Oflgen

Oflgen

Character
1. Offred knows very little about Ofglen's life before Gilead and doesn't even know her real name
2. The deixis "this one" dehumanises Ofglen and suggests, at first, Offred just saw her as another Handmaid, like she is dispensable
3. The simile used at the beginning of the novel, "like a trained pig's on its hind legs" shows how critical and cynical Offred is of Ofglen initially
4. She is the first one to introduce "may day" to the novel and is a symbol of the underground movement
  1. This is also shows at the Particulation where a member of "may day" has been put to death so she "kicks him in the head viciously" to reduce the length of time he spends in pain.
    1. This public display could have been what lead to Ofglen being found out and he subsequently hanging herself
Ofglen 2.0
1. Offred describes her speech as "word perfect" when she says "I am Ofglen". This creates imagery of robots, suggesting that Handmaids are just on a production line and can be removed when Gilead needs it. This replacement of Ofglen unsettles Offred and makes her feel vulnerable again
2. As a result of Ofglen hanging herself, Offred says "I feel, for the first time, their true power"
Relationship with Offred
1. They're described as "siamese twins" suggesting they're very similar
2. "Doubled, I walk the street" The first person pronoun shows how she sees both her and Ofglen as one person, again highlighting that the Handmaids are not seen as individuals, instead they're seen as a group of beings
3. Ofglen allows Offred's rebellious side to be shown

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	Created by Beth Muckle about 7 years ago