The Handmaids tale Essay Example for Free

The Handmaids tale Essay Moreover, Offred is constantly looking for a way out, as she is hopeful that there is a resistance fighting back. She refers to this in one of her many daydreams, where she hopes for her husband, who disappeared during the overtake: â€Å"He made contact with the others; there must be a resistance, a government in exile. Someone must be out there, taking care of things. I believe in the resistance, I believe there can be no light without shadow; or rather no shadow unless there is also light. † (Atwood 130) Though she does not know anything for certain, the thought of him, her husband, fighting back and the hope that she may one day join him and the others – combined with her rebellious actions gives Offred strength to move forward with her life. Very much also a non- conformist is Offred’s long lost friend Moira. Moira was also forced into the role of a Handmaid; though, after a short period of time she became lethargic and, through a faking an illness, snuck out of the household that she had been staying at and found herself at Jezebels (an illegal strip club). Moira found her drive in becoming her own person, very unique from the conformed people, especially women that the government created. She was a powerful female character who stood up for herself and did what she had to, to get her way: Moira had power now, shed been set loose, shed set herself loose. She was now a loose woman. (Atwood 167) Moira goes against all norms, breaks free from the conformity and overall, participates in illegal activity – all in order to look for resistance and show that she is not owned by anyone, officially, or not. These two women, Offred and Moira, do not follow the conformity placed upon them; instead, they fight back, and from there gain willpower to stay happy and to push forward into situations that have the potential to make a difference in society, not only for themselves but also for the people around them. Atwood’s portrayal of both conformists and non-conformists serves as a commentary of women’s role in society. By contrasting the two types of characters, Atwood demonstrates the differences women are able to make in society if they oppose the conformist pressures of the male dominated world. In the novel, as discussed earlier, both the aunts and the wives are conformists; Atwood does not even give them personal names – they are usually referred to as a whole, with no distinctive characteristics. These women are dismissed as little more than bystanders, as they do not make their own decisions or stand up for their beliefs; instead, they merely go along with what others tell them. Contrary to these women are Offred and Moira, the non-conformist characters. These women are not afraid to take charge and fight against what is being forced upon them as ‘right. ’ In their roles, Offred and Moira are making, or attempting to make, a difference in their society by standing up for their morals and opinions. This therefore makes them strong female characters. Ultimately, it is not clear whether or not Offred is successful in finding the resistance; but, unlike the women who conformed, Offred at least attempted to make changes in her life so that she could be happy. Atwood thus uses the contrast between the conformist and non-conformist characters to demonstrate the effects of following the rules and the effects of going against them. The Handmaid’s Tale serves as a commentary about the role of women in society and the chances that they have to make a difference. Atwood’s overall theme is that women need to stand up for themselves in order to be happy and be in control of their lives. Works Consulted: Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaids Tale. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1986. Print. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Margaret Atwood section.

Reviewing Sullivan?s Study of America?s Wine :: essays research papers fc

For many years, wine dictionaries and encyclopedias have unknowingly been misleading consumers on the history of â€Å"America’s wine,† Zinfandel. In Zinfandel, A History of a Grape and Its Wine, Charles Sullivan, an accomplished viticulture researcher, challenges the popular belief that the grape was originally brought to America by a Hungarian immigrant. Sullivan explores the history of wine to bring forth intriguing facts that prove the popular belief to be wrong. With the help of University of California’s (UC’s) Carole Meredith, a new idea is thoroughly explained describing the true ancestry of Zinfandel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For those not familiar with the wine it is important to note that Zinfandel, according to Sullivan, was the first and most successful American wine. Typically, wines from France and Italy prove to be more superior in taste than the American counterparts. However, with Zinfandel this is not the case. Unlike aged and dry wines, the young, fruity flavor of the Zinfandel makes for a more enjoyable flavor that appeals to a greater number of people’s tastes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sullivan does an excellent job keeping the book enjoyable by providing readers with intriguing side notes. For example, here he tries to illustrate the extreme passion that the Californians had for Zinfandel. â€Å"So great was the Napa passion for this grape that one of the tiny railroad stations below St. Helena was renamed â€Å"Zinfandel.† By the 1880s Zinfandel Lane crossed the valley, and the steamer Zinfandel plied the bay waters between San Francisco and the wharves of Napa City.† (Sullivan, 2003) This passage is a perfect example of why this book was enjoyable for me.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  However, there are times during the book where Sullivan becomes longwinded when it comes to explaining certain points. Long paragraphs embedded with, at times, insignificant graphics and charts make the book a hard and slow read. Yet, my curiosity and desire to learn helped me overcome the craving to close the book.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The desire I did have to close the book may have been attributed to the amount of â€Å"wine lingo† found within the text. The excessive amount of references to other wine varieties made it extremely tiresome, as I had to repeatedly look up in dictionaries and encyclopedias the characteristics of a certain wine he was describing. I believe that a person more educated in the subject of wine would enjoy this book more than an uneducated person like me. If a reader is not familiar with wine, the book can be quite discouraging at times.

Men At Forty

â€Å"Men at Forty† is a very well written poem so clearly the diction was chosen well. There are so many things that can be considered diction when writing like if you want to be more sensuous which means you write to appeal to the senses or you have the choice to make it emotional of even esoteric so only the few amount of people who have the proper knowledge to understand it do. A couple of words that describe how this poem was written are precise, emotional, abstruse and esoteric could even tie in with that.Precise writing is marked by exactness or accuracy and â€Å"Men at Forty† in my eyes is very accurate. I do believe that what Donald writes about is exactly what happens once a man gets to forty. In the first stanza it says â€Å"Men at Forty Learn to close softly The doors to rooms they will not be Coming back to. † This is a metaphor about how since he is older he must come to terms with the fact that he might never reach some of his goals in life. Emot ion is a big part of writing because what's the point in writing if there is no emotion.No one will even want to read your writing because they get bored easily with it. In stanza 3 it states â€Å"And deep in mirrors They rediscover The face of the boy as he practices tying His father's tie there in secret† this is very emotional because the man Is looking in the mirror and he still feels young but that is on the inside the outside shows he is growing old, and no one likes growing old because it's a sad reality that we are getting closer and closer to death. This poem can be very abstruse because It could go over some peoples' head.

The Ibo Culture Of Chinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart

Cultures each have their own set of beliefs and morals and quite often these beliefs and morals vary greatly between each culture. Commonly, a culture has its own rules for women. The Ibo culture of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is one that gives its women power. They get their power through their roles as mothers and their contributions to their religion. Great power is also given to the women through the parts they play in agriculture for the clan. The women in Ibo society are misunderstood when their own African culture is compared to modern Western culture. The power given to the Ibo women, in the form of motherhood, is often overlooked due to the comparison, whereas by the Ibo, â€Å"women are viewed as the foundation of the clan and its people† (Hiatt). The women play educator in the Ibo villages. They pass on the morals, beliefs, and stories of the clan. This means that the women â€Å"are pivotal to the literal survival of the community and social normsâ₠¬  (Strong-Leek). It would be true to say that women in Western society also have this power; however, the power is not to the same degree. The Ibo women â€Å"are viewed mainly as child bearers† (Strong-Leek), therefore the Ibo children spend nearly all of their early childhood moments with their mothers. The lack of significant outside interaction means that these mothers control nearly all aspects of their children’s development. The mothers share stories that teach â€Å"important lessons about the human condition† (Hiatt) whichShow MoreRelatedA Civilization Falls Apart Essay1167 Words   |  5 Pagesun-dignified lion-chasing culture to that of a semi-dignified European society. The novel Things Fall Apart by Nigerian-born author Chinua Achebe, tells the story of a Umuofian villager named Okonkwo, and how Okonkwo has to come to grips with the changes that are happening in everyday Ibo life. The novel Things Fall Apart is not your typical tall African tal e. The novel is a story, a story not just about one person, but about an entire civil-society circa 1890s that becomes overwhelmed withRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart Essay1682 Words   |  7 Pagespracticed by African cultures, whether the culture is native or mainstream, are mostly organized. They all have a certain degree of the priest class, libation, holidays, creation stories, divine systems of punishments and rewards. In the novel, Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, is a story of tragic fall of a protagonist and the Igbo culture. Achebe demonstrates different examples and situations of where an African culture, in the instances of tribal religions, did certain things because of theirRead MoreAchebe1599 Words   |  7 Pages Achebe’s Defense of The Ibo People in Things Fall Apart Option 1 The late Chinua Achebe is considered to be one of the most important voices in African literature. Born in colonial Nigeria in the 1930’s, Achebe joined the first wave of African writers who were determined to represent their country in a way that would truthfully depict the past and present. Before the arrival of the first wave writers, the history of pre-colonial Africa was portrayed as a place of barbarous activity. EuropeanRead MoreThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe858 Words   |  4 PagesThe definition of sexism is discrimination on the basis of sex. In many cultures sexism was and still is a controversial topic. In fact, women in America couldn’t even vote until the 1920’s. The abundant masculinity in this novel is not sexism but just how the culture functions. Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart is not sexist towards women; in fact, it shows that women are essential to the Ibo society and posses a great amount of strength. For example, the novel is not sexist because it emphasizesRead MoreChinua Achebe s Things Fall Apart1303 Words   |  6 Pagesof Chinua Achebe in his book Things fall apart (1958) is to depict openly and clearly the culture of the Ibo people of the West Africa (Bloom 49). Contrasting the European views of the Africans such as Conrad s book titled Heart of Darkness; Achebe depiction narrates involved rituals, customs, and laws and comes up with personal attributes. Chinua Achebe in Things Fall Apart shows the aspects of full functionality and life. Nevertheless, Achebe still upholds his aim and eludes giving the Ibo anyRead MoreChinua Achebe s Life Of Literature999 Words   |  4 PagesEssay: Chinua Achebe Chinua Achebe is a renowned Nigeria novelist lauded for his work in literature. Chinua Achebe has been credited with numerous works of literature ranging from novels to journals. His work cuts across borders, making huge success and accepted globally in the world of literature. Even critics had to accept Chinua Achebe is the greatest our time, such was Charles H Rowell a literary critic issued in Callaloo a reputable magazine. There was no surprise when Chinua Achebe wonRead MoreChinua Achebe s Life Of Literature830 Words   |  4 Pages Chinua Achebe is a renowned Nigeria novelist lauded for his work in literature. Chinua Achebe has been credited with numerous works of literature ranging from novels to journals. His work cuts across borders, making huge success and accepted globally in the world of literature. Even critics had to accept Chinua Achebe is the greatest our time, such was Charles H Rowell a literary critic issued in Callaloo a reputable magazine. There was no su rprise when Chinua Achebe won the 1972 Commonwealth prizeRead MoreThings Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe2361 Words   |  10 PagesThings Fall Apart Book Critique Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a historical fiction novel describing the life of Okonkwo in a Nigerian village succumbing to European ways, in order to portray Achebe’s view on imperialism. It was chosen for us to read by our teacher because it describes imperialism and its effects in an Ibo village of Nigeria. It also shows the treatment of natives by the Europeans and how the natives reacted. Things Fall Apart is useful to our course of studies because itRead MoreChinua Achebe As A Nigerian English Novelist Essay1874 Words   |  8 PagesCHINUA ACHEBE AS A NIGERIAN ENGLISH NOVELIST Abstract: Chinua Achebe is the most widely read African novelist in the world today. He has encompassed in his novels one century of history of Nigeria. Achebe highlights various aspects of the Ibo culture in his novels-â€Å"Things Fall Apart†, â€Å"No Longer at Ease†, â€Å"Arrow of God†, â€Å"A Man of the People† and â€Å"Anthills of Savannah†. He is regarded as the invention of the African literature. He takes pride in being ‘a teacher’ of his society and calls upon hisRead MoreWhat Drives a Man1606 Words   |  7 Pagesa successful man? This, in itself, is a culture bound question because it can vary from culture to culture. However, in the perception of Okonkwo, the main character in Chinua Achebe s novel, Things Fall Apart, the measure of a man s success is based on two elements, material acquisition and growth, and physical prowess. This is ironic for Okonkwo since his people s typical idea of success seems to be constructed of a complex, strong spiritual culture, seemingly able to deal in traditional ways