1. Identify only four roles of both men and women in Gilesd. Select four quotes from different parts from the text which describes their roles. Describe the ideal man or woman in that role. What qualities must she/he have? 2. Identify the roles of women in current society. Describe the ideal woman in that role. What qualities must she have? What are the labels for women who digress from expectations of this role? 3. What is Atwood’s message about gender equality?

1. One role for women in Gilead is the role of Handmaid. Of her dress, the narrator, Offred, says,

Everything except the wings around my face is red: the color of blood, which defines us [….]. The white wings too are prescribed issue; they are to keep us from seeing, but also from being seen.

The Handmaids are expected to be modest, especially given their purpose within the community: reproduction. Because their value is purely the result of their likely ability to sexually reproduce, they wear red, symbolic of their menstrual blood. Aunt Lydia tells the Handmaids-in-training "Think of yourselves as seeds." They are meant to grow, to produce something usable, something that gives them value, that justifies their social role: a baby. Likewise, when Offred meets her shopping partner, Ofglen, she says, "Blessed be the fruit," the prescribed greeting. Again, they are to produce the fruit; therein lies their value and purpose. However, not everyone is thrilled with this arrangement, and many people look down on the Handmaids. For example, Offred hears Rita tell Cora (the two Marthas in her household) that "she wouldn't debase herself like that," like the Handmaids do. The ideal Handmaid is subservient and fertile. She gives birth to "viable" babies often, and she does her duty—enduring the Ceremony—again and again, without question or deviation from the rules.
Another role for women in Gilead is the role of Martha. These women are not fertile, but they are useful in the home as cooks and maids and nannies. Their physical characteristics are not important, and Offred refers to them as "dumpy, green Marthas." Further, she says, "nobody much cares who sees the face of a Martha." They are often older, and they are certainly not commodified or fetishized like the Handmaids, who are younger and whose purpose is sexual, seem to be. However, Offred says, because they live and work in the homes of Commanders and their wives, the "Marthas know things, they talk among themselves, passing the unofficial news [...]." Marthas know about all the goings-on of the houses in which they work, and this means they are more informed. This may be one reason that they are "not supposed to fraternize with [Offred]." The ideal Martha is hard-working and discreet. She is no stranger to manual, household labor, and she keeps her mouth shut about the things she sees and hears behind closed doors.
Yet another role for women in Gilead is the role of a Commander's Wife. These women are typically not fertile, often because they are of more advanced age. Handmaids are assigned to them when this is the case. Aunt Lydia tells the Handmaids-in-training that "it was best not to speak unless they asked you a direct question [because] it isn't easy for them." The wives don't actually have very much to do, as they have so much domestic help, so they "knit ugly scarves" for Angels at the front lines in order to feel as though they have some use, according to Offred. Offred's Commander's Wife is tough; when Offred first arrives, she says, "I know you aren't stupid [....]. I've read your file. As far as I'm concerned, this is like a business transaction." Offred is there to provide her Commander and his wife with a baby, and the wife wants to make darn sure that's all Offred does, especially given the trouble she's had with Handmaids in the past. The Commanders' Wives are expected to embody Rachel, from the Bible, who said, "Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her, and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her." The ideal Commander's Wife does her duty without complaint, participating in the Ceremony with her husband and Handmaid in order to produce a child. She is not to begrudge the sexual intercourse of her husband and Handmaid since there is Biblical precedent for it for the purpose of producing an infant. She does her duty to the republic by maintaining her household and the Marthas and Handmaid assigned to it. She is quiet and pious and follows her husband in all things.
As for men, one role is the "Commander of the Faithful." These are the men who are essentially in charge of the republic. Offred says of her Commander, "His hair is gray. Silver, you might call it if you were being kind [....]. The one before this was bald, so I suppose this is an improvement." The Commanders, then, almost as a rule, are older. This is why her doctor likely tells her that she's not gotten pregnant yet because so many "of those old guys [...] are sterile." However, it is illegal to say that a man is sterile; only women are "fruitful or barren." If a woman in Gilead cannot get pregnant, it is assumed that it is her own fault and can have nothing to do with the man; otherwise, there is little justification for passing women around. If the Commanders, in charge, are to blame for the lack of children, then they would lose credibility and value. Of her Commander, Offred says,

I ought to feel hatred for this man. I know I ought to feel it, but it isn't what I do feel. What I feel is more complicated than that. I don't know what to call it. It isn't love.

The relationship between Commanders and Handmaids is confusing at best: they have sex regularly but are to have no other contact with one another outside of this arrangement. The ideal Commander buys in to Gilead's values totally. He believes that women should not be allowed to read or rule, that women are good for keeping house, bearing children, and raising children. He isn't cruel, necessarily, but he is a stickler for the rules.
2. In our contemporary, twenty-first-century society, there are many roles for women, too. Women are often expected to want to be mothers, and women who choose not to become mothers are often questioned and even ridiculed for their choices. Many women happily embrace the role of mother and devote their lives to it, feeling great personal satisfaction. Many women prefer to focus on work outside the home, pursuing careers that provide them equal satisfaction. Finally, many women have children and pursue work outside the home. Sometimes these women are ridiculed for not placing enough emphasis on their role as mothers, and sometimes women who choose to be stay-at-home mothers are ridiculed for not be "independent" enough. The ideal mother is nurturing and kind, calm and good; she keeps a clean house, raises well-adjusted children, and smiles all the time. Sometimes, the pressure to live up to this image can be really anxiety-producing for women. Honestly, the pressure to live up to any social expectations for women can be incredibly anxiety-producing. Further, there isn't the same pressure on men who want to have families and careers; they aren't asked how they manage it all. On the other hand, a woman who doesn't want to be a mother is thought of as cold or heartless, as though there is something wrong or wanting in her. A woman who wants to have a big family and not pursue a career might be thought of as weak or dependent, lacking self-respect or drive. The woman who wants a career and a family can sometimes be seen as selfish or too ambitious, as though it is too difficult for her to choose and so she must fulfill both roles poorly.
3. I think one of Atwood's messages about gender equality is that, really, it benefits everyone. In a community where the genders are unequal, everyone suffers. Consider Gilead: no one is happy. Even the Commander—a man who helped to make and now to uphold the rules publicly—finds myriad ways to break the rules, with multiple Handmaids, because those rules are too restrictive and confining. He has so much power, and yet even he is not happy. His wife is miserable, and the other men and women in his house are complacent at best, not content. When the genders are not equal, as in Gilead, no one wins.