Chapter 28
English Lit: Edexcel A Level The Handmaid's Tale, topic 2.10.4
Chapter 28 - Summary
Offred opens the chapter by thinking about different moments in her life, like talking to Moira and having a job. Through these small moments in her life, she recalls how Gilead was created.
Army takes control
- Offred remembers that all the members of Congress were killed and the blame was placed on Islamic terrorists, meaning that the Army took over control of the area and identity cards and checkpoints were created.
- Then women were forced out of their jobs and were not allowed to have their own money. They had to rely on their husbands' salaries.
- Offred remembers being rounded up by armed men at work and marched out of her office.
Offred's conversation with Luke
- Offred remembers the awkward conversation she had with Luke who said he would look after her and "not to worry".
- This made Offred wonder if he was enjoying this newfound patriarchal power.
Nick signals her meeting
- Time flashes forward to the present. Offred looks out of the window and sees Nick next to the car with his hat on at an angle. This is a sign the Commander wants to see her again.
- Offred ends the chapter by worrying about what Nick thinks of her secret relationship with the Commander and if he benefits from the situation.
Chapter 28 - Key Quotations
Here are five key quotations from Chapter 28:
"Moira... sadly mistaken"
- “If Moira thought she could create Utopia by shutting herself up in a women-only enclave she was sadly mistaken. Men were not just going to go away, I said. You couldn't just ignore them.”
- Atwood implies that feminism is not a simple issue.
- This comment is ironic. Moira is later confined to Jezebel's - "a women-only enclave" that's actually a state-run brothel operating purely to please powerful men.
"Under control...do a jobbie"
- “Keep calm, they said on television. Everything is under control"
- This is a pun. The phrase either means 'everything is now OK' or 'those in power are clamping down on things'.
- Having a job ... do a jobbie ... the Book of Job"
- A play on words. Offred belittles the significance of work by linking "having a job" to going to the toilet.
- Job suffers in the Old Testament. So the second pun brings in the idea of undue suffering.
"Ceremonious... I am his"
- I wanted from her a life more ceremonious"
- Offred wished her mother had had a more conventional life instead of protesting. The word "ceremonious" is ironic given the Handmaids have to take part in monthly Ceremonies.
- "Instead, I am his"
- Offred says the nature of relationships change when partners don't have equal choice. She doesn't like the thought of Luke possibly having enjoyed having power over her.
Test yourself on Chapter 28
Who was blamed for the killing of members of Congress before Gilead was created?
What does Luke say to Offred after she is forced out of her job?