The Handmaid's Tale Offred A Hero

That is the question. Offred is argued to be a heroine in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. Yes, the protagonist is capable of being rebellious and silently hints about it throughout the story. However, there is a no move big enough for our narrator to damage the society, therefore, she is weak like any other Handmaids before her. A hero is a someone who doesn’t think of themselves but others. Offred always think of what’s best for herself and refuse to act. In the beginning of the book, prisoners are stuck in some sort of a makeshift asylum and the narrator “yearned for the future” (Atwood 3). The ‘future’ suggests freedom and Offred and others wants to escape. She want to be an individual again and have her own life with Luke back. …show more content…
There is now lower chance of her escaping
Historical Notes states that the narrator escaped with help of “‘Nick’s’ engineering” (Atwood 311) This proves that Offred is not a hero since she is incapable of committing an act of escaping. Nick acts as a crutch for Offred’s escape as he is the only developed character in the story that accomplish the exact definition of the word, hero. He acts upon what’s best for others, not himself.
Comparing Offred to Moira, Moira is far more brave but not quite a hero. In a nutshell, she is a stronger version of the narrator and prone to taking risks. Moira doesn’t think of others, even going as far inflicting pain by a metallic cattle prod “into her [Aunt Elizabeth’s] ribs from behind.” (Atwood 130) in an effective attempt to escape. Yet, neither doesn’t match the definition of

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