II Shopping: Chapter 2
Setting/Atmosphere: The narrator exposes the readers into the room that
she resides in as she refuses to call the room ‘hers.’ The plainness of the
room is a way of Atwood showing that this room is considered as the
standard even though it is anything but. It iterates that the handmaids are
treated as inferior- The simplicity of the room emphasises that the
handmaids' lives could be simple too as long as they conform to the rules of
their superiors; There is a contrast between the room and the commander’s
house as it is evident that the commander values luxurious assets and has a
very affluent lifestyle. The handmaids are beneath the commanders.
Narrative voice: The narrator seems to slightly challenge the rules as she
wants to converse with the Marthas and gossip about what is happening in
the house. The narrator truly longs for a different life, but she presents
herself as someone who is satisfied with being controlled by the superiors of
Gilead.
Summary: The narrator explains the contents in her room as she conveys
that anything that could potentially cause harm to them has been removed-
representation of Sadism: The superiors of Gilead just want the handmaids to
suffer, not die because in reality, even though the superiors view them as
weak and unimportant in society, it is evident that the handmaids are a
necessary part of society.
-The focus on the blue irises, watercolour and flowers serves as motifs that
will continue to recur throughout the narrator’s life as it means that the
narrator is experiencing growth and development as a person.
-The rubrication of red signifies the idea that the handmaids are sacrificing
their blood, sweat and tears for the pleasure of men as they are entrapped:
slowly bleeding out until they reach their demise.
-Leaving the room and walking down the stairs, focus on the narrator’s
reflection and the different colours assigned to the different positions of
people in the house.
-The narrator departs to the kitchen where she sees the Marthas, Cora and
Rita who evidently judge the handmaids work and shame them for their
lifestyles
Setting/Atmosphere: The narrator exposes the readers into the room that
she resides in as she refuses to call the room ‘hers.’ The plainness of the
room is a way of Atwood showing that this room is considered as the
standard even though it is anything but. It iterates that the handmaids are
treated as inferior- The simplicity of the room emphasises that the
handmaids' lives could be simple too as long as they conform to the rules of
their superiors; There is a contrast between the room and the commander’s
house as it is evident that the commander values luxurious assets and has a
very affluent lifestyle. The handmaids are beneath the commanders.
Narrative voice: The narrator seems to slightly challenge the rules as she
wants to converse with the Marthas and gossip about what is happening in
the house. The narrator truly longs for a different life, but she presents
herself as someone who is satisfied with being controlled by the superiors of
Gilead.
Summary: The narrator explains the contents in her room as she conveys
that anything that could potentially cause harm to them has been removed-
representation of Sadism: The superiors of Gilead just want the handmaids to
suffer, not die because in reality, even though the superiors view them as
weak and unimportant in society, it is evident that the handmaids are a
necessary part of society.
-The focus on the blue irises, watercolour and flowers serves as motifs that
will continue to recur throughout the narrator’s life as it means that the
narrator is experiencing growth and development as a person.
-The rubrication of red signifies the idea that the handmaids are sacrificing
their blood, sweat and tears for the pleasure of men as they are entrapped:
slowly bleeding out until they reach their demise.
-Leaving the room and walking down the stairs, focus on the narrator’s
reflection and the different colours assigned to the different positions of
people in the house.
-The narrator departs to the kitchen where she sees the Marthas, Cora and
Rita who evidently judge the handmaids work and shame them for their
lifestyles
