3.1.2

Epigraph

Test yourself

Epigraphs in The Handmaid's Tale

Atwood chooses three epigraphs that introduce many themes and ideas.

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Genesis 30: 1-3

  • And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children or else I die. And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said Am I in God's stead who have withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her".
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Genesis 30: 1-3 analysed

  • This quotation clearly inspired the Ceremony that takes place in the novel between the Commander, Offred and Serena Joy.
  • It also shows how a theocracy like Gilead can use scripture to enforce practices like the Ceremony.
  • You could interpret this quotation as objectifying women as just sexual and reproductive figures in society.
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Jonathan Swift

  • But as to myself, having been wearied out for many years with offering vain, idle, visionary thoughts, and at length, utterly despairing of success, I fortunately fell upon this proposal… (Jonathon Swift, A Modest Proposal, 1729)
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Swift quotation analysed

  • Swift was an Irish writer and satirist who wrote the essay A Modest Proposal to address the poor living conditions for Irish people.
  • He satirically put forward ideas like:
    • using cannibalism to solve hunger
    • treating children and women like animals.
  • Atwood is suggesting that The Handmaid's Tale has a satirical thread and that the ideas in it point to wider problems in society.
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Sufi proverb

  • In the desert there is no sign that says, Thou shalt not eat stones.
    • This quotation seems more ambiguous than the other two in terms of its relevance to the novel. There can be many interpretations: one could be that human survival is an instinct that needs no instruction. It could also be read as a satirical comment on the world of Gilead, where rules are strictly enforced, even for aspects of human life like conversation, socialising and sex.
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Workman on the Sufi proverb

  • Critic Nancy Workman interprets this quotation as referencing Sufi mysticism.
    • Offred displays Sufi mystic characteristics by developing an inner sense of spirituality which is at odds with the repressive theocracy of Gilead.
  • The quotation could refer to:
    • Offred exploring the powerful relationship between language and power
    • A regime like Gilead playing upon the interchange between language, power and interpretation.

Jump to other topics

1Author Background

1.1Margaret Atwood

2Chapter Summaries

3Dedications & Epigraph

3.1Dedications & Epigraph

4Context

5Narrative Structure & Literary Techniques

6Themes & Imagery

7Characters

8Readings

8.1Readings of The Handmaid's Tale

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