Sexual Abuse in ‘The Handmaids Tale’ by Margaret Atwood
Sexual abuse and harassment is an everyday experience for every woman. It has come to be accepted as a norm in the society and instances of sexual harassment go unreported, which has contributed to increased sexual abuse with time. Almost every women experiences sexual harassment everyday as they go around their normal routines. The situation is worse for women who are below 30 years. Men especially those in power take advantage of women that are vulnerable and abuse them sexually without any fear, which has created a culture of rape and sexual abuse in the society. The actions of men taking advantage vulnerable women sexually have become a normalized concept, a good illustration being with the Harvey Weinstein case. Weinstein took advantage of women in the film industry for years all because he had the power to make their dreams come true. The women were too scared to tell their story because of how the society would look at them and interpret their stories, something that the #MeToo movement has helped change. Sexual abuse is a concept that is explored by Margaret Atwood in ‘The Handmaids Tale, this research paper will explore this concept to understand the role that society plays in motivating sexual abuse on women. The role that the #MeToo movement has played in helping to change the issue of sexual abuse in relation to Harvey Weinstein case will also be analysed.
Patriarchal society of Gilead
‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ is a novel that takes place in a society that can best be described to be dystopian future. This is a time when the United States has transformed to become a Gilead, a society where women have no rights at all (Diemer et al., p 42). Radiation has affected fertility of many women causing them to be sterile, which has caused the Gilead elite society appoints the few women that are able to bear children to become hands maids by force as a quest to try and repopulate the nation (Beauchamp, p 14). Gilead is a society where men are given power over the women; they mistreat and sexually abuse them without any remorse or shame (Beauchamp, p 18). The way that the handmaids are treated as sexslaves by their commander’s is just as similar with the Harvey Weinstein’s case.
The role of society in encouraging sexual violence
Sexual violence in the novel is a result of creating and forming gender, creating an environment where women are preyed upon, raped and sexually assaulted. Being a woman is not something that is decided by the women, but rather by the totalitarian rule and society controlled by men (Diemer et al., p 46). Offred the main protagonist in the novel and the other handmaids are systematically raped by their commanders on behalf of the Gilead society during the monthly ceremonies. During the ceremonies, the commander reads a bible passage to Offred, his wife and the two aunts of the household who take care of the handmaids. As they gather around the commander, he says to them that he looks over them ‘as if taking inventory’, an illustration of the power that he holds over them (Atwood, p 86). For Offred to bear with the ceremony she has to be taken out of mind and also out of place, she has to let go of her consciousness just as if she is asleep, illustrating the fact that the sex was not in any way consensual. Her situation is just as similar to rape in that most of the times people who get rape are normally unconscious and hence in consensual.
The way that the ceremony transpires is an illustration of sexual abuse on the handmaids. Offred for one is fully dressed except for her underwear, she lies between the legs of the commander’s wife, and her head rests on the wife’s stomach. The wife just like the handmaid is fully dressed, the women being fully dressed is a stimulation of a typical rape scenario. Rape victims are often grabbed fully dressed by men on the streets and get raped. The fact that Offred’s arms are raised during the ceremony in Gilead society signifies that the two women are ‘one flesh, one being’ (Atwood, p 94). this interpretation is however wrong, what it really means is that Offred is not in control, Serena helps her husband to rape Offred by holding her in place. Offred constantly argue that this is not rape because it is the choice that she made, she sees two choices in the oppressive system; forced labour r forced sex. She hence party blames herself for her situation because it is what she chose, she thinks that she has control over her fate (Diemer et al., p 47). Offred thinking is however wrong, what she perceives to be a choice is not because her only other option was to be sent away to live with the unwomen cleaning up toxic waste. something else that points this to be an act of rape is the way that Offred not only wishes that he would hurry up and finish, but also her constant desire for therapy to help her get over the abuse. Offred constantly illustrate that the sex had nothing to do with passion, love or romance; there was no sexual desire especially for her (Atwood, p 94). As she turns to leave the room after the ceremony, Serena clenches her legs together a stimulation of the body language of a rape victim. Her behaviour is an illustration of her sympathising with Offred and what she has to endure, an indication that the ceremony was just a systematic rape.
Interactional perspective of gender
Sexual assault on Offred does not only happen when she is raped by the commander during the ceremony. For one becoming a handmaid, she had to be physically healthy and she had to go through obligatory monthly medical check-ups (Tolan, p 14). Offred describes the examination by the doctor as sexual assault and abuse, she is ‘poked and prodded’ (Atwood, p 60). He touches her inappropriately telling her that ‘ I could help you…I have helped others’ (Atwood, p 61). The doctor in this case just like the men in power in Gilead society believes that he has power over women like Offred and can take advantage of her any time. Taking advantage of the handmaids is something that the doctor has been doing for years and this is why he is not scared of touching Offred sexually without even her approval.
The situation with the doctor is a good illustration of how men in power are willing to take advantage of the needs of the women below them to sexually abuse them. The doctor preys on the handmaids desire to get pregnant to persuade them to have sex with him. He tries to convince Offred to accept his proposal by telling her that her commander is not capable of getting her pregnant (Atwood, p 61). He does this knowing very well that her getting pregnant was the only way that she would be able to survive the new regime. The main interest of the doctor is not to help her survive the regime; it is to feed his sexual desire (Wharton, p 34). Though Offred is offended and did not give in to his advances, she has to thank him at the end of the session to leave the impression that she was not in any way offended (Atwood, p 61).
The behaviour of the doctor in pursing and violating Offred can best be defined from an interactional perspective on gender. These are the gender expectations that the society has on women and particularly the handmaids that have no power or rights and thus very easy sex prey for the men around them (Diemer et al., p 50). The fact that the women are stripped of their names also greatly contributes to the sexual abuse that they endure in this society. They are looked at as property of the commanders rather than individuals with rights and human feelings (Chapman, p 122). The rape and sexual assault that these women go through is not looked at as criminal offences on the women, they are only looked at in the view of someone taking another person’s property. The doctor is not scared of sexually assaulting the handmaids because he does not see it as a crime; his only fear is getting caught by the commander with is property (Chapman, p 128). The Gilead society hence does not see the sexual abuse on the women, because this is something that has become the norm and the handmaids are looked at as sexual tools for the men in power to take advantage of.
Gender socialization
Gender socialization is a theory within the individualistic perspective that attempts to understand the role that society plays in shaping gendered qualities and characteristics. Gender socialization can best be defined to be a two sided coin where there is the target of socialization (Neuman, p 857). This theory is relevant to the handmaids who have been introduced to a new society that has new rules and has different expectations from them as women. Janine shared her story of how she was gang raped at 14 years and the Aunts and the handmaid instead for comforting her, blame her telling her it was her fault that she was raped (Atwood, p 72). The reaction of the Aunts and the handmaids to Janine’s story is a clear illustration of the undeniable concept of rape in the novel. The Aunts and the Gilead system is trying to brainwash the concepts of rape causing the handmaids to think that what happens to them is their fault because they could have stopped it of they did not want it (Tolan, p 18). The brainwashing causes fear among the handmaids and it further creates room for sexual assault on them.
‘Me Too’ movement and the Harvey Weinstein Case
‘The Handmaids Tale’ has helped to shape the concepts of sexual abuse on women in the contemporary society. The novel has helped the society the issue of women objectification and the overt sexualisation of the female body (Radford, p 1). Women have for years been objectified in advertisements and general media, which undercuts their feelings of safety and self-worth and this has led to increased sexual abuse. ‘The Handmaids Tale’ has become a motivation for the #MeToo movement that was started more than ten years ago with the aim of encouraging sexual violence survivors. The movement main aim is to help support the victims of sexual abuse and to allow them to know that people understand their situations (North, p 1). The aim of this movement is to create change in a society where sexual abuse has become a normal thing and no one seems to care about the issue.
The allegations against Harvey Weinstein really transformed the #MeToo movement, it has helped the role of his organization to be understood much better. Women that were victims of sexual abuse by Weinstein have used the movement to share their stories and justice has been served for the victims (North, p 1). #MeToo movement has motivated change among Americans; the society has become aware of sexual abuse happening to women most especially in their work places. ‘The Handmaids Tale’ has further helped the society understand the issue of sexual abuse and power and its effects on the victims. Men in power as referenced in Weinstein case and in the novel are the main perpetrators of sexual abuse on women who are always scared, and who assume that there is nothing they can do about the abuse. The #MeToo movement has helped motivate Americans to speak against sexual abuse and ‘The handmaids Tale’ has greatly motivated the actions of the movement. Feminism activists have adopted the red robes and white winged bonnets worn by the characters as their symbol of resistance (Boyle, p 12). It has helped to unite female activists from all over the world that believe that women need to be delivered from sexual abuse and harassment. #MeToo movement with the help of ‘The Handmaids Tale’ has helped give women a much stronger voice of speaking against sexual abuse by acknowledging that sexual abuse is wrong (Boyle, p 18). It helps bring women that have been sexually abused together, motivating them to speak against it and thus helping to create a safer society for future generations.
One issue that has been solved by the movement through the Harvey Weinstein case is the issue of nondisclosure agreements that have over the years been used by powerful men to cover their sexual abuse (North, p 1). A good illustration is with Zelda Perkins who was the former assistant of Weinstein, she signed an agreement as part of the settlement and it prevented her from disclosing the abuse from any one even her family members (North, p 1). This agreement prevented Perkins from speaking about her boss’s sexual misconduct for more than twenty years. This is just an example of the way that the wealthy to buy the silence of those they take advantage of and putting more women at risk of sexual abuse. #MeToo movement has helped to shape laws regarding sexual abuse and several states have prohibited nondisclosure agreements in cases of sexual misconduct (North, p 1). Acts have been amended to support the fight against sexual abuse, one of them being the ‘BEHEARD ACT’ that encourages victims of sexual abuse to courageously tell their stories. The #MeToo movement has also motivated better wages for workers especially those that work in restaurants (North, p 1). Tipped minimum wage is one of the elements that motivate sexual abuse, and if all workers were given the standard minimum wages them sexual abuse would decrease. The #MeToo movement has helped to change the thinking of the society about power and gender. The society now understands that power is being used to motivate sexual abuse and so the actions of people in power are watched carefully.
Conclusion
Gilead society is a depiction of the real life society where women have been sexually abused for decades. The society has always assumed that the only role that women can play at best is being sex property for men, most especially those in power. Weinstein cases are not any different from what happens in ‘The Handmaids Tale’, the women are vulnerable and they have to give in to the sexual abuse to survive under the powerful society ruled by men. Women sexually assaulted by Weinstein did not talk about their abuse because they were scared of what would happen if they reported the abuse and because of the signed nondisclosure agreements. Reporting the abuse meant that they would miss the opportunity of getting their careers in acting and they would also be blamed for the abuse just like what happens in the novel. The society needs to change its perception on sexual abuse, women are not sexual objects for men to admire and take advantage of. Policies and laws need implemented and enforced through the help of the #MeToo movement to ensure that women all over the world can go on their normal lives without fear of getting sexually assaulted.
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