Offred, from The Handmaid’s Tale, is in a world that is against her. She has to obey the rules and follow them perfectly unless she’s punished with death. But in recent chapters, the readers can see Offred getting along with the commander. This goes against the oppressive world, which says that women shouldn’t talk to the commander or even interact with them unless it’s at the ceremony. Even with these interactions with the commander, Offred can’t help but still feel lonely and confused about herself. The reader can especially see this during chapter 39, when Offred excuses herself to the hotel bathroom before having an intimate moment with the Commander. Offred stares at herself in the bathroom mirror and wonders, why am I here? She points out the way she looks that night, and it’s as if she feels yucky about herself. It’s an important moment to point out, as Offred feels out of place, not following the usual pattern of the system. Which is why I created a visual representation of this moment, to capture the emotions Offred carries.

My visual representation is of Offred standing in front of the mirror, with her eyes closed. She has her dress on, and the background is covered in shade. I decided to draw a target on her head, inspired by a previous art internet trend where they draw a target on an innocent figure, doomed to be dead by society. I also drew the sink because on page 254, Offred explains how she wants a toothbrush. I clearly wanted to represent in my drawing that there’s no toothbrush for Offred. She can’t be hygienic, even though she plays a crucial role in this system, yet she’s not allowed to take care of herself. My overall drawing is trying to capture how Offred has to be used as an object and be looked down upon, just because she’s a woman. If she doesn’t follow these rules and can’t give birth by a certain time, she is killed. Which is where the target symbol comes in, a target has been put on her the moment this dystopian world was formed. With no way to defend herself, Offred barely has any chance to escape this target on her. I also decided to make most of the background shaded dark because I wanted to represent how this is a sorrowful moment for Offred. It’s supposed to bring a negative tone to the moment, symbolizing that Offred isn’t happy. Especially as she’s about to have sex with the commander, a man she has no real connection with. One last detail I decided on was that Offred should have her eyes closed. As if she’s trying to hide from evil, trying to conceal the rest of her sanity the best she can. The viewer of my drawing can predict that she’s hiding from the commander, the system, death, or even from the ceremony. Offred wants to escape and feel what it means to live again, but this system won’t offer that. 

Offred’s emotions in this bathroom scene are significant to women's struggles, and I hope I captured that in my drawing. What Offred feels is real and deep. It’s something that readers shouldn’t ignore, as the events could be an insight into what’s going on in the real world. There are many moments in The Handmaid’s Tale that show Offred’s depressing world, and the bathroom scene is just a small example of it. 

                     A Woman’s Choice

The world is filled with unfair treatment between men and women. It’s shown in different ways. and some more than others. The Handmaid’s Tale is a book created by Margaret Atwood, and it does an excellent job of showing a dystopian society where there is oppression only for women. Throughout the book, our main character, Offred, has to suffer the consequences of a society failing her. A cruel world where women are allowed to be used and tossed around with no punishment. Many sections in this book acknowledge this issue, where Offred feels uncomfortable because a man is treating her differently. I decided to go with the moment when Offred is having her first doctor’s check-up. When randomly, the doctor asks her if she would like to get impregnated by him with no care in the world. This happens during chapter twelve, specifically these sentences, “It’s genuine, genuine sympathy; and yet he’s enjoying this, sympathy and all. His eyes are moist with compassion, his hand is moving on me, nervously and with impatience.”-Pg.61. This section tells a lot about the system operating in The Handmaid’s Tale and raises the question, How does a hierarchy that favors men affect the autonomy of a woman to make her own decisions?

When I myself was reading this section, with Offred at the doctor’s appointment, I was disgusted. I showed a clear moment that I was uncomfortable with the situation. Which is why I wanted to tackle this section, as it painfully shows an insight into true events that happen in the real world. In the section I selected, Offred can tell that the doctor’s actions aren’t based on sympathy or wanting to help; it’s pure lust. As the doctor is a man, he automatically has a higher ranking than Offred. He has the power over Offered, and he makes sure to use this hierarchy to his advantage. As the doctor asks Offred if she would like one of his sperm to have a higher chance of her being pregnant. This automatically creates a choice for Offred; the reader knows by now that women in this system aren’t necessarily supposed to make decisions like this. It creates a complicated position for Offred, as not being pregnant means death for women in this world. But in the section, it’s noticeable that the doctor is doing this for his own pleasure; it’s the word choice Atwood uses that reveals this, repeating the word sympathy to cover the doctor’s real intentions. Offred can tell that the doctor is enjoying his time towering over her, knowing that she can’t take on a hard decision like this. As this section alone can give away how men in this oppressed world affect a woman’s choice, there are many other quotes in The Handmaid’s Tale that can relate to this section.

The commander has one of the highest roles when it comes to the setup hierarchy in this book. They are men who get to roam around more freely than women. In the recent chapters the class has read, I noticed how the commander is soft around Offred. At some point, at the end of chapter twenty-three, he gives a choice to Offred, asking her, Will you kiss me? This is how it went: “Thank you,” he says. “For the game.” Then he says, “I want you to kiss me.” Fast forward to Offred’s response, “I think about how I could approach the Commander, to kiss him, here alone, and take off his jacket, as if to allow or invite something further, some approach to true love, and put my arms around him and slip the lever out from the sleeve and drive the sharp end into him suddenly, between his ribs.”-Pg.139/140. When I read this quote, I automatically thought back to the doctor scene because the theme of this choice is the opposite of the doctor’s section. But in the end, it’s still a man in the story with a bigger role in the hierarchy, affecting a woman’s options. The reason I thought this was because whatever choice Offred decided on, which she ended up kissing the Commander, it could lead to life or death. The Commander now holds a secret that he can spread if he wants to, most likely making Offred an unwoman. This can also go back to the doctor; he could also get Offred in trouble for bestowing a choice upon her. In the real world, women have more freedom and make their own choices. But in The Handmaid’s Tale, it plays out differently.

Offred is met with hard choices she has to make, or with the thought of wanting to make a choice. This moment with the doctor shows a world with sexism and misogyny. It reveals the true process of how this hierarchical world works and how women don’t have the freedom to naturally choose. As I will continue reading this book, I want to connect this deep critical question to every chapter I read. As it will allow me to truly understand Offred and her characteristics. While also showing me why the men have the power over her. Hopefully, in the future, Offred gets to be free.