Society And Government In The Handmaids Tale By Margaret...

As we examine today’s society and government, there are different aspects that may lead people to agree with or be against society and government. When compared to the Republic of Gilead in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, civilians had little to no freedoms and abided by extremely strict regulations. The Republic of Gilead divided individuals and forced them into completing tasks and working without giving them any choice. The handmaids were forced to have sex in order to bear children, while other individuals cooked and did chores. These were their only roles and if someone were to step out of line they would suffer severe consequences. This encouraged those in the Gilead society to have constant fear and caused their†¦show more content†¦They were able to gather public communication records from millions of Americans, as well as personal communication records (Electronic Frontier Foundation). Moreover, there are surveillance cameras plastered all over the streets, stores, schools, and several other public places. The cameras are mainly used for safety purposes, but that doesn’t defeat the idea that they may also be used to examine the public. Whenever civilians go out in public, the possibility of them being caught on camera is very high. This takes away from society’s privacy. Additionally, social media sites are consistently monitored by major government powers, including representatives from the federal government (Electronic Frontier Foundation). This is another example of the limited privacy society has due to government surveillance. While surveillance in the Republic of Gilead influenced fear into the public, surveillance influences the modern day public by causing individuals to alter their own behavior and inserts a sense of uneasiness into society. In the aspect of surveillance, it has been increased over the years. Due to this specific point, modern day society is inching closer to a Gilead-like society. Looking further into the Republic of Gilead, education is practically nonexistent for women, so severely to the extent that they weren’t even allowed to read or write. This placed the stigma onShow MoreRelatedThe Fine Line Between Harlot And Handmaiden907 Words   |  4 PagesHandmaiden Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale is a warning to the world that by classifying women by their fertility and stripping them of their rights, one can easily create a terrifying dystopia where all fabrics of society suffer the erosive consequences of female subjugation. Women have forever been classified by their fertility and by their class, which has given us such terms as baron, matronly, harlot, fertile, the help, and surrogates. 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