A* A-level English Literature Essay 'The Handmaid's Tale' - Moira's resistance is futile rather than heroic
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Course
Elements of Political and Social Protest Writing
Institution
AQA
Book
The Handmaid's Tale
A full mark A* example essay which explores whether Moira's resistance was futile or heroic in 'The Handmaid's Tale'. A-level English Literature, social and political protest writing.
The handmaid's tale notes on Atwood's context - A STAR
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English Literature B
Elements of Political and Social Protest Writing
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“Moira’s resistance is futile rather than heroic.” To what extent do you agree?
Throughout the novel, the reader learns of Moira’s rebellion within the totalitarian state of
Gilead. Offred’s “reconstruction” provides us with the knowledge that Moira is an
outspoken and subversive character will not tolerate the extreme religious interpretations
that Gilead has imposed. However, her efforts may be considered to have gone to waste
as we see that she has made little progress to escape and has instead remained a
prisoner of a country that was once her home.
As the novel progresses, Offred tells us of how Moira constantly attempts to make an
escape from Gilead but unfortunately failed to do so. In the “Red Centre”, Moira explains
her elaborate plan of faking “appendicitis” to fool the Aunts into allowing her to leave the
place in which they’ve been held captive. However, as the two Aunts “dragged her in
through the gate”, both ourselves, and Offred, realise the futility of Moira’s attempt. Here,
our daring female character is still being abused by the Aunts who have now taken away
her ability to do something as simple as walking herself into the building, as a result of
the abuse placed on her feet. By delving into such detail regarding Moira’s return,
Atwood demonstrates how cruel and brutal this dystopian world in which they live in
really is, so much so that there is no room for Moira’s feigned illness – something which
may have been considered childish in the past. This also may provoke some readers to
feel as though Moira is being careless by attempting to trick the Aunts into believing a
blatant lie, whilst knowing that if she is to be caught then she will face immense torture.
Therefore, as Moira fails to escape successfully, she is ultimately disheartening both
herself and the other women as they begin to believe that there is no way to leave the
prison that they are in, unless they are prepared to face the torturous Aunts.
In Chapter 38, the reader, as well as the main protagonist, become slightly more hopeful
as we realise that Moira is still alive. However, this hope seems to dim as we hear that
she is currently taking residence in Jezebel’s as a prostitute rather than being free as we
may have expected. As the two best friends reunite, there is a clear difference in the way
that Moira speaks as she appears to have lost her fighting spirit that previously kept her
alive and instead has become almost unconcerned with her current situation. For
example, she encourages Offred to “find some way” to join her in the underground
brothel rather than encouraging her to find a different means of escape. Whilst Moira
tells Offred of her journey to Jezebel’s, Offred notes that her voice had a “lack of
volition”. By removing the determination in Moira’s speech, Atwood shows us how easily
a strong female character can be broken down at the hands of Gilead. As a prostitute,
Moira is still being taken advantage of by Gilead in the way that she is only being valued
for her body - a similar role to the Handmaids but presented differently. This suggests
that Moira’s resistance in the “Red Centre” may have been in vain as, in the end, she
has not escaped from the repressive rules of Gilead but has instead just chosen to abide
by them, giving the illusion that she is now in a better situation than she was before.
Therefore, it is clear that the resistance that Moira previously worked so hard on has
been diminished since there is little difference in the mistreatment that she would’ve
faced as a handmaid compared to the mistreatment that she now faces as she is only
being acknowledged for her sexuality.
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