literacy techniques

• why does Atwood use metaphors?

  to display Offreds state of mind
• give one example when Offred uses a metaphor

  to objective the naked body of the Commander

  • 'His tentacle, his delicate stalked slug's eye, which extrudes, expands, winces and shrivels back into himself.'
• what is paronomasia?

  a pun or play on words
• give 2 examples of paronomasia

  • In the Historical Notes , name of the university is called Denny, Nunavit - un on 'Deny none of it'
  • Moria makes pun in Chapter 34 - 'there is a bomb in Gilead' rather than a balm. Attacking the beliefs of theocracy
• offred describes the brutality of the world is a prosaic , normal language, signifies how desensitised she is to it all
• '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.'


  ordinary = complacency , accept life. Ironic that something so abnormal will become ordinary
• 'Better never means better for everyone. It always means worse, for some.'


  in order for things to be better , sacrifices must be made , liberal harm principle
• 'In the days of anarchy , it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from.'

  Lydia argues that stripping away of freedoms has now been replaced with better type of freedom, entails more respect for women yet ironically ruins their lives. Word play