Linguistic repression

• Many states and regimes recognise the power of censorship and how this can lead to complete domination.
• Even more ‘liberal’ regimes allow censorship of texts that are decided to be unsuitable.
• Gilead also uses censorship by only allowing a bible to be kept in the house, locked in a box to be only read by the commander, and women are forbidden to read entirely, apart from a few aunts.
• Offred recognises the power and influence of text such as the bible, stating that ‘It is an incendiary device: who knows what we'd make of it, if we ever got our hands on it?’
• Writing is also forbidden for the women of Gilead, as seen in how luxurious it is for Offred to play scrabble with the commander and form words, and how when she holds a pen she states that she ‘can feel its power’.
• The people of Gilead are also supposed to stick to accepted and prescribed language, such as ‘blessed be the fruits’ and the ‘accepted’ response ‘may the lord open’.
• Russians forced the Russian language on Hungarian schools during their occupation post-war until 1989.
• England instance for English to be the primary language in Wales and Scotland up until recently.
• Chinese attempts to eradicate local ethnic languages.
• Natives Americans being forced to forget their native language through generations due to speaking it being forbidden.