The Handmaid's tale: Opening up (Analysis)

Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale. pages 3-100.

"The tulips along the border are redder than ever, opening, no longer wine cups but chalices; thrusting themselves they are old they turn themselves inside out, then explode slowly, the petals thrown out like shards." (Atwood 43)

Offred observes the petals of the blooming tulips as she is walking past the garden and heading inside the home.

The reason why this quote was chosen is because of it's hidden complexity. It's a quote that appears insignificant upon first sight, but when read the second time one finds a link between the situation that Ofglen is trapped in and the opening of the tulip's petals.

The red tulip reflects the emotions that Offred is experiencing. Its red colour symbolizes the strong longing to bond with someone that Offred is feeling. It is an impulse that emerges as a result of the lack of human connection that she has. This is because in the republic of Gilead, having a friendship with someone is viewed as taking a risk, since friendships are looked upon as being suspicious. Furthermore, the red tullips being "redder than ever" also symbolizes the sexual impulse that she is feeling, an impulse that is stronger than ever. This sexual impulse originates from her wanting to have a human connection with someone. A physical or emotional connection.

Furthermore, the fact that the tulips are opening up more than before, reflects the fact that she is reaching out for a way to full fill these impulses more than she has before. This shows how just like it's in a tulip's nature to open up and flourish due to the fact that it's a flower; it's also in Offred's nature to reach for ways to fulfill her need for physical and emotional love because she's human . Furthermore, Offred accentuates the fact that the same way that a tulip's petals are thrown out like shards when the flower withers away,or in other words; the same way that it's in a flower's nature to have its petals fall off once it opens up and withers away, its also inevitable that Offred will cease to exist if she continues to reach out for these things.

The main message that Atwood highlights through this excerpt from the novel is that humans are just as fragile as flowers when it comes to love. That's because they reach out for love, long for love, and they open themselves up and they make themselves vulnerable, just like flowers. But in the end,the same way that its inevitable that a flower will wither away, its also inevitable that a relationship will end (most often).