Get Woke
Ashpreet Sahni
Professor Kathleen King
English 1A
21, September 2017
Dystopias
In today’s day and age, Americas politics have changed. New laws and pacts are being made in order to better us Americans. Politics is seen to be a high order place of knowledge about how a country should be run. What should and shouldn’t be acceptable in the nation. The easiest way to see how political power is being used is through social media. The world can now connect and see what politicians are doing in order to keep a country safe and in check. Politics are not the only thing that has people talking. Religion and religious beliefs have had a huge impact on American life. Many different religions have also shared their opinions about politics and how it should be handled. Environmentalist have spoken about how global warming is affecting the earth and how pollution has caused many diseases. Multiple dystopias being surfaced in our world. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, implies these beliefs in a variety of ways in the novel.
As of right now, the most active dystopian is politics. In other words, Donald J. Trump and his actions as President of The United States of America. There are many incidents where the President has been accused of sexual harassment, racist remarks, etc. There is a lot of evidence on President Trump that would have and should have changed his electoral votes. But how and why? How is it that with all of the evidence on Trump and his actions, he was elected president. President Trump has done many things that can change the laws in the US. This is similar to how the government in Gilead works. For instance, in Gilead, it is considered illegal to be gay. In the novel, there is a line that states, “The two others have purple placards hung around their neck: Gender Treachery”(Atwood 43). This line implies that it is considered illegal to be gay and that is punishable by death. Being illegal also means that it is against the law, similar to how Trump wanted to ban transgender americans from serving in the military. An article posted by The Atlantic, states that “ President Trump announced a ban on transgender Americans serving in the military.” This also implies that It is not illegal to fire an employee based on his or her sexual orientation under federal law. As of right now the law is not set, but has made legal arguments This relates to the Handmaid's Tale by having the the politicians make up what should and should not be allowed in country. Other political dystopias of 2017 are North Korea’s actions towards the US and how it may affect the US government’s response. Similar to how the the threat of war in Gilead has caused a nuclear war, only now leading to nuclear and biological warfares polluting most of the area and a decline in births.
Religion plays a big role in The Handmaid’s Tale as well. Specifically religious beliefs. In the Handmaid’s Tale, the government is controlled by the religion. All of Gilead’s political beliefs are based on The Bible. It is called The Christian Old Testament. A book that is followed by the state of Gilead. There are many biblical references in The Old Testament. In other words, references such as Gender Hierarchy which implies the story of Adam and Eve. Adam was born before Eve, so that means that men are seen to have more power than women do in Gilead.
In Gilead, there are many influences of the bible on the roles of citizens. For instance, the Commanders wives wear blue dresses to represent The Virgin Mary. Like the Virgin Mary, The Commanders wives believe they are granted a child from god through the Handmaids. The Marthas, for example, are the women who are infertile or older, and they work in the household of the Commanders. In the bible, the name Martha refers to the sister of Mary. The sisters had served Jesus rather than listen to his teachings. Similar to how the Martha’s in Gilead serve the Commander.
Religious symbols are also portrayed in the novel. In other words, biblical names are used to signify the roles of citizens in Gilead. For instance, the commanders of the faithful are high status men, The guardians of the faith are members of the police force, and angels are soldiers who fight the wars against other religions. The Handmaid’s are used for reproductive purposes. The Handmaid’s role is related to the story of Rachel and Leah, which is found in The Book Of Genesis. Even the dress code for the Handmaid’s stands as a religious symbol. Handmaid’s wear long red dresses and white wings in resemblance to nun’s. This is just some of the ways Gilead uses the bible as a method to control the people of Gilead.As if living by the bible is much more simple than being ruled by a government. Whatever is written in the bible, is seen as the law of Gilead.
Many things can affect the environment and global warming is one of them. Though we may not see it everyday in front of our eyes, it is truly happening. Global warming is when carbon dioxide (CO2) and other air pollutants and gases are collected in the atmosphere and absorb sunlight and solar radiation that have bounced off the earth’s surface. In the US, the burning of fossils fuels is the largest source of heat trapping pollution, producing about two billion tons of CO2 every year. As far is people know, the country is trying to cut down on the amount of fossil fuels being used in the country. In 2015, the US Environmental Agency pledged to, “reduce carbon pollution from our power plants by nearly a third Protection by 2030, relative to 2005 levels, through its Clean Power Plan”. The effects of global warming has given the US a decision about how the country needs to cut down on how much hydrofluorocarbons are being cut out from production around the world as well as incandescent light bulbs.
Cutting these out of production is helping the world by not having such a huge impact on global warming. Gilead’s environment is not so pretty. Gilead has become soaked with radiation and chemicals in the air and water. The cause of this is the use of nuclear weapons, pollution, and the irresponsibility of having to take care of the environment. There has been a decrease in birth rates, hence why Handmaid’s are the only ones who can reproduce. In the novel it states that the babies are born as “unbabies” or “shredders”. In other words the babies are born with deformities and are taken away to an unknown fate. The babies are born with these abnormalities because of the environmental conditions in Gilead. The commander only wants to keep those babies that are born perfect.
It is so rare that Handmaid’s who do have perfect healthy babies, their babies are known as “keepers”. The women who cannot reproduce are known as un women. The worst place for an un women is the colonies. The colonies are a toxic wasteland where the un women are either worked to death or they die from the pollution or radioactive waste. In the real world, there are similar aspects of how the environment has affected the birth rate in a country. In other words, people have been exposed to certain chemicals that have caused women to have birth defects. For instance, the bombing of Hiroshima had affected the way women were reproducing. In doing so, many babies were born with birth defects that have lasted there whole life.
The most common defects were cleft palate, additional fingers or toes, or a fusion of two or more fingers or toes. These were just some of the defects that had occured after the bombing of Hiroshima. The environment in the real world is similar to the environment in Gilead in a way. Although pollution is relevant in both worlds, the effects that the war left in Gilead are horrendous. The novel has stated how the pollution in the environment has caused birth defects. Pollution in our environment has caused many health effects such as lung cancer and respiratory infections. Most common is the outdoor air pollution and water pollution. The one thing we need to survive can also be the cause of our death. The long term exposure to polluted air can cause permanent health effects such as accelerated aging of lungs, loss of lung capacity and decreased lung function. As well as the development of diseases like asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, and possibly cancer.
Sociocultural factors are the values and customs that characterize a society or group. In other words, concepts about law, politics, material culture, values and attitudes. Many groups in America have created their own socio cultural groups. This includes the Militia in America. The Militia is a fighting unit established by the US Congress in 1792. As of today there are over 200 private militias in the US. Which means that laws prohibit the parading and exercising of armed private militias in public.
Gilead has its own sort of militia as well. As armed as the militia is, they are almost like the police force as well. Only thing is that “the eyes of the lord”, as they are called, help to maintain the order in Gilead. These secret police men are similar to the militia in the US in a few ways. The militia and the “eyes of the lord” are both established to maintain a state of order in the country. In, other words, to keep the commanders in check, so that no one takes any actions too far.
Economics in The Handmaid's tale is not so easy either. There is this horror of recognition in the novel that is deemed to be true. The future of the economy has changed in Gilead in such a way that the escaping characters try to get money from a bank machine and find access to their account has been denied. “I wait. I compose myself. Myself is a thing I must now compose, as one composes a speech. What I must present is a made thing, not something born”. This quote from the novel is significant by implying how women in Gilead have to not be seen. Women in Gilead who can reproduce, are simply there just to reproduce and nothing else. Women don’t have a say in why they are treated the way they are. Women in Gilead are stripped of their economic and political power. Even though the women still serve in Gilead, none of their work is recognized in the economy as helpful.
Economics is more than just “a simple formula of supply and demand”. It has to do with the social and political power relationships that affect our lives. The economics in America works in way where if the GDP growth rate decreases, the economy enters a recession. In other words, the market value of all goods and services declines. In doing so the economy starts to slow down. The only way to speed up the process again is by “allowing businesses to invest in new plant and equipment in order to lower their costs and be able to make larger profits on the lower prices that exist in a recession”. If women in Gilead are living a conservative lifestyle, Then the economy in Gilead is not being saved because less people are now being involved in the economy. In doing so, the economy has decreased and that is not very good. If the economy in Gilead was to strive and prosper, woman would need equal opportunities and the income would have to be distributed fairly amongst everyone.
Gilead is not so different from our own reality after all. Our world and Gilead have a few similarities about religion, politics, environment, economics, and socio-cultural. All of these dystopian element tie together. But people are blind to these realities. People would rather turn the other cheek and avoid fixing the issues. People tend to ignore these dystopias because people don’t want to see the negativity that is real in our world and fix the issue. People in today’s world are becoming just like those in Gilead. Becoming blind to the red flags in our country and around the world.
Professor Kathleen King
English 1A
21, September 2017
Dystopias
In today’s day and age, Americas politics have changed. New laws and pacts are being made in order to better us Americans. Politics is seen to be a high order place of knowledge about how a country should be run. What should and shouldn’t be acceptable in the nation. The easiest way to see how political power is being used is through social media. The world can now connect and see what politicians are doing in order to keep a country safe and in check. Politics are not the only thing that has people talking. Religion and religious beliefs have had a huge impact on American life. Many different religions have also shared their opinions about politics and how it should be handled. Environmentalist have spoken about how global warming is affecting the earth and how pollution has caused many diseases. Multiple dystopias being surfaced in our world. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, implies these beliefs in a variety of ways in the novel.
As of right now, the most active dystopian is politics. In other words, Donald J. Trump and his actions as President of The United States of America. There are many incidents where the President has been accused of sexual harassment, racist remarks, etc. There is a lot of evidence on President Trump that would have and should have changed his electoral votes. But how and why? How is it that with all of the evidence on Trump and his actions, he was elected president. President Trump has done many things that can change the laws in the US. This is similar to how the government in Gilead works. For instance, in Gilead, it is considered illegal to be gay. In the novel, there is a line that states, “The two others have purple placards hung around their neck: Gender Treachery”(Atwood 43). This line implies that it is considered illegal to be gay and that is punishable by death. Being illegal also means that it is against the law, similar to how Trump wanted to ban transgender americans from serving in the military. An article posted by The Atlantic, states that “ President Trump announced a ban on transgender Americans serving in the military.” This also implies that It is not illegal to fire an employee based on his or her sexual orientation under federal law. As of right now the law is not set, but has made legal arguments This relates to the Handmaid's Tale by having the the politicians make up what should and should not be allowed in country. Other political dystopias of 2017 are North Korea’s actions towards the US and how it may affect the US government’s response. Similar to how the the threat of war in Gilead has caused a nuclear war, only now leading to nuclear and biological warfares polluting most of the area and a decline in births.
Religion plays a big role in The Handmaid’s Tale as well. Specifically religious beliefs. In the Handmaid’s Tale, the government is controlled by the religion. All of Gilead’s political beliefs are based on The Bible. It is called The Christian Old Testament. A book that is followed by the state of Gilead. There are many biblical references in The Old Testament. In other words, references such as Gender Hierarchy which implies the story of Adam and Eve. Adam was born before Eve, so that means that men are seen to have more power than women do in Gilead.
In Gilead, there are many influences of the bible on the roles of citizens. For instance, the Commanders wives wear blue dresses to represent The Virgin Mary. Like the Virgin Mary, The Commanders wives believe they are granted a child from god through the Handmaids. The Marthas, for example, are the women who are infertile or older, and they work in the household of the Commanders. In the bible, the name Martha refers to the sister of Mary. The sisters had served Jesus rather than listen to his teachings. Similar to how the Martha’s in Gilead serve the Commander.
Religious symbols are also portrayed in the novel. In other words, biblical names are used to signify the roles of citizens in Gilead. For instance, the commanders of the faithful are high status men, The guardians of the faith are members of the police force, and angels are soldiers who fight the wars against other religions. The Handmaid’s are used for reproductive purposes. The Handmaid’s role is related to the story of Rachel and Leah, which is found in The Book Of Genesis. Even the dress code for the Handmaid’s stands as a religious symbol. Handmaid’s wear long red dresses and white wings in resemblance to nun’s. This is just some of the ways Gilead uses the bible as a method to control the people of Gilead.As if living by the bible is much more simple than being ruled by a government. Whatever is written in the bible, is seen as the law of Gilead.
Many things can affect the environment and global warming is one of them. Though we may not see it everyday in front of our eyes, it is truly happening. Global warming is when carbon dioxide (CO2) and other air pollutants and gases are collected in the atmosphere and absorb sunlight and solar radiation that have bounced off the earth’s surface. In the US, the burning of fossils fuels is the largest source of heat trapping pollution, producing about two billion tons of CO2 every year. As far is people know, the country is trying to cut down on the amount of fossil fuels being used in the country. In 2015, the US Environmental Agency pledged to, “reduce carbon pollution from our power plants by nearly a third Protection by 2030, relative to 2005 levels, through its Clean Power Plan”. The effects of global warming has given the US a decision about how the country needs to cut down on how much hydrofluorocarbons are being cut out from production around the world as well as incandescent light bulbs.
Cutting these out of production is helping the world by not having such a huge impact on global warming. Gilead’s environment is not so pretty. Gilead has become soaked with radiation and chemicals in the air and water. The cause of this is the use of nuclear weapons, pollution, and the irresponsibility of having to take care of the environment. There has been a decrease in birth rates, hence why Handmaid’s are the only ones who can reproduce. In the novel it states that the babies are born as “unbabies” or “shredders”. In other words the babies are born with deformities and are taken away to an unknown fate. The babies are born with these abnormalities because of the environmental conditions in Gilead. The commander only wants to keep those babies that are born perfect.
It is so rare that Handmaid’s who do have perfect healthy babies, their babies are known as “keepers”. The women who cannot reproduce are known as un women. The worst place for an un women is the colonies. The colonies are a toxic wasteland where the un women are either worked to death or they die from the pollution or radioactive waste. In the real world, there are similar aspects of how the environment has affected the birth rate in a country. In other words, people have been exposed to certain chemicals that have caused women to have birth defects. For instance, the bombing of Hiroshima had affected the way women were reproducing. In doing so, many babies were born with birth defects that have lasted there whole life.
The most common defects were cleft palate, additional fingers or toes, or a fusion of two or more fingers or toes. These were just some of the defects that had occured after the bombing of Hiroshima. The environment in the real world is similar to the environment in Gilead in a way. Although pollution is relevant in both worlds, the effects that the war left in Gilead are horrendous. The novel has stated how the pollution in the environment has caused birth defects. Pollution in our environment has caused many health effects such as lung cancer and respiratory infections. Most common is the outdoor air pollution and water pollution. The one thing we need to survive can also be the cause of our death. The long term exposure to polluted air can cause permanent health effects such as accelerated aging of lungs, loss of lung capacity and decreased lung function. As well as the development of diseases like asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, and possibly cancer.
Sociocultural factors are the values and customs that characterize a society or group. In other words, concepts about law, politics, material culture, values and attitudes. Many groups in America have created their own socio cultural groups. This includes the Militia in America. The Militia is a fighting unit established by the US Congress in 1792. As of today there are over 200 private militias in the US. Which means that laws prohibit the parading and exercising of armed private militias in public.
Gilead has its own sort of militia as well. As armed as the militia is, they are almost like the police force as well. Only thing is that “the eyes of the lord”, as they are called, help to maintain the order in Gilead. These secret police men are similar to the militia in the US in a few ways. The militia and the “eyes of the lord” are both established to maintain a state of order in the country. In, other words, to keep the commanders in check, so that no one takes any actions too far.
Economics in The Handmaid's tale is not so easy either. There is this horror of recognition in the novel that is deemed to be true. The future of the economy has changed in Gilead in such a way that the escaping characters try to get money from a bank machine and find access to their account has been denied. “I wait. I compose myself. Myself is a thing I must now compose, as one composes a speech. What I must present is a made thing, not something born”. This quote from the novel is significant by implying how women in Gilead have to not be seen. Women in Gilead who can reproduce, are simply there just to reproduce and nothing else. Women don’t have a say in why they are treated the way they are. Women in Gilead are stripped of their economic and political power. Even though the women still serve in Gilead, none of their work is recognized in the economy as helpful.
Economics is more than just “a simple formula of supply and demand”. It has to do with the social and political power relationships that affect our lives. The economics in America works in way where if the GDP growth rate decreases, the economy enters a recession. In other words, the market value of all goods and services declines. In doing so the economy starts to slow down. The only way to speed up the process again is by “allowing businesses to invest in new plant and equipment in order to lower their costs and be able to make larger profits on the lower prices that exist in a recession”. If women in Gilead are living a conservative lifestyle, Then the economy in Gilead is not being saved because less people are now being involved in the economy. In doing so, the economy has decreased and that is not very good. If the economy in Gilead was to strive and prosper, woman would need equal opportunities and the income would have to be distributed fairly amongst everyone.
Gilead is not so different from our own reality after all. Our world and Gilead have a few similarities about religion, politics, environment, economics, and socio-cultural. All of these dystopian element tie together. But people are blind to these realities. People would rather turn the other cheek and avoid fixing the issues. People tend to ignore these dystopias because people don’t want to see the negativity that is real in our world and fix the issue. People in today’s world are becoming just like those in Gilead. Becoming blind to the red flags in our country and around the world.
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