Chapter 30

Chapter 30 - Summary and Key Quotations

Offred looks out of the window at night. She thinks about the fact that she finds Nick attractive but she knows she cannot do anything about it. She feels guilty because of her relationship with Luke.

Luke kills cat / getting caught

Offred thinks back to the time just before she and Luke tried to escape. Luke had to kill their cat because they couldn't take it with them.
Offred wonders who betrayed their confidence and told the authorities that they were leaving.
She also thinks that because it has been so long, she has forgotten the faces of some people who were close to her. She feels extreme guilt for this.

Offred prays

Offred prays to God - not for a baby like they were taught to in the Red Centre, but for forgiveness, support and escape, but she tells the reader that God is silent.

Key quotations

"One and one and one and one doesn't equal four. Each one remains unique"
- Offred believes in individuality, even though Gilead tries to get rid of individuality.
"They force you to kill, within yourself"
- This is similar to Orwell's 1984, where people face their greatest fears in Room 101 and denounce their loved ones because they're desperate to be spared.

Key quotations (cont.)

"The Eyes of God run all over the earth"
- The Eyes = Gilead's secret police.
- The quotation comes from Zechariah 4:10 - ‘the eyes of the Lord run to and fro through the whole earth'. The Commander has already used this phrase to signal that prayer is over.
"Hell we can make for ourselves"
- Offred knows that humans can make their own lives and others' lives Hell.

Key quotations (cont.)

"Deliver us from evil"
- Taken from the Lord's Prayer. The end of Chapter 30 is an adaptation of the Lord's Prayer.
- Does Offred mean 'don't let me consider suicide', or 'suicide would be the solution for escaping evil'?

1Author Background

1.1Margaret Atwood

1.1.1Margaret Atwood

2Chapter Summaries

2.1Chapter 1: Night I

2.1.1Chapter 1

2.2Chapters 2-6: Shopping II

2.2.1Chapter 2

2.2.2Chapter 3

2.2.3Chapter 4

2.2.4Chapter 5

2.2.5Chapter 6

2.3Chapter 7: Night II

2.3.1Chapter 7

2.4Chapters 8-12: Waiting Room IV

2.4.1Chapter 8

2.4.2Chapter 9

2.4.3Chapter 10

2.4.4Chapter 11

2.4.5Chapter 12

2.5Chapter 13: Nap V

2.5.1Chapter 13

2.6Chapters 14-17: Household VI

2.6.1Chapter 14

2.6.2Chapter 15

2.6.3Chapter 16

2.6.4Chapter 17

2.7Chapter 18: Night VII

2.7.1Chapter 18

2.8Chapters 19-23: Birth Day VIII

2.8.1Chapter 19

2.8.2Chapter 20

2.8.3Chapter 21

2.8.4Chapter 22

2.8.5Chapter 23

2.9Chapter 24: Night IX

2.9.1Chapter 24

2.10Chapters 25-29: Soul Scrolls X

2.10.1Chapter 25

2.10.2Chapter 26

2.10.3Chapter 27

2.10.4Chapter 28

2.10.5Chapter 29

2.11Chapter 30: Night XI

2.11.1Chapter 30

2.12Chapters 31-39: Jezebel's XII

2.12.1Chapter 31

2.12.2Chapter 32

2.12.3Chapter 33

2.12.4Chapter 34

2.12.5Chapter 35

2.12.6Chapter 36

2.12.7Chapter 37

2.12.8Chapter 38

2.12.9Chapter 39

2.13Chapter 40: Night XIII

2.13.1Chapter 40

2.14Chapters 41-45: Salvaging XIV

2.14.1Chapter 41

2.14.2Chapter 42

2.14.3Chapter 43

2.14.4Chapter 44

2.14.5Chapter 45

2.15Chapter 46: Night XV

2.15.1Chapter 46

2.16Historical Notes

2.16.1Historical Notes

3Dedications & Epigraph

3.1Dedications & Epigraph

3.1.1Dedications

3.1.2Epigraph

4Context

4.1Setting

4.1.1Setting

4.2Literary Context & Genre

4.2.1The Canterbury Tales & The Scarlet Letter

4.2.2Links to Dystopian Fiction

4.3Political Context

4.3.1Berlin & Iran

4.3.2The New Right in America

4.4Historical Context

4.4.1Puritan New England

4.5Parallels: Read World & Gilead

4.5.1The Underground Femaleroad

4.5.2Children of Ham & Soul Scrolls

4.5.3Offred's Tattoo, Salvaging & Illegal Abortions

4.5.4Unwomen, Colonies & Giving Away Offred's Daughter

4.6Religious Context

4.6.1Religious Context

5Narrative Structure & Literary Techniques

5.1Narrative Structure

5.1.1Narrative Structure

5.2Literary Techniques

5.2.1Literary Techniques

5.2.2Colour Symbolism

6Themes & Imagery

6.1Themes

6.1.1Survival & Language

6.1.2The Female Body

6.2Imagery

6.2.1The Garden & Doubles

7Characters

7.1Female Characters

7.1.1Offred & Moira

7.1.2Offred's Mother, Ofglen & Ofwarren

7.1.3Serena Joy & Aunt Lydia

7.2Male Characters

7.2.1The Commander

7.2.2Nick & Luke

8Readings

8.1Readings of The Handmaid's Tale

8.1.1Eco-Criticism

8.1.2Complacency

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