 Jezebel's, as a setting, encapsulates the duality of Gilead: a regime that outwardly enforces strict moral codes but inwardly indulges in depravity and excess. The "masquerade" atmosphere serves as a metaphor for the regime itself-a facade of order masking chaos and corruption. Offred's internal conflict is mirrored in the women around her. Serena Joy serves as her foil; a woman who, despite their class difference, represents the women who see the hypocrisy but have submitted themselves to it. Ofglen is the moral voice of resistance, while Moira's voice serves as a spirit of her past. This fragmented identity is apparent as Offred struggles to reconcile her pre-Gilead self with her current reality. This doubling of identity is further illustrated in her connection to Nick, who represents both a risk and a refuge. This moral ambiguity comes to life in Offred's "particicution" during the Salvaging. While resistance is critical, survival is fundamental, so safety through acquiescence becomes obvious. In your response, you might address any or all of the following prompts:
Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add a word count. Due by 11:59 pm Sunday night, 3/1/2026.   The action in this week's reading was both notable and contextually rich. We focused on Janine's highly ritualized birthing ceremony, Moira's escape, the Commander's odd games of Scrabble with Offred, contrasted with Offred's reflections on a childhood memory of a documentary about Nazi Germany. In this Primary blog entry, please consider how, in this week's reading, Atwood presents and connects the control and commodification of women in Gilead with the psychological effects of oppression. In your response, you might address any or all of the following prompts:
Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add a word count. Due by 11:59 pm Sunday night, 2/22/2026.   The list is long of possible topics to discuss in this week's reading. Select one of the topic choices below to discuss how Atwood's use of Narrative Techniques and Imagery to illuminates your understanding of them:
In your response you might address any or all of the following prompts:
Successful responses will:
In your response, use at least a few of the terms below (and apply them correctly):
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add a word count. Due by 11:59 pm Friday night, 2/13/2026. Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add a word count. Due by 11:59 pm Sunday night, 2/15/2026.   Context: As you read The Handmaid’s Tale, pay attention to two big ideas:
1) World-building (Setting) This isn’t just “where and when.” It’s how the entire society operates: its rules, routines, symbols, and what people are permitted (or not permitted) to do. 2) Narrative Voice This is how the story is told and who is telling it. Offred’s voice shapes what we notice, what we trust, and what we question. These two things work together: the setting shows us what kind of world Gilead is, and Offred’s voice shows us what it feels like to live there. After this week’s reading, you can see that The Handmaid’s Tale blends genres: it’s speculative, realistic, and dystopian. You’re also learning that Gilead’s rise and its religious government controls nearly every part of life in what used to be the United States. Finally, you’re starting to see that Offred is full of contradictions: she is oppressed, but she also finds ways to be resistant. Even when the system tries to erase her identity, she uses memory and storytelling to hold on to her sense of self. This also connects to the difference between “freedom from” (freedom from danger or chaos) and “freedom of” (freedom to choose your own life). Prompt: Write a response about this week’s reading that explains how the setting and Offred’s narrative voice help Atwood highlight themes like:
In your response, use at least a few of the terms below (and apply them correctly):
Success Criteria: 1. Make a clear claim (what Atwood is showing and why it matters). 2. Use the vocabulary accurately (choose terms that truly fit your examples). 3. Use specific evidence from the text, such as:
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add a word count. Due by 11:59 pm Friday night, 2/5/2026. Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add a word count. Due by 11:59 pm Sunday night, 2/7/2026.  Victor Frankenstein initially agrees to create a female companion for the Creature, believing it will end the Creature’s suffering and prevent further violence. However, as he works, he becomes haunted by the possible consequences of his actions. In a moment of panic, he destroys the female, declaring, “She, who in all probability was to become a thinking and reasoning animal, might refuse to comply with a compact made before her creation” (Shelley 147). Here, Victor acknowledges that the female Creature would have agency and might reject the Creature as her mate, rendering his efforts futile. He also fears that together they might pose an even greater threat to humanity, perhaps even reproducing and creating a new race of beings beyond his control: “A race of devils would be propagated upon the earth who might make the very existence of the species of man a condition precarious and full of terror” (147).
How do Victor’s justifications for destroying the female Creature reveal his anxieties about power, control, and the natural order? An interesting activity is using a Feminist Critical Lens to critique these two sentences. Why might a female "thinking and reasoning animal [...] refuse to comply"? What is Mary Shelley suggesting when she invokes the idea of this "thinking and reasoning" creature rejecting the agreements made by others and thus producing an entire "race of devils [...] who might make the very existence of the species of man [...] precarious and full of terror"? Why is this "thinking and reasoning" creature refusing to comply to society's expectation of her role as a mate so much more monstrous than the first creature? Do you see a paradox between Victor Frankenstein's worries about this female creature and his ever-compliant love, Elizabeth? Elaborate. Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Sunday night 3-9-2025!  The words that Shelley uses to describe Frankenstein's process of creation suggest that it is analogous to pregnancy and childbirth. Just as pregnant women in the 18th century were confined to a room before going into labor, Frankenstein describes himself as "emaciated with confinement" and beset by a "slow fever" (Shelly 55, 57). He repeatedly refers to his "midnight labors" and anticipates the day when his "labors would [...] end" (Shelley 55, 57). Why might Shelley compare the male protagonist's process of creation with a woman's biological process of giving birth? What is the purpose of the comparison?
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 100-150 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm tonight 2-24-2025! Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Thursday night 2-28-2025!
In this OPTIONAL blog post, please follow the directions on Google Classroom. No Secondary posting for this lecture.
Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume.  Click the image above to listen to the NYPL podcast, "Frankenstein: Our Dark Mirror." In this Primary Blog Post, please copy/paste the notes from your favorite chapter ONLY of the New York Public Library's podcast, Frankenstein: Our Dark Mirror. You may want to "flesh them out" (pun entirely intended) first, as your classmates will be reading and commenting on them this weekend.
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Thurs night, Feb 6th! Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Friday night, Feb 7th! In Part 1 of A Thousand Splendid Suns, Nana says the following to her daughter, Mariam: “Women like us. We endure. It’s all we have.” Select three distinct passages from Part 1 (add page #) that show how this sentiment informs Mariam’s life and how it relates to themes you believe will be intrinsic to the larger meaning of the novel. Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above):
--200-250 words --minimal errors in grammar and usage --thoughtful and thorough writing --Use the name that you were assigned in class as your nom de plume. --Be sure to add word count. --Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday night! --REMEMBER, this is a Practice Assessment and, therefore, will not be accepted late. There is often a sense of moral ambiguity that one can experience because of cultural conflict. I’ve often been faced with questions such as, "Do I believe this is right or wrong because of the way I was raised, or is it right or wrong because of a universal set of morals that all humans share?"  Reflect on these tensions for yourself, and compose a piece of personal writing addressing some (not all) of these questions:
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