The Art of Oppression

So at this point in the book it’s become apparent that women aren’t allowed to read. However, it’s the question of why that interests me. Atwood specifically mentions in the text that the powers that be don’t want women to read the bible because they don’t know what women would make of it, and more importantly, how they would use it. 

This is an important note, I think. It tells the reader that women aren’t being underestimated by the men in charge, quite the opposite in fact. Women are still being treated like intelligent individuals to an extent, but just as intelligent individuals who are of some intrinsic lower class of society. And perhaps more importantly, “woman” in this instance is simply referring to a person who has the capability of pregnancy. That is their main offense and what determines their life from then on- their ability to have a child. 

This also somewhat ties back to what we learn about the word “sterile,” and the fact that it really isn’t just the women who have lost their ability to procreate. The men are just as likely (if not more likely) to have gone “sterile” as the women. However, the men in charge know how to twist the words of the old world and lay the burden of procreation, parentage, and general housekeeping on the women of the society. To entrust a woman with any part of this rule-making process is to doom their society to corruption (note that rule-enforcing is perfectly within a woman’s capability and, because women can of course trust other women, it is probably preferred- but that’s for another post).