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Talking about Eyes, there are some similarities between the government of Gilead and that of 1984.

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The Alabama law, which would have forbidden abortions in almost every instance, was scheduled to take effect on Nov. 15.

People gathered at the Alabama State Capitol during the March for Reproductive Freedom against the state's new abortion law, the Alabama Human Life Protection Act, in Montgomery, Ala., in May. Credit... Michael Spooneybarger/Reuters

A federal judge on Tuesday blocked a near-total ban on abortions from taking effect next month in Alabama, ensuring the procedure remains legal and available in the state while the case winds its way through the courts.

In ruling against the Alabama law - the most far-reaching anti-abortion measure passed by state lawmakers this year - Judge Myron H. Thompson of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama wrote that it violates Supreme Court precedent and "defies" the Constitution.

Alabama was among several states to approve restrictive laws designed to provoke a renewed legal battle over abortion rights, with the aim to reach the United States Supreme Court and topple Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that legalized abortion up to the point when a fetus is viable outside the womb, usually about 24 weeks into a pregnancy.

Federal judges in six other states have blocked laws that would ban abortions after what becomes the fetus's heartbeat can be detected from going into effect, and judges in two other states have temporarily blocked laws that would ban abortions after 18 weeks. Alabama's law would have gone into effect Nov. 15.

Tuesday's ruling was anticipated. When she signed the bill into law in May, Alabama's governor, Kay Ivey, conceded that the legislation was likely "unenforceable." Still, she said it would prompt courts to "revisit this important matter."

Opponents of the law hailed Tuesday's ruling as a positive development as the case pushed ahead. They also said it came as a relief to the women who believed that the procedure had already been outlawed in their state.

"Abortion remains legal in Alabama," Randall Marshall, the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, said in a statement following the ruling. "The state's repeated attempts to push abortion out of reach by enacting unconstitutional laws restricting abortions have already cost taxpayers nearly $2.5 million. This ill-advised law will cost taxpayers more money."

The legal challenge to Alabama's law was mounted by the A.C.L.U. and Planned Parenthood on behalf of Dr. Yashica Robinson, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Huntsville, Ala., who provides abortions.

In a statement on Tuesday, Dr. Robinson said the care she and her staff provide was "essential health care."

"These ruthless attacks from anti-abortion politicians have no place in Alabama," she said.

Supporters of the law denounced the decision.

"This is judicial activism, pure and simple," said State Senator Clyde Chambliss, a Republican lawmaker who was a sponsor of the legislation.

Still, supporters recognized that the injunction was a necessary part of the larger legal confrontation that they believe could serve as a lever for overturning Roe v. Wade.

"As we have stated before, the state's objective is to advance our case to the U.S. Supreme Court," Steve Marshall, the state's attorney general, said in a statement. There, he said, the state would submit evidence that the landmark abortion cases of Roe and Planned Parenthood v. Casey were "wrongly decided and that the Constitution does not prohibit states from protecting unborn children from abortion."

Alabama's law, called the Human Life Protection Act and drafted by leaders of the Alabama Pro-Life Coalition, calls for a sweeping ban, including in cases of rape and incest, and threatens doctors who perform the procedure with felony charges and up to 99 years in prison. The law includes an exception for instances where a mother's health is at serious risk.

"This legislation stands as a powerful testament to Alabamians' deeply held belief that every life is precious and that every life is a sacred gift from God," Ms. Ivey, a Republican, said as she signed the law, which had stirred debate even among fellow Republicans.

The tide of anti-abortion legislation across the country came on the heels of last year's Supreme Court appointment of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, a move that buoyed conservatives.

Legislatures in Ohio, Missouri, Kentucky, Mississippi and Georgia were among the states that passed laws banning abortion after a heartbeat is detected, measures that could effectively prohibit abortions as early as six weeks into a pregnancy, when many women do not yet know they are pregnant. Lawmakers in Utah and Arkansas approved 18-week bans.

The laws were all blocked by preliminary injunctions issued by federal judges. Louisiana also passed a so-called heartbeat bill, but it contained a stipulation that it would not be enforceable until a federal appellate court rules on Mississippi's similar law.

Legal scholars said that anti-abortion lawmakers and activists had in the past largely stuck to methodically chipping away at abortion rights, such as laws passed in Louisiana and Texas that required doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. The Supreme Court struck down the Texas law in 2016, but it agreed this month to hear a challenge to the Louisiana law, making it the first abortion case to reach the court since the addition of President Trump's appointments of Mr. Kavanaugh and Neil M. Gorsuch.

Legal scholars said the Louisiana case stood to reshape the constitutional principles governing abortion rights. But it also reflected a rising clash over tactics.

Mary Ziegler, a law professor at Florida State University and author of the forthcoming book "Abortion and the Law," described the long prevailing approach to which some states still subscribe: "It would be better to have a death of a thousand cuts rather than go for the home run."

Still, she noted the recent wave of more ambitious legislation, like the Alabama law, that may or may not rise to the Supreme Court.

"Other states clearly think it's worth the risk," she said.

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Alabama Abortion Ban Is Temporarily Blocked by a Federal Judge

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The Alabama law, which would have forbidden abortions in almost every instance, was scheduled to take effect on Nov. 15. A federal judge on Tuesday blocked a near-total ban on abortions from taking effect next month in Alabama, ensuring the procedure remains legal and available in the state while the case winds its way through the courts.

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tone

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diction

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Flower/Garden:

*Flower is everywhere to find at Commander’s House. Since flowers usually represent love and hope, they can be seen as the way to cover up the sin and ugliness of Gilead.*

“It’s papered in small blue flowers, forget-me-nots, with curtains to match. (P.62)”
-forget-me-nots symbolize remembrance. Having forget-me-nots everywhere might remind Offred that she should not forget her past and her identity.

“....committed on the swelling genitalia of the flowers? The fruiting body. To cut off the seed pods is supposed to make the bulb store energy. (P.153)”
-Flowers are the sexual organs of the plants, which in this case, represents the fertility of women. In Gilead, only a few women has the power to give birth. For the wifes, they did not have such “privilege”, but each one of them has a garden and takes extra care of the flowers in it. Under their care, flowers are always blooming, while the wifes are aging and losing importance to their husband. As such, flowers here also symbolize the inferior status of women in Gilead.

Sex:
*Sex (typically Sexual Violence) is portrayed mostly throughout the book to demonstrate power dynamic.*

“I enjoy the power; the power of a dog bone, passive but there. I hope they get hard at the sight of us and have got rub themselves against the painted barriers, surreptitiously. (P.22)”
-here, Atwood uses a seductive language to depict a vivid scene of how the Guardians will respond to her innuendo.
-this represents under a suppressive society where pornography are prohibited, people’s sexual desires become distorted.
-this can also interpret as a way that Offred is challenging her society’s sexual dynamics by becoming the one who initiates the sex. (Because in Gilead, it is men who make this kind of rules.)

“[Luke] doesn’t mind this, I thought. He doesn’t mind it at all. Maybe he even likes it. We are not each other’s, anymore...By the time I could have done that, I was afraid to. I couldn’t afford to lose you. (P.182)”
-We can see that in Offred’s society, men are usually depicted as more powerful figure as they are one who take control during the sex.
-However, many women like Offred are reluctant to say “stop” to this violence because they are too afraid to lose their men, which leads men to always be the one in charge.
-This dynamic is persisted even before the formation of Gilead.

Eyes:
*The unknown power infiltrates every aspects of the society.*

“Soothing to the eye, the eyes, the Eyes, for that’s who this show is for. (P.212)”
-At Gilead, another threatening and yet most unknown force comes from the Eyes. The Eyes spied on every aspect of people’s life. However, people do not know the identity of these Eyes.
-The Eyes introduce the notion of constant suppression from the government. The government is spying on civilians through eyes.
-At Gilead, everything people own do not belong to them. Their secrets are exposed, which eliminates every single bits of freedom.

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Olfactory:
- The simplicity of her resources limit her partaking in basic routines, and also have unpleasant carryovers following.
- "The butter is greasy and it will go rancid and I will smell like old cheese; but at least it's organic, as they used to say."

Auditory:
- Living under the strict rules of the household as well as society as a whole, straying from them can be lethal, and silence becomes tedious to maintain when under the pressure.
- "There's a clink, I must have bumped something." "The door closes behind me, with a little click, cutting the light." (98)

Kinesthetic:
- She describes the extent a Handmaid's usefulness through the disregard of their outward wellbeing and concern only being for their insides' welfare.
- "The outside can become hard and wrinkled, for all they care, like the shell of a nut."

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Feminism v. Conservatism:
*In the novel, Atwood explores the tension between radical feminism and extreme conservatism.*

“[Serena Joy] speeches were about the sanctity of the home, about how women should stay home (p.45).”
“Mother, I think. Wherever you may be. Can you hear me? You wanted a women’s culture. Well, now there is one. It isn’t what you meant, but it exists. Be thankful for small mercies (p.127)”
-Gilead is a paradoxical society where two extreme and opposite ideas exists.
-Serena Joy advocates conservatism, a call for women to come back to household. Her view represents the patriarchal Gilead. Offred mom represents radical feminism who envisioned women will live tougher there without the need of women. Ironically, this portion of society also exists, as women lives with other women, and male figures have less significance in the novel.

Manipulation v. Insensitivity

*The reason why a totalitarian society first formed is because of people’s indifference. The totalitarian society will gradually desensitize people as time passes.*

“Ordinary, said Aunt Lydia, is what you are used to. This may not seem ordinary to you now, but after a time it will. It will become ordinary (p.33).”
-Aunt Lydia is emphasizing that the suppression will desensitize people, turning people into the puppets.
“We thought she was funny. or Luke thought she was funny. I only pretended to think so. Really she was threatening. She was in earnest (p.46).”
-By the time Serena Joy is spreading her conservatism views, Luke teases it off, thinking it is not a big deal. However, he could never imagines how statuions would evolve.

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The oppressed society they live in is present throughout the entire book. Fertile women are forced to do things against their will and keep quiet about it. They can’t speak up which relates to our society in which women face sexual assault and are told it is their fault. They feel inferior and helpless against the power of men .

Symbolism - Color
- red: Handmaids = highlights their fertility through the reference of blood and implies their position of sin within the society
- blue: Wives = reinforces their high class status
- green: Marthas = color symbolizes health and care, which depicts a Martha’s job: housekeeper or caretaker
- brown: Aunt = an “army” color showing authority but also obedience to the rules
- black: Commander = conveys authority and fear’

“Everything except the wings around my face is red: the color of blood, which defines us. The skirt is ankle-length, full, gathered to a flat yoke that extends over the breasts” (8).

“There are several umbrellas in it: black, for the Commander, blue, for the Commander’s Wife, and the one assignment to me, which is red” (9).

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Symbolism:
- the colors worn by the different factions reiterated throughout the novel (red, green, black, blue, brown)
- “There are several umbrellas in it: black, for the Commander, blue, for the Commander’s Wife, and the one assigned to me, which is red” (9).

Metaphor:
- includes analogies to better emphasize a handmaids stance and purpose within society
- “We are containers, it’s only the inside of our bodies that are important” (96).

Simile:
- Similar to the function of visual imagery in that, it is utilized to illustrate the scene to the reader, making them feel like they are a part of it, feeling what the character feels.
- “While I’m eating the second egg,  I hear the siren, at a great distance at first, winding its way towards me among the large bourses and clipped lawns, a thin sound like the hum of an insect; then nearing, opening out, like a flower of sound opening, into a trumpet” (111).

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https://docs.google.com/document/d/10_o3BglL2c2_j4dNuTtFk7qTk96aWViofV_VR9Chxyo

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Patterns: nostalgic, explicit, observant, resigned, uncomfortable

"She looked disgusting: weak, squirmy, blotchy, pink, like a newborn mouse." (p. 72)

"...a nostalgic smell. It reminds me of other kitchens, kitchens that were mine. It smells of mothers...It smells of me, in former times, when I was a mother" (p. 47)

"I try not to think too much...There's a lot that doesn't bear thinking about." (p. 9)

"...her rings bit my flesh, pulling my hands back...to make me as uncomfortable as she could" (p. 161)

Turbulent:

"Hysteria. And then a needle, a pill...I shake, I heave, seismic, volcanic, I'll burst." (p. 146)

"This is monstrous...Death makes me hungry...to repeat...I am, I am. I am...I want to go to bed, make love, right now. I think of the word relish. I could eat a horse." (p. 281)

Dry:

"I need hardness, cold, rigidity" (p. 154)

"I walk to the corner and wait. I used to be bad at waiting...I stand...pretending I am a tree." (p. 19)

Interpretation: The variety of diction utilized throughout the novel conveys the complexity and nuances of Offred's life and experiences in Gilead as she finds herself forced into uncomfortable situations, lacking control over her body and surroundings, and reminded of her past, where she was once independent and happy.

Application:

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There are thought to be two types of locus of control:

1.Internal Locus of control- This is the belief that our outcomes are contingent on what we do to make them happen- our own decisions and efforts. We tend to accept responsibility as well as credit for our actions. This orientation has been shown to generate more effort and willingness to take risk as well as be behind high motivation and perseverance. If good things happen, you believe you deserve credit for your hard work or abilities, if something bad happens, you believe it is due to something you did wrong or could have done better.

2. External Locus of Control- This is the belief that your outcomes are contingent on events outside your control- luck, chance or fate. When bad things happen or you behave in a poor fashion you may tend not to take ownership of it. "The government was late with my check, it wasn't my fault I needed money and had to rob the 7-11".

On the flip side, if something good happens or you are successful at something you may take no ownership of that either i.e., if you get a job you wanted you assume there were no other candidates or the employer was in a hurry to hire someone.

In general it is considered to be more psychologically healthy to possess a certain level of internal locus of control. Luckily locus of control is largely a learned concept and can be learned no matter where you are in life or what age you are.

In general people with a more internal locus of control tend to have better paying jobs, be more achievement oriented and more resilient in the face of adversity.

Perhaps you have been told by someone that you have no ability or are no good and worthless, chances are you then did not develop internal locus of control. You felt if something good happened it must be due to luck as you have no ability or innate worth. Not only parents are guilty of this message to young people but sometimes teachers and counselors as well.Toxic environments and dysfunctional families tend to teach external causes for things.

It is actually healthy to have a bit of both thinking styles in your repertoire. If you fail and then tell yourself you are totally a loser when perhaps there were some extenuating circumstances then you are likely not to try again. If you are able to say, I did my best but it was hard due to lack of knowledge, or just some specific circumstance like weather, you are more likely to believe you will experience success again in the future.

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The concept of locus of control is huge and defines how you approach almost everything in life. It is a thinking style that refers to how you perceive the cause of life's events. Do you believe that your destiny is controlled by you or by...

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Succinct:
- The chapters are composed as if she is narrating her day to a second party, including the events as they happen accompanied with her own commentary.
- "This is what I do when I'm back in my room...I look for the pat of butter, in the toe of my right shoe, where I hid it after dinner." (Pg.96)

Convoluted:
- She takes negligible objects from her day and ruminates on its every detail, no matter how scant it may be and finds ways to connect it to herself.
- "The minimalist life. Pleasure is an egg, blessings that can be counted, on the fingers of one hand...If I have an egg, what more can I want?" (Pg. 110-111)

Disjointed:
- She takes the very objects that she makes connections with and begins comparing others to it in addition.
- "May the Lord open, Janine would have replied, tonelessly, in her transparent voice, her voice of raw egg white."  (Pg 129)

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Dismal:

"Once I'd merely hated her...But now...the hatred was no longer pure and simple" (p. 161)

"What I feel towards them is blankness. What I feel is that I must not feel. " (p. 33)

Jubilant:

"Also: I now had power over her, of a kind, although she didn't know it. And I enjoyed that. Why pretend? I enjoyed it a lot." (p. 162)

"The feeling is voluptuous. This is freedom, an eyeblink of it." (p. 139)

"I feel ridiculously happy." (p. 73)

Relaxing:

"I walk with Ofglen along the summer street. It's warm, humid; this would have been sundress-and-sandals weather" (p. 164)

"I step into the water, lie down, let it hold me. The water is soft as hands. I close my eyes" (p. 63)

Interpretation: These contradicting tones express how Gilead's oppressive power structures and laws drain Offred of her happiness and autonomy, but her personal interactions with others and moments of solitude restore a sense of life and offer her momentary respite from the bleakness of life with emotions ranging from joy to vindication.

Application:
There are benefits to both spending time with others and alone:

Benefits of spending time with others: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321019.php#1

Benefits of spending time alone: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190711-the-benefits-of-spending-time-alone