of Gilead is conveyed through the narrator Offred, who as a woman, has lost most of her rights, been torn away from her family and forced into an undesirable profession. But through such events, Attwood is able to highlight the most irrepressible of human emotions: hope. In the novel, hope is conveyed through the Mayday resistance, reflecting the fact that as a species, humans are resistant to change and will fight for what they believe in. Specifically for Offred, with written language banned, her discovery of a phrase etched into her wardrobe provides a piece of the past for her to hold on to, giving her strength to carry on. But despite these undertones of hope, the character Moira, who is initially presented as a catalyst for hope, is eventually forced into submission. This reflects that even though the message of the novel is the importance of hope in individual survival, ultimately hope does not prevail.

The nature of the human spirit is objectified through the Mayday resistance; their resilience against the oppression of the New Society inspire others, like Offred, not to give up hope for salvation. Attwood uses the Mayday Resistance to demonstrate the innate and universal nature of hope. After learning of the existence of the resistance, Offred states, “There is an us then, there’s a we. I knew it.” (pg. 177) Her conviction when speaking of the group implies that although she presents herself in a very reserved and compliant manner, hope has always been resonating in her, allowing her to continue on despite the hardships. Emphasising the fact that humans are, by nature, optimistic, always striving for the best, even when it is considered unattainable.
By having a resistance movement in the story, Attwood insinuates that it is through adversity, where hope thrives. As Offred puts it, “There can be no light without shadow; or rather, no shadow without light. There must be a resistance…” (pg. 115) Attwood likens hope to light, a fitting metaphor, as light is often perceived as the bringer of life, a constant occurrence, reflecting the resilience of the human spirit. But it also implies that light and darkness cannot exist without each other; that although adversity is a catalyst for hope, too much hope can be a catalyst for adversity.

For Offred, hope is also presented in the form of unsanctioned written word; its existence is representative of the ever-adapting nature of the human way of life, giving Offred hope that her situation may not always remain bleak. Offred discovers the phrase ‘Nolite te bastardes carborundorum’ etched into the floor of the wardrobe and despite not understanding its literal meaning, draws strength from it, stating, “I pray silently: Nolite te bastardes carborundorum. I don’t know what it means but it sounds right…” (pg. 101) The power of the phrase lies in its ambiguity; in a time when women were discouraged from independent thinking, it allowed her to access her imagination, the part of her that had been supressed by the regime. Attwood draws from aspects of Offred’s past - things that once were - to remind her of how quickly things can change, that with time her life could be different. Offred further states, “It pleases me to think I’m communing with her [the handmaid who wrote the phrase] … sometimes I repeat the words to myself. They give me small joy. (pg. 62) As the story takes place in a society in where women have been banned from using the written language, the fact that Offred has found something to read offers her a reminder of the life she once lived. Thus giving her something of the past that she can hold on to, something that can fuel her hope for the future. But this hope is ultimately crushed when she finds out the meaning of the phrase; it becomes “neither prayer nor command, but a sad graffiti scrawled once, abandoned.” (pg. 196) Here, Attwood enforces the notion that using ones imagination as wish fulfilment is not a sufficient instigator of hope, as hope does little to bring about change.

While Moira was initially presented as a beacon of hope and defiance, her inability to escape the confines of society ultimately reflect the insignificance of hope in a regime like Gilead. Moira was the embodiment of the narrator’s inner musing - rebellious and full of courage - someone that Offred lived vicariously through. She states that, “… Moira was our fantasy… she was the lava beneath the crust of daily life. In the light of Moira, the Aunts were less fearsome and more absurd” (pg. 143) Moira epitomises what society was trying to supress. She was the reactionary with the power to inspire others; the fact that she was able to escape from the Centre, made the Republic seem less intimidating in the eyes of the women at the centre with their power no longer seeming absolute. But ultimately, Offred’s ability to draw hope from Moira’s defiance is lost after discovering that her friend has succumbed to the system. She states, “… What I hear in her voice is a lack of volition. And how can I expect her to go on, with my idea of courage, live through it, act it out, when I myself do not?” (pg. 61). Thus suggesting that in an oppressive society such as Gilead, hope will give you the strength to allow you to survive – to get through the day – but will do nothing to fix the problem at hand. Therefore, hope is futile and will eventually be crushed by the system.

So while the theme of hope dominates the novel through the Mayday Resistance, reappearance of the written language and Moira, its message is not of the infallibility of hope. Through the Mayday Resistance, Attwood is able to characterise the resilience of the human spirit: the unwillingness to live with the unjust and inspire others to never give up hope. With women prohibited from the written language, Offred’s discovery of a phrase engraved in her wardrobe, reminds her of the past as well as the potential for the future, but this hope is soon lost. The idea of lost hope is also demonstrated through Moira, who was an embodiment of rebellion for the narrator but ultimately falls pray to the regime, succumbing to society just like everyone else. Thus reinforcing the idea that the novel’s message is ultimately of the fleeting nature of hope and that though crucial for survival, will inevitably be lost - subdued by the regime.