Chapters 25 & 26
English Lit: Edexcel A Level The Handmaid's Tale, topic 9.1.13
Chapter 25 - Key Quotations
Here are six key quotations from Chapter 25:
Key quotations
- "...Egg, which could not be salvaged"
- The verb 'salvaged' foreshadows the Salvaging later on in the novel.
- "Snipping off the seed pods ... the swelling genitalia of the flowers"
- Serena Joy seems dangerous. She destroys the fertile flowers - ironic given she is infertile.
- "There is something subversive about this garden of Serena's”
- The garden symbolises an unrestrained environment.
Key quotations (cont.)
- "Saint Serena, on her knees, doing penance"
- "My tongue felt thick"
- Atwood implies that words can be sensual and conjure up images which Offred no longer experiences.
- "For him, I am only a whim"
- Offred is aware that the Commander doesn't respect her as an individual.
Chapter 26 - Key Quotations
Here are three quotations from Chapter 26:
Key quotations
- "I also felt guilty about her. I felt I was an intruder, in a territory that ought to have been hers.”
- Offred's guilt is about Serena Joy's position as the Wife during sex.
- "From the way I was speaking to him"
- Offred is breaking out of what has been a predominantly silent state up to this point.
Key quotations (cont.)
- "To him I am not merely empty"
- Offred's relationship with the Commander has changed drastically. She is regaining some self-worth and individuality.
Test yourself on Chapters 25 & 26
What's significant about Serena Joy "snipping off the seed pods" in Chapter 25?
What does this quotation suggest the Commander does NOT value?
"For him, I am only a whim"Complete the quotation:
"To him I am not merely ____"