The Handmaid’s Tale

Margaret Atwood

Novel

I appear to be on a bit of a dystopia kick – Parable of the Sower, Equilibrium, etc – and unfortunately this one, while having its standout moments, ranks far closer to the middle than I would’ve predicted. While a totalitarian theocracy ranks very high up on the list of things that I’m horrified of, the tactility of the world felt off in a way that really undermined the objective horror of the situation. I’m completely unsure if this is the impression that anyone else got from it, but there seemed an implicit question lurking in the prose: “Can you imagine people doing this to women?” Even going beyond the infamous plausibility of the situaionm, being based on all things that have happened at least in part, I find it incredibly unlikely that anyone of any repute would be unable to respond with a resounding “yes!” At least in the western tradition they’ve been the most consistently, and largest, oppressed group and this honestly isn’t that much below the situation only a few centuries ago. Of course, this is probably me reading far too much into the prose, but that’s the thing that really got under my skin and kept me from fully appreciating what was done.

That being said, there was one standout moment of the prose: for the majority of the book reflecting the narrator’s indoctrination there have been harsh repudiations for even the slightest hint of vulgarity, even young children go far beyond what is lambasted, in the most visible action of the oppression the seal breaks and the vulgarity spews for just a few short sentences. This is the kind of thing that makes me sit up from my slouch and get super invested. Unfortunately, it never even reaches a fraction of that investment for me again. I am also a big fan of the ambiguous ending.

Sorry I didn’t like it more, my 2nd and 3rd hand feminist theory knower license is revoked.

Gaslight

Directed by Thorold Dickinson, Written by Patrick Hamilton, A. R. Rawlinson, and Bridget Boland

Film

The first of two, and the much less widely known, adapatations of a 1938 play of the same name that is the originator of the term that the internet loves to abuse and misuse. The basic details of the narrative are excellent, but yet the filmmaking and acting – with the exception of the detective who is a joy to watch – unfortunately fall flat. Important information is communicated clumsily in dialogue when it would’ve been easier to show it, the varying levels of energy in the cast prove pretty distracting. The leading woman unfortuanately isn’t given much to work with, both as a result of the narrative and directing, which leads to the flattening of a rather interesting character on paper. This reeks of missed potential, that I’m sure I will find in the 1945 version with Ingrid Bergman.

More gaming today.