Power and Control in Handmaids Tale

“It is easy to be tolerant of the principles of other people if you have none of your own.” Herbert Samuel Kinsey. Power and control. What is it? Power is a measurement of an entity's ability to control its environment. Control is to exercise restraint or direction over. So how are these two themes displayed in Margaret Atwood’s ‘The Handmaids Tale’ and James McTeigue’s ‘V for Vendetta?

In The Handmaid’s Tale power and control would be the two main themes of the novel. The power of language and the power over all the citizens. Gilead creates an official language that disregards and changes reality in order to serve the needs of the new society’s elite. Having made it illegal for women to hold jobs, Gilead creates a system of titles. While men are defined by their military rank, women are defined only by their gender roles as Wives, Handmaids, or Martha’s. Taking way their individual names takes away their individuality. Feminists and malformed babies are known by the terms “Unwomen” and “Unbabies.” There are set greetings for personal encounters, and not offering the correct greetings is will cause one to be marked with suspicion. Specially created terms define the rituals of Gilead, such as “Prayvaganzas,” “Salvagings,” and “Particicutions.” Gilead maintains its control over women’s bodies by maintaining control over names.

Power of the citizens is seen through the control of names and even clothing and the actions allowed to be carried out by the citizens. Martha’s must wear green, handmaids: red, black for Commanders and blue for the Wives. The restrictions of what one must do in the Gileadian society are strict. The compulsory attendance of Prayvaganza’s. Salvagings and particicutions are a part of this control. Another part of this control is who they can have sexual relations with. Handmaid’s must only have sexual interaction with the Commander in charge of her but often this rule is broken

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