In Margaret Attwood’s A Handmaids Tale, the focus of the Gilead’s regime is their attempt to have complete power of sex and any sense of sexuality within their government, and to attempt to manipulate society into a new bizarre form of sexual relations. The Gilead does not succeed, but eventually destroy itself. Their attempt to separate sex and sexuality only reveals their fear of and underestimation of the matter, ad I feel that this is a central theme throughout The Handmaids Tale. The separation of sex and sexuality in The Handmaids Tale is a governments battle against basic human instinct and desire, and is one of the many battles feminists have been fighting for years. A core aspect in this novel is the loss of female power and independence. One of the most crucial right s a woman can have is to choose what she does with her own body. This includes pregnancies, sex, and intimate relationships. This basic right is lost when the Gilead claims control over population increase, and therefore, the women in society. The are cherished for their ability to reproduce, but this obsession results in women being viewed as objects, as resources only to boost population numbers. The women in The Handmaids Tale were fighting their own feminist movement, however subtle their attacks.
Sex and power were both manipulated throughout the novel, resulting in a loss of rights and independence for females in society. Sex is a ceremonious thing in the Gilead society. The Reds are valued because of their hopefully optimal ovaries, and sex is manipulated into a patriotic duty. The loss of intimacy and love from the act of sex si what initially gives off a feeling of prostitution, yet in a world where this is the culture, it is viewed as just a nuisance every week or so. The separation of sex and sexuality results in the Reds becoming emotionally withdrawn, and confused by a desire to touch in a loving way. In our society today, this desire is what makes love such a sweet and innocent thing, simple touches and smiles cans et the tone for us to fall in love with someone. The Reds however, aren’t allowed to enjoy these basic pleasures. This desire is human instinct, and there is only so much control anyone can have over what is a natural born human desire. Today, sex is considered to be made better by love and a sense of intimacy. This is part of our nature, women especially, because we are driven by a maternal instinct to nuture and be taken care of as well. “Women view sex as a way to bond and appreciate one another… They desire an emotional closeness and intimacy, and they want to communicate at a deeper level.” (Metson) This can help to explain why the idea of Offred’s late night games and discussions felt natural to the reader, but are so taboo in the Gilead society. Offred is on her own emotional journey of realizing how it feels to be cared for again. When Offred realizes that something as simple as swaying her hips or moving in a certain sensual way, can attract the stares of the men in the community, she si embracing the lost art of being a sensual being, of expressing sexuality in a harmless manner. This is more exciting for her than the actual intercourse she frequently endures with the Commander. “Women derive pleasure from the things that follow up or lead to a sexual act - cuddling, tenderness, feeling connected, more so than they do the sex itself.” (Metson) The manipulation of sex and power create Attwoods own form of a futuristic feminist movement, because the women are born with the drive to be appreciated, t and t be loved. Being raised in a society where intimacy and appreciation of one another sexually are valued higher than actual intercourse, the idea that mindless sex partners is forced upon women, yet meaningful relationships are banned, seems impossible. The four main categories of events or feelings leading to sexual desire in women are: Romantic, Erotic, Status, and Emotional Bonding. Of the four, emotional bonding and feelings of romance have nearly triple increases in feelings of sexual desire in women today. Women are programmed to love, not just lust. The Gilead views intimacy as a sin, yet today we view consistent sex without an emotional bond as something to be ashamed of.
“Feminism comes from a French term - Feminsme, that is essentially the idea that gender is culturally, rather than biologically, created. This is the root of feminism as a concept.” Our own society has had numerous gender oppression. Women have fought to be considered as equals, to be able to have a fulfilling career, the relationship and sex life they chose, and tot be able to be their own person. One of the conflicting aspects in the Gilead society compared to our own was the idea that sex, and a pregnancy, weren’t at all a choice. There is no family planning, there is no birth control, there is no need. They strive to have as many babies as they can, they strive to reproduce as quickly as possible. No thought is put into the woman carrying the child, or the attachment they are supposed to form. Our own society promotes family planning, and any method of birth control possible. To get to this point however, numerous feminism rights activists had to push. The very idea of birth control, first announced in 1960, was shocking. It suddenly put women into a place of power, and into a sea of possibilities; they could enjoy sex without it resulting in a child, and without the approval of a man. “A woman did not need the consent of her sexual partner to take the pill to prevent conception.” (LaDuke) This outlook changed our society for forever. Being raised in the generations to follow, this concept of new female empowerment has created a generation that feels entitled to equal rights. We don’t view our rights as something we had to work for, we view them as rights we are born with.
With the development of feminism and of birth control, the idea of sex positive feminism formed. Sex positive feminism is focused on the idea that an essential part of a woman’s freedom is their right to a sexual freedom. It is a belief that “sex is a natural force that exists prior to social life and shapes institutions.” In today’s society, sex is no longer simply between a man and a woman in wedlock, in the hopes of creating a family unit. We have same sex relationships, we have single parents, we have married couples who choose to never have children. Sex has become more than a wifely duty, or creating a namesake. It is an act of love that we are raised to appreciate and enjoy. This belief, in turn, makes birth control and sexual identities crucial, as a baby resulting from every sexual encounter would leave our planet with much more than it could endure. The Gilead society terrifies their citizens with horror stories of doctors who brutally murdered infants and embryos, and women who were selfish in their lack of desire for a child. The idea of sex positive feminism would be one worthy of damnation in their world. (Sex Positive Feminism)
While the steps that women take to feel a sense of individuality and discover their own sexuality are minute, they are a battle being fought all the same. In a government where society is ruled completely from the top, and under constant surveillance, there is an instant isolation between individuals, due to fear of being turned in to authorities. The fact that some sort of sisterhood is formed and that the characters in the novel were able to bond at all is their own modern day feminist movement. Women are shown to have more intimate relationships than men, and to have a larger family unit of non blood relations. (Metson) This intimacy is one that the women in The Handsmaids Tale strive to create without being exposed to the government. The Handmaids Tale is an extreme, but it is a healthy one to read and discuss. Yes, we have our rights now, yes, we have fought for and earned the, but the fact remains that women are the very root of human existence, we have the power to create human life. This difference, while it should be cherished, it also a frightening separation between genders. To maintain our sense of self while bearing a significant amount of responsibility is a battle we are still fighting, whether it be with the numerous teen pregnancies we have today, or if in the future like Atwood predicted, we are in need of more births. However much responsibility women hold, we must not lose track of our own intimate needs and desires. The Reds in this book has those taken away, and had to start from a standpoint much lower than what women in our society have had to. They are attempting to fight the battle women have already once fought, the battle to be able to enjoy sex, and intimacies, to lead their own lives, and to be their own person. Having control over their sexual identities and what they do with their bodies is an aspect the Gilead have total control over in The Handmaids Tale, and that separation between sex and sexuality goes against our human nature as women.
No comments:
Post a Comment