Margaret Atwood "The Handmaid's tale"

Atwood-The Handmaid's tale

Did the book flash my feminist spirit? No and no.

The role of women in the imaginary society created by Margaret Atwood is "functional" but not diverse. Either you  are a Commander's wife (and must be present during your husband's  sexual intercourse with his Handmaid), or a Handmaid, and your role is limited to procreation. You may also be declared as Unwoman (women who are not able to have children) and sentenced to colonies where they die very quickly, or you can become Marthas (cooking, cleaning etc), there is also a possibility to become a sterile Prostitute for Commanders in a secret brothel. 

Handmaids are supposed to give birth and leave the child to the Commander's family. Then go to another house to fulfill the same duties. Each Handmaid has 2-3 - years for reproduction, afterwards they are deported to colonies. 

Everything is reduced to the cold functionality,robotic humanity. Frivolity is excluded  in every aspect of life - full dress covering bodies, "butterflies" in the collars, rigid Puritan traditions, no cosmetics, no books.

The handmaid, the main character of the book, is deprived of her name,  her husband, and her daughter.  She does not have clothes except for the hideous red robe symbolizing fertility and white wings covering her face. She does not have even a possibility to commit suicide. 

I read some reviews and many women are horrified by the fate of women in this book.  This  book is considered to be feminist. 

In fact, Margaret Atwood created a society in which men are just as unhappy as women. If you are one of the Commanders and do not have children with your wife, you are entitled to have a couple of Handmaids. The way Commanders have interscourse with their Handmaids, can make some men impotent:)  Men of lower ranking do not have rights to get married! Homosexuals are executed and their dead bodies hung from the city wall. If you flirt with Handmaids you will end up at the city wall. It seems that in a new society  women are supressed and the world belongs to men, but what exactly does this new society offer to men? Most of books and professions are banned. Due to military regime, a lot of men work as guards or patrol, which is as dull as being Marthas. Those citizens (men and women) who are involved in resistance, or simply do not agree with the regime are executed too. So why this book is feminist? I did not get that.

Charlie McGee: deadly dangerous child (Firestarter)

For those who like suspense.

"Firestarter" is a novel about a little girl who has the ability of pyrokinesis, which is the ability to light or control fire with the mind. The book is written in the genre of mystical thriller with elements of paranoia drama. Andy McGee and his daughter, Charlie, are in the center of the story. Andy had once taken part in a crazy scientist's experiment where for two hundred bucks he agreed to take the drug with an unusual name. As a result of experiments, Andy was able to manipulate others by controlling their minds.  During the experiment, Andy met a girl named Vicki, who later became his wife and gave birth to Charlie who soon impressed the parents by her strong ability of pyrokinesis.

Charlie from an early age was instilled fear of her unusual gift and as a result, the girl was afraid to hurt someone. At the same time her ability absorbed her, Charlie enjoyed using the gift. Her ability became stronger every time she torched something. The kid got acquainted with the feeling of guilt from the first years of life, which influenced greatly her perception of the world. She had quite a high intellect for her seven years; moreover, her ability of pyrokinesis was accompanied by a supernatural intuition.

The relationship between Andy and Charlie is remarkable. Andy loved his daughter into oblivion, going to extreme measures, desperately trying to protect her. However, upon reading the book you get the impression that Charlie knew very well that it was rather her powerful gift which was able to protect the father. She did not use her power, apparently, only out of fear that her father would not forgive her.

And yet, when the force within her reached the boiling point, Charlie let herself go and made a real firestorm. In this way she took revenge on those who broke the life of her father and freed herself.

A lot of questions hang in the air after reading the book, the foremost among them is “what happened next?” However, there is no answer to this question, the reader can only speculate on that.

Laura Van Wormer "Expose"

They say the image of a woman presented in modern literature, is far from the images of Jane Eyre and Elizabeth Bennet. Is this so? I think it is not. Time has changed, I would say the decor has changed, but, in fact, the strength of the character and the challenge to society have remained the same. What do you think? Who from the modern literature may compete with Jane Eyre?

Let’s take, for example, the main characters of the novel "Expose" by Laura Van Wormer. There are three different women. Verity Rhodes is a successful publisher of the best American glossy magazine, which is going to publish materials about Cassy Cochran, president of the Darenbrook Broadcasting System. Verity Rhodes has a hidden agenda and wants Sally Harrington, principal heroine of the book, to play her game. Sally is the most interesting character - a young journalist from the province, who by mere chance finds herself in the center of mass-media life in New York. She gets a chance to become famous and make a brilliant career just by profiling Cassy. And of course, Sally is not going to miss the chance.  It appears in the process that her way lays through hardship to the stars. Dirty secrets, envy, jealousy and murder wait for Sally on the road to success. And, as it happens always in novels, happiness and success will come from an entirely unexpected source.

Sally Harrington is a simple girl, charming in her simple, at first glance, feelings. It is clearly shown how she makes choices between unfair and right, appropriate and inappropriate, passion and habit. The characters as Sally Harrington, imperfect and due to that even more attractive, that modern readers might like.

The entire narrative is permeated with the main motif - any woman can achieve the heights, only the higher you climb the harder you fall, and be ready to be tripped up cruelly. The book shows that any, even the most ordinary woman can become successful and loved. Just give a little bit of try and happiness will glide like a bird in your hands.

Stephen King "Carrie"

"Carrie" by Stephen King is one of his works where the story revolves around teenagers.

Carrie White lives with her mother-schizophrenic, a fanatical believer, who thinks that her daughter is a devil incarnate. Her life in school is far from being good, classmates mock at her in every possible way, and she can not respond to them. For a time no one suspects what a terrible power lays dormant inside this rejected by all, untidy girl, no one except her mother, who, in spite of her madness, feels Carrie’s strangeness and fears her.

King portrayed masterfully the inner world of a teenage girl, who has no friends and normal family. Carrie continues to be abject and fearful even after she learns about her gift of telekinesis. She begins to thaw just after she is invited to the prom. However, a few kind words are not enough when you are hated throughout the life. Carrie, feeling that she can live a better life, no longer is able to return to her past. So when the bullying continues, she tries to defend herself, she has already changed. The only thing her powers now are much greater than those of an ordinary man, which she demonstrates in the book.

In addition to the main character in the novel, there are other interesting characters, among them, Sue Snell, a classmate of Carrie. She is a slightly exaggerated example of a person tormented by guilt. Unlike many others, she later regrets her behavior, and this is the cause of her suffering. Here, however, the question arises: what is better - to live with the guilt, or have a horrible death, until the last minute thinking you are on the right path?

Dan Brown "The Lost Symbol"

Dan Brown-The Lost Symbol

What if a woman does a serious business? I mean, Dr. Katherine Solomon, from the novel "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown. She is a classical image of a woman who devoted her life to noesis. She has a realistic, sober look at life and she is in charge of her brother Peter, also an outstanding scientist, who cannot orientate himself in real life. By the way, Katherine is herself a scientist of a high rank.

Everything has its price. Katherine Solomon has no family. Dan Brown is one of those authors who recognize two types of women: kitchen or laboratory. That is, of course, a very convenient way to work with your personages, but there are thousands of women who combine scientific work with marriage and raising children. With all the versatility of Katherine’s talents, she looks a bit dry; femininity in her life is absent and manifests itself only in respect of her genius brother.

I can not judge the author. He did not set himself the task to demonstrate the image from all sides. The book is good without it. But still, I felt somewhat disappointed - the world of Dan Brown is driven only by men.