Chapter 43

Chapter 43 - Summary and Key Quotations

After the 3 women are executed, Aunt Lydia orders the Handmaids to form a circle for a "Particicution", which is when the Handmaids all participate in the execution of a "supposed" offender.

The Guardian is killed

A Guardian, who has obviously been beaten badly beforehand, is brought forward.
Aunt Lydia announces to the waiting Handmaids that this man is guilty of raping a woman, who then became pregnant and the baby died.
The news of this outrage whips the Handmaids up into a frenzy. They are driven mad by their desire for a child and the alleged brutality of this man.
Aunt Lydia blows a whistle and sets the Handmaids on to the man, who is beaten to death by the women.

Ofglen's compassionate blow

Offred notices that Ofglen delivers an extremely vicious blow to the man's head. When she is speaking to her afterwards, she finds out that this is actually an act of compassion. Ofglen wanted to knock him out so he didn't suffer.
She says that he was actually a part of the May Day resistance party, and not a rapist. This is why Ofglen decides to try to reduce his suffering in his last moments.

"Tear, gorge... isn't Luke"

"I want to tear, gouge, rend"
- The hatred echoes the 'two-minute hate' in Orwell's 1984. Citizens are encouraged to hurl abuse at Goldstein, a scapegoat, so that they're too distracted to criticise the regime.
"It isn't Luke. But it could have been"
- Although Offred is initially roused to hatred, she soon realises that the victim is not just an anonymous figure to loathe, but a human being like Nick or Luke whom she cares for.

"An it"

"He has become an it"
- In chapter 30, Offred claimed that to murder something, you need to think of it as an 'it' instead of having actual living worth.

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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