These two photos are from a park near my house. I took these photos because of the relation I noticed to The Handmaid’s Tale. When first looking at them, it may not look like they have much relation to the book. These two photos don’t represent a specific moment or scene from the book. Rather, they represent the whole book. The photos show freedom and privilege. Two things that Offred and the other handmaids don’t have in Gilead. If you take a deep look at the photos, you can notice a handful of ordinary things that women in Gilead don’t have. In the photo on the right, the first thing that I notice is the woman riding a bike in the right center of the frame. That alone is something that would get you in trouble in Gilead. All she is doing is outside by herself, but in Gilead, that is something that people wish they were able to do. If you look closer at that photo, you can see a man and a woman walking together behind the flowers. This is another basic thing that you don’t think about that wouldn’t be allowed in Gilead. Everywhere you look, you can see something that would get you in trouble if you were living in Gilead. You can see even more of this in the photo on the left. This is just a photo of an ordinary day on a playground, but if it were Gilead, none of this would be happening. The first thing I would like to point out in the photo is on the left, behind a light pole. There is a mother with two children in a stroller. The first thing is that she is allowed to have children that are hers, and she is allowed to keep them. She is also able to take them outside and spend time with them. Something that seems so simple, but isn’t allowed in Gilead. All of these things are things that Offred dreams about. She is constantly wishing for her old life back. She is always thinking about old things that we see every day and don’t even think twice about them. Something as simple as going for a bike ride or spending time with your kids is a luxury that Offred had been taken away from her. Offred is also thinking about her old family. Her daughter and Luke. She is thinking about the life she wanted with them, and what she wants is so simple. She just wants to have a normal life. Have a house and a family. “Luke and I used to walk together, sometimes, along these streets. We used to talk about buying a house like one of these, an old big house, fixing it up. We would have a garden, swings for the children. We would have children. Although we knew it wasn’t too likely we could ever afford it, it was something to talk about, a game for Sundays. Such freedom now seems almost weightless,”(23).

Sit Still Look Pretty, Daya: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdymkbLAuAk&list=RDIdymkbLAuAk&start_radio=1

When I saw this song title, it reminded me of what the Handmaid’s roles are. The Handmaid’s job is to have kids for the Commanders. If they aren’t able to do that, they get sent away. The unwoman who fights back against the system is what truly represents the lyrics to the song. In the song, it says, “But no, I’m never gonna be ‘cause I don’t wanna be, No, I don’t wanna sit still, look pretty.” The Unwoman didn’t want to just sit there and be used. They wanted to fight back. The lyrics also reminded me of Offred’s mother. Offred’s mother was a feminist who fought back against the system just like the lyrics to the song. Offred’s mother was even in a documentary that was shown to the handmaids.

Fake Love, Drake: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jz_01KVkOBI&list=RDjz_01KVkOBI&start_radio=1

“Fake Love” reminded me of the relationship between the Commanders and the Handmaids. Their relationship is very fake, and it is fake love during the ceremony. They have no actual relationship or feelings towards each other. The process in which the ceremony is done makes it even more fake because they have to follow specific rules. “Kissing is forbidden between us”(95). All of this causes the Commander’s wife to be upset because she wants to have her own kid. A lyric in the song represents this: “Whole time they wanna take my place.” The commander’s wife wants to have a kid that is actually hers, wanting to take Offred’s place, but only in that situation. Offred would also rather be in the Commander’s wife’s place. She would have more freedoms and have people around her that she loves instead of being all alone with many restrictions.

Good Days, SZA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BdlKkvjEgA&list=RD0BdlKkvjEgA&start_radio=1

“Good Days” made me think of what is going on in Offred’s head. Offred is constantly thinking about her old life. She keeps thinking about Luke and her child. Mentioning how she misses them and her old life. She also has memories involving her old friend Moira. “I dream that I get out of bed and walk across the room, not this room, and get out the door, not this door. I’m at home, one of my homes, and she’s running to meet me, in her small green nightgown with the sunflower on the front, her feet bare, and I pick her up and feel her arms and legs go around m,e and I begin to cry, because I know then that I’m not awake,”(109). Offred is constantly thinking about her old life or the “Good Days”. This lyric from the song sums up what Offred’s mind is like. “Still wanna try, still believe in (good days), good days, always Sunny inside. Good day, living in my mind.”

Love Yourz, J Cole: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tjlU4w4fSo&list=RD6tjlU4w4fSo&start_radio=1

“Love Yourz” also made me think about what is going on in Offred’s head, but in a different way from “Good Days”. As mentioned earlier, Offred is constantly thinking about Luke and her life before she was a Handmaid. She mentions that she is holding out hope that Luke is still alive and that she will see him again. “The things I believe can’t all be true, though one of them must be. But I believe in all of them, all three versions of Luke, at one and the same time,”(106). Offred has the same mindset for her friend Moira. In Chapter 21, she goes around asking for her. Offred holding out hope for her family and friends is the only way that she can look at her life positively. She is trying to love her life. Similar to the song which says: “No such thing as a life better than yours.”

Emotionally Scared, Lil Baby: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58I5UeOOhkE&list=RD58I5UeOOhkE&start_radio=1

“Emotionally Scared” made me think about how Offred feels. Offred doesn’t have anyone around her to talk to, and she is forced to live a life that she hates. She is always thinking about her old life in her memories. This causes her to miss it and get upset. She also does the same thing every day and is tired of it. She is even tired of her memories. “I’m too tired to go with this story. I’m too tired to think about where I am,”(129). Offred can’t even think about her old life fully because of how tired she is of everything. One lyric in this song made me think of this quote: “But I’m tired of being tired of being tired”. Offred is struggling emotionally, and she just wants to have someone to love. She is tired of her life and everything that is happening.

How hard is it to survive on your own?