Neologisms, Biblical Language, and Language Musing
Margaret
Atwood utilizes neologisms, biblical language, and language musing throughout
The Handmaid’s Tale to accentuate that Gilead is a different world. A neologism
is a newly coined term. Atwood uses neologisms to emphasize Gilead’s different
lifestyle. Some neologisms include “The Commander” and “Unwomen”. Many
neologisms have to do with the Bible, which is often referenced in The
Handmaid’s Tale. Offred refers to the Bible when talking about the ways of
Gilead. Other Biblical references include greetings, such as “Praise Be”. The
republic of Gilead manipulates its population through the Bible and Biblical
Language. Another literary element that Atwood uses is language musing. Offred
spends a lot of her time thinking about words and their true meanings. This
language musing shows the importance of literacy to Offred, but also shows her
defiance to Gilead’s ways (which bans reading and writing amongst women),
making the reader wonder the true extent of Offred's unhappiness.
(I truly love the image-heading of your blog--stupendous). Thank you for taking up the question of language in the novel as it is an important one. Your description of a neologism as a "newly coined term" is right on. I don't think the Bible quotations are in fact neologisms because they carry a lot of associations and weight, whereas a neologism is devoid of history and connotation beyond what the State attributes to it. In that way a neologism creates thought while words with history invoke associations. Your comments about the way Biblical language is used is, however, right on. It is really worth exploring how it is used, who wields authority through the use of the Bible and what kind of brain washing is going on. This would make a great topic for an essay.
ReplyDelete