Chapters 45 & 46
English Lit: Edexcel A Level The Handmaid's Tale, topic 9.1.23
Chapter 45 - Key Quotations
Here are three key quotations from Chapter 45:
"I may live"
- "She has died that I may live ... Unless this woman is lying"
- At first, Offred is relieved that Ofglen has seemingly not incriminated anyone.
- But she soon starts to worry that Ofglen is not actually dead and that there's no way of knowing if she's dead or alive.
- The idea of dying so that others can live references Jesus' sacrificial death to atone for the world's sins.
"I am abject"
- “I am abject. They can do what they like with me.”
- Offred knows that a tyrannical regime like Gilead can force its people to do anything because of their desperation to live.
- "Does she love him, after all?"
- Offred realises Serena Joy is also an exploited woman and victim of the regime.
Chapter 46 - Key Quotations
Here are three quotations from Chapter 46:
"Our misery... real name"
- "To put her out of her misery ... out of our misery"
- Offred sees parallels between hers and Serena Joy's dire lives.
- "My real name. Why should this mean anything?"
- Offred cherishes her "real name" as a way of keeping her identity. This cliffhanger ending means we don't know whether Nick has used Offred's real name to betray or save her.
"Darkness... the light"
- "And so I step up, into the darkness within, or else the light"
- Atwood ends on a dramatic cliffhanger. We are left to decide for ourselves whether Offred has met her end or found freedom.
Test yourself on Chapters 45 & 46
Who is Offred referring to when she says "our misery"?