Feminist Literary Theory

The Handmaid`s Tale

Stereotypical ideal`s

Females are expected to do as they're told, when they are told.

allowing males to whatever they please

Men pay the bills, women stay home take care of the children & do chores

Women are to get married & reproduce

Women are viewed as caretakers, keeper`s of the house, and a wife to please her male counterpart.

A woman can not survive financially or physically without a man to help her.

Inequality

Females have little freedom/control of their own body & speech.

Uniforms

Wage gaps between men and women

If a female did obtain a job, she would get paid much less then a male

Women are treated as objects one can use repeatedly.

"He doesn't mind this, i thought. He doesn't mind at all. Maybe he even likes it. We are not each other's, anymore. Instead. I am his"

When a character in the book loses her job her husband grows a sense of power over her, as if he owns her.

Power relations

Men are more respected in society.

Politically, economically, & socially

A man tells a female when to speak and what to do.

Women are viewed as weak & fragile, whereas men are seen as strong & brave.

Men have majority positions politically, economically, and socially; giving females limited control in society.

Patriarchy present within the religious construct