How Does Margaret Atwood Use Power In The Handmaid's Tale

Power can change the world. In society, it is seen that, the way power can be maneuvered may bring positivity or negativity in humanity. Likewise, in Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale, a moral is developed through the topic of power, suggesting that, power of one and the way it is used can cause negative change in one’s life resulting in an inhuman like life. Margaret Atwood further approves this message through the wide use of similes helping understand the characters circumstances, the extensive use of imagery develop a visual for the reader, and through first person narrator use.

Margaret Atwood’s great use of literary aspects including similes, imagery, and first person narration provide details supporting the theme, power of one and

the way it is used can cause undesirable change in one’s life occasioning in the public’s life to be a disaster.

To begin, the presence of similes shows a great comparison made by characters, providing insight on the characters circumstances. The narrator explains, “I go out into the polished hallway, which has a runner down the center, dusty pink. Like a path through the forest, like a carpet for royalty, it shows me the way”(Atwood). A simile is present comparing the carpet in the hallway to a carpet of royalty. The character believes that her daily, low circumstance routine, which starts by crossing the carpet, is the way to royalty. Do to the way power is manipulated, the characters are blocked from a regular living and are left to live in low circumstances. Moreover, the great use of imagery give the reader a visual understanding of the novel. The author state, “Audience much amused by shots of a great huge fat man trying to swim away with a helicopter after him, first you saw him wallowing along in the water like a porpoise, then you saw him through the helicopters gunsights, then he was full of holes and the sea round him turned pink and he sank […]”(Atwood). Imagery is created through the words of the narrator showing the presence of a warfare setting including an average

man being killed. Due to the violation of power, warfare is necessary is in the novel. Lastly, the existence of a first person narration, the audience is sees the plot from the shoe of a character of the book. In the novel, it is stated, “Time here is measured by bells, as once in nunneries”(Atwood). Since narrator is actually part of the story and telling what goes on in her life, the reader knows detailed aspects such as the measuring unit of time. Due to the improper power use, the viewer expresses that the time unit in their environment doesn’t match the rest of the worlds time unit.
In conclusion, Margaret Atwood uses similes to show comparison between the life of the character and royalty, imagery to develop the reader knowledge visually, and first person narration to develop close understanding of the novel The Handmaid’s. If power is used irresponsibly, damage is felt by the civilization.