U
se this discussion guide to inspire in-depth thinking, and jump-start a conversation about The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.  There’s plenty here to set your mental wheels in motion.

1. Why are the fertile women assigned to produce babies for Commanders and their wives called ‘Handmaids’?
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2. Why do Handmaids’ names change with each of their placements to reflect the Commander they’re assigned to, but Marthas have permanent individual names?
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3. Why are uniforms indicating everyone’s function in society required in Gilead?
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4. Handmaids wear red dresses and white bonnets that restrict their vision. What is the purpose of this color choice and style of dress?
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5. In the Historical Notes, one of the architects of Gilead is quoted as saying, “Our big mistake was teaching them to read. We won’t do that again.” Why is women being allowed to read considered dangerous to Gilead? And, what would being illiterate mean for future generations of women?
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6. Do the book burnings Offred speaks of signify what led to Gilead, or are they unrelated?
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7. Why is the Bible kept under lock and key in Gilead?
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8. Why are the Aunts the only women allowed to read and write?
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9. What is “gender treachery,” and how is such language an act of manipulation and control?
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10. What does the phrase nolite te bastardes carborundorum mean, and what significance does it have for Offred?

#Banned Books    #Fascist Buster    #On Censorship      #Published 1980s