Handmaid's Tale: Punishments And Laws Explained

The Republic of Gilead, the fictional setting of The Handmaid's Tale, is a highly oppressive and totalitarian theocracy. The regime enforces a series of strict laws that control the lives of its citizens, particularly women, who are stripped of their rights and freedoms. Women in Gilead are forbidden from reading and writing, owning property, and holding jobs. They are also denied reproductive rights, with abortion and contraception outlawed. Any woman who breaks these laws faces severe punishment, including mutilation, execution, or being sent to the Colonies, where certain death awaits.

Punishments for breaking the law include execution, mutilation, and social reclassification

In the Republic of Gilead, punishments for breaking the law include execution, mutilation, and social reclassification.

The Republic of Gilead is a highly oppressive theocracy that enforces its laws through barbaric punishments. Gilead's laws are designed to control its citizens, particularly women, and ensure their compliance. Those who break the law face harsh consequences, including execution, mutilation, and social reclassification.

One of the most severe punishments in Gilead is execution. Gilead often executes criminals and displays their bodies publicly as a warning to others. This punishment is applied to a wide range of crimes, including abortion, adultery, and "gender treachery," which is a euphemism for homosexuality.

Mutilation is another form of punishment in Gilead. For example, women who are caught reading or writing, which is forbidden for most women, may have their fingers, hand, or entire hand amputated. In one instance, a woman convicted of "gender treachery" is sentenced to female genital mutilation.

Social reclassification is also used as a form of punishment in Gilead. Gilead has a strict class system, and individuals are classified based on their social group. Single, non-widowed women who cannot adjust to the new society are classified as "Unwomen," stripped of their human rights, and subjected to arbitrary detention, forced labour, or execution. Fertile women who break the laws may be reclassified as Handmaids, forced to breed and supply Gilead with children. Handmaids are marked with tattoos, bar-coded bracelets, or ear tags and are assigned to Commanders' households, where they must wear red clothing and cover their faces with white "wings." If a Handmaid fails to conceive a child after three attempts, she may be sent to the Colonies to face certain death.

The punishments in Gilead serve as a means of control and reinforcement of the oppressive regime's power. They are designed to instill fear and discourage any dissent or resistance among the populace.

Women are forbidden from reading and writing

In the Republic of Gilead, women are forbidden from reading and writing. This is because the authoritarian regime seeks to control women by suppressing their individual thought and maintaining power over them. By limiting their access to literature and writing, the regime aims to prevent women from gaining autonomy and empowerment.

Reading and writing are powerful tools that enable individuals to acquire knowledge and express themselves. They are also means of communication, through which people can connect, share ideas, and organise. By prohibiting women from engaging in these activities, the government of Gilead aims to isolate women, making it difficult for them to resist or challenge the regime.

The regime understands that literacy can be a catalyst for dissent and rebellion. By depriving women of literacy, the government can more easily control the information they receive and shape their thoughts and beliefs. This is evident in the way Gilead controls the Bible, its foundational text. By keeping the text secret and making changes to it, the government can manipulate its citizens and justify its oppressive rules.

The prohibition of reading and writing for women is also a way to reinforce traditional gender roles and maintain the patriarchy. In Gilead, women are valued primarily for their fertility and are expected to assume domestic roles. Literacy can provide women with access to alternative ideas and ways of living, threatening the established social order.

The consequences of breaking this law can be severe. Women who are caught reading or writing face harsh punishments, including amputation of fingers or even an entire hand. This serves as a warning to others and further deters women from engaging in these prohibited activities.

The prohibition of female literacy in Gilead is a powerful tool of oppression and control. By denying women access to reading and writing, the regime seeks to maintain power, suppress dissent, and reinforce traditional gender roles.

Women are not allowed to own property

In the Republic of Gilead, women are not allowed to own property. Any property they have or acquire is transferred to the next male relative, which can include non-linear relatives like nephews. The only exception to this rule is that widows of Commanders may inherit their estates, at least until they remarry.

This law is one of the most insidious in Gilead, as it serves to completely trap women in their station in life and gives them zero means of escape. It is part of a broader set of laws that limit women's rights, including the right to read and write, and to control their own reproductive functions.

The regime in Gilead is a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state that has overthrown the United States government. It is ruled by a radical political group called the Sons of Jacob, which uses the onomic ideology to launch a revolution. The United States Constitution is suspended, and what was formerly the United States of America is changed into a military dictatorship.

The new regime quickly consolidates its power, taking over all other religious groups, including Christian denominations. It reorganises society using a peculiar interpretation of some Old Testament ideas and a new militarised, hierarchical model of social and religious fanaticism. One of the most significant changes is the limitation of women's rights.

Women become the lowest-ranking class and are deprived of control over their own reproductive functions. They are not allowed to own money or property, or to read and write. They are also forced to dress according to a strict dress code, ranked highest to lowest.

The regime controls most of the country, but there are various rebel groups that remain active, including the Mayday resistance, an underground network working to overthrow the Republic of Gilead.

Adultery is a punishable crime

The laws of Gilead are based on a warped interpretation of the Bible, and adultery is referenced in the Commandment 'Thou shalt not commit adultery' (Exodus 20:14). Punishments for adultery vary depending on the social class of the accused, but they are always severe.

In the first season of the TV show, a Commander is convicted of having an illegal sexual affair with his Handmaid. As ordered by his wife, he receives the "harshest punishment possible" for a Commander, which is the amputation of his left hand. In contrast, his wife, a higher-ranking individual, gets away with a lesser sentence, serving time in the Colonies, while her lover, a Guardian, is drowned in an indoor swimming pool.

The laws of Gilead also invalidate all second marriages as adultery, and anyone in the US who had been divorced and remarried was considered a criminal.

The punishments for adultery in Gilead are part of a broader system of laws that strip women of their rights and freedoms. Women are not allowed to own property, they are banned from reading and writing, and they are denied basic human rights, such as the right to a fair trial.

Abortion is retroactively illegal

In the Republic of Gilead, abortion is retroactively illegal, meaning that even if a woman had an abortion before the rise of Gilead and when it was legal, she is still considered to have committed a crime. This law is an "ex post facto law", which is a stark example of Gilead's totalitarian regime and its oppressive nature.

The retroactive illegality of abortion in Gilead has severe consequences for women. Those who have performed abortions before the rise of Gilead are either put to death or sent to the Colonies. The Colonies are areas of Gilead where people are forced to perform hard labour and clean up toxic waste until they die from the harsh conditions and radiation poisoning. The threat of execution or a life of slavery in the Colonies serves as a warning to all women in Gilead, ensuring compliance with the law.

The retroactive nature of the law also allows the state to arrest fertile women and sentence them to become Handmaids, who are forced to bear children for the ruling class. This is a form of punishment and a way to ensure the continuation of Gilead's society, which is facing a plummeting birth rate. Handmaids are considered property and are ceremonially raped by their Commanders in the hopes of producing a child.

The retroactive illegality of abortion is part of a broader set of laws in Gilead that restrict women's rights and freedoms. Women are not allowed to own property, hold jobs, have bank accounts, or control their own bodies. They are also banned from reading and writing, with punishments for any breach including amputation of fingers or hands.

The laws in Gilead, including the retroactive illegality of abortion, are often based on biblical verses and are enforced by a theocratic regime. The regime justifies its laws and actions by selectively citing the Bible, using religion to control and oppress its citizens, particularly women.

The retroactive nature of the abortion law in Gilead highlights the extreme nature of the regime and its willingness to use any means necessary to control its citizens and enforce its ideology. It also underscores the lack of freedom and agency that women have in Gilead, where their actions, even those performed in the past and under different laws, can be criminalised at the regime's discretion.

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