![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Offred sometimes eavesdrops on Cora and Rita so she can learn something of the outside world. Offred wishes she were allowed to speak with the Marthas, but is forbidden to do so except when they discuss household duties. The “Wives” must wear blue dresses, and their unwed daughters wear white. They are “Marthas,” housekeepers and cooks, who must wear green dresses. She describes the other women in the house, Cora and Rita. When she leaves the house, she also wears a large hat that makes it difficult for anyone to see her face or for her to see anything except what is directly in front of her. Offred is a “Handmaid” and must wear a long red dress. The door has no lock, and it doesn’t shut all the way. There are no fixtures in the room by which anyone could hang herself. Offred now lives in a bedroom of a house with one window with shatterproof glass. At night, she and the other women whisper to each other, hoping to find someone who knew what happened to their friends and family. Outside, military guards, called “Angels,” patrolled the fence, but these men weren’t allowed to face the women. They slept on cots and were guarded by women called “Aunts.” The Aunts used cattle prods to keep the women from talking to each other. She remembers living in a gymnasium, later called the Red Center, with other women like herself. After America has undergone drastic political upheaval, a woman called Offred tells her story. ![]()
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