Prompt #3: Conclusion (SPOILER ALERT!)

[Mrs. Asti]

An effective literary work does not merely stop or cease; it concludes. In the view of some critics, a work that does not provide the pleasure of significant closure has terminated with an artistic fault. A satisfactory ending is not, however, always conclusive in every sense; significant closure may require the reader to abide with or adjust to ambiguity and uncertainty. In your response, discuss the ending of Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale." Explain precisely how and why the ending appropriately or inappropriately concludes the work. Do not merely summarize the plot.

*Respond to this post using the comment link below. At the top of your post, please include your first and last name.

[LisannetteG]

Lizannette Gonzalez In "The Handmaid's Tale," readers are introduced to a world where women are property and men are heartless creatures who don't give a damn, an ending to such a novel would be considered nearly impossible to many. Atwood, however, ends her novel with ambiguity and a sense of dread that sufficiently concluded her work.

From the first few pages of the novel, readers are faced with the fact that the world once known is now dead and that a new empire has taken place. Atwood's descriptions of this new world include not only women being treated as property, but just how limited they are. The women cannot go anywhere alone, the women are not allowed to read nor write, and the women must bear a child or else be deemed useless to society and sent to the 'colonies'. The concept alone of being considered 'valuable' to society is through bearing children or else facing sure death would leave any sane human stricken with paranoia, anxiety, and fear. The main protagonist, Offred, states that "we are for breeding purposes...two-legged wombs, that's all."

Because many women are fortunate enough to not live in such a world, it is difficult to fully relate to the issues that the handmaids face. Yet, the best way that Atwood gives the reader that moment of relatability is with the ending. The novel is told through Offred's eyes and so the reader is always 'watching' what Offred is experiencing. In the ending though, neither Offred nor the reader know what is about to happen. While many would believe that Atwood wrote an incomplete conclusion that leaves the readers at a complete guess as to what will occur next is why she wrote her conclusion as is. In order to emulate that fear and confusion that Offred was experiencing, Atwood writes the readers and Offred as one entity to give the reader the full range of emotions as of the reader was in that moment. To create that one moment of relatability where neither party knows what will happen next.

[Thomas]

Thomas Cusido
In “The Handmaids Tale”, readers are treated with a dystopian future which is defined by the disregard for women due to the fact that they are now only cared for as a sexual object that bears a child for the wife of a commander (Man holding power over a handmaid). Readers explore this world through the lens of Offred, one of the many handmaids forced to be in captivity. She suffers from memory loss which all the other handmaids suffer from too. The handmaids are just in the dark when it comes to where they come from in terms of their past life and what led to the events that established the Republic Of Gilead, but Offred is actually able to remember events from her past life. Since the readers follow the perspective of Offred, they are just as clueless as her and they also find out things about her past life at the same time that she gets her memories back. A simple cookie cutter ending would not have served this story justice as we as the readers have been put into a setting where gender norms and normal societal rules have been thrown out the window and has made every single aspect of this story unpredictable, so of course an ending that a reader could predict chapters away would not work in the context of this book. Foreshadowing the type of ending this story would have could actually be seen when Moira (Handmaid) escapes captivity and her whereabouts are unknown for a while since the handmaids are always kept in the dark giving a sense of unpredictability as to what may happen to Moira. Once the ending of the story rolls around, we are left with just hoping for the best for Offred due to the fact that she was just put into a van and is just taken inside it, leaving the readers with no clue to where they could have taken her. This of course makes absolute sense with how the story works as this whole story centers on things that are not known and unpredictability which appropriately concludes the ending of Atwood’s story.

[Marlon]

In the Handmaid Tale ending it is not so clear as to what truly occurred only that what has happened happened for the handmaid to be truly as one and for the entire system to fall it is to the reader to make the final notion on what truly happened but considering the books heavy ties and references to our real world it can be inferred something of the similar caliber occurs where nothing truly changes but everything changes all at once creating this unfamiliar yet familiar sense of space and world for the characters now, do the characters contribute to suffer? Is that man truly trust worthy? It is not fully discolored to the audience only left up in the air for interpretation which is a rather interesting way of handling it as it somewhat ties once again to the way our world functions. In our life time we will never experience the change we strive for but the ripples will show and he future will enjoy those efforts just so I believe offred taking her chances to make change will be the beginning of an ending to the era and spark the change that is needed as it is unclear what truly happened to offred but we know due to the ending that a future does come to fruition and there are those looking back and trying to learn from her just as we do from our own history.

[Isabella]

The Handmaid Tale, written by Margaret Atwood, is told by the eyes of the protagonist being Offred. Throughout the story and through its developing the character and the reader both experience a sense of thrill and confusion together. The story is told with multiple flashbacks that hold information from her past and how life was back when she was free and not enslaved. In the “new world” that she is experiencing she is often confused and curious as to how far she can push the limits. The novel takes you through every thought and memory that Offred had/has including her darkest ones. The way Atwood concluded the novel is in a form of a cliffhanger in a way, since you don’t know what is going to happen next and is really up to your own interpretation it may upset some readers but to me it fit with the whole flow of the book. The book makes you feel and experience what Offred actually felt throughout these events so to leave it at such a vague note it creates a sense of fear and suspense which is probably what Offred felt at that moment. Atwood closed the book of by truly captivating the readers attention by leaving it off to interpretation and filled with suspense because it mimics what Offred was experiencing and that is how the whole novel was formulated. The overall piece relates to our current world where we don’t really know what is happening and where there are being a lot of changes being made where it creates a sense of fear for women’s rights and a sense of uncertainty.

[Luis]

Luis Gutierrez

"The Handsmaids Tale" is a novel full of uncertainty, surprises, and suspense. The conclusion keeps these emotions happening. The Handmaids Tale is told in a way where we know only what Offred knows and feels, to a certain extent. Without the suspense, the novel wouldn't be as successful as it is and this element of not knowing what happens next is what the author truly wants readers to feel. The conclusion to the novel is a very appropriate one. Although readers are going to be left with uncertainty about what happens to Offred next, the emotions that are described in the conclusion are very appropriate, especially since the novel revolves around the idea of Uncertainty. The suspense is the feeling that the authors want the readers to end up with and the author truly wants readers to experience uncertainty by not letting the audience know what happens to Offred after she steps into the van.

Talk about a cliffhanger :(

[Nohely]

Nohely Diaz
The Handmaids Tale is told from the perspective of protagonist, Offred. Readers are introduced to a world where society has been flipped upside down and woman’s rights have been degraded. Throughout the novel, Offred has no knowledge in regard to the world she lives in and the references of past events create unpredictability as to what can happen next, providing a thrilling experience for the reader. When Moira, a fellow handmaid, managed to escape from confinement readers are left to wonder of her whereabouts. This cluelessness foreshadows the ending of the story due to the situation Offred is presented with when she is captured into a van and held captive. At this point, it is the last thing readers hear of her and are left with the curiosity of what happened later on. This work greatly relates to our modern world as it consists of individuals whom are unconscious of what may lie ahead and the changes that are slowly taking place by the minute. For this reason, many people today are hesitant and dread the future of woman’s rights as to whether it will come in benefit or misfortune.

[Marco]

In Margaret Atwood's novel "The Handmaid's Tale" the story is told from the perspective of Offred, a handmaid whose name and rights have been taken and her life revolve around her objectification as a child bearer. In Gilead women who are fertile and have the ability to bear children are stripped of their names, their past, and become handmaids. Offred, being stripped of her entire identity, finds herself lost, internally. She does not know who she is supposed to be, does she believe in her past or does she conform to Gilead's laws? The uncertainty that Offred experiences in her life translate into the readers understanding of the story due to its point of view. The uncertainty of the text also translates to its conclusion, Margaret concludes the text with no certain outcome but two plausible ones. This conclusion that Atwood chooses to utilize showcases the two sides of Offred's life, she is either saved and taken to freedom or she will be executed for disobeying the laws of the country,