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Bun-Dle Buggies: never fully explained,
bun-dle buggies seem to be some kind of
moving vehicle that either distributes
pornography or provides some kind of
sexual service. They were outlawed soon
after the suspension of the Constitution.
The
Handmaid’s Tale
Glossary
Colonies: mostly sites that need to be
cleaned up in the wake of war, chemical
spills, or other environmental upheavals.
Colonies also supposedly include sites of
plantations that were growing things like
cotton and tobacco. Unwomen, men who
tried to help women escape, unrepenting
nuns, older women, etc. are sent there to
work until they die.
Agent Orange: a codename for an
herbicide and defoliant used by US troops,
intended to remove groundcover used in
enemy troops, especially in tropical combat
zones. An estimated 20 million gallons of
herbicide was used in the Vietnam War. US
veterans suffering from Agent Orange
exposure experience many health
problems, including cancer, and nerve,
digestive, skin and respiratory disorders.
Commander: men who have the position of
Commander in the army of Gilead. Only
men of this or comparable status are
allowed to take a wife and given
Handmaids. These men have a great deal
of power, but they are also very vulnerable
to the loss of that power, for the regime
tends to purge itself every few years.
Angels: soldiers. They fight to expand
Gilead's borders.
Art nouveau: a style of art and architecture
of the 1890s, characterized by swelling
sinuous outlines and stylized natural forms,
such as flowers and leaves.
Compunumber: after paper money was
disposed of, people began making
transactions using a compunumber that was
assigned to them. The future has become
digital; consider related words
Compuaccount, Compubank, Compubite,
Compucard, Compuchek, Compucount,
Compudoc, Compuphone, and Computalk.
Aunt: an infertile woman who has been
given a position of command over other
women. She will not be sent to the Colonies
or disposed of, and in exchange she must
keep the Handmaids in line and assist with
official duties such as births, Prayvaganzas,
and Salvagings. Most likely the Aunts are
"true believers" who had a certain amount of
power before the regime.
Econowife: men without power or money,
but who had legal wives before the Gilead
take-over, were allowed to keep their wives,
but were not assigned Marthas or
Handmaids. Thus, these women are called
Econowives, because they must fill the
function of all the other "kinds" of women.
Baptists: a protestant movement that
subscribes to the practice of adult baptism
as an expression of free will. Notable
American Baptists include Johnny Cash,
Martin Luther King, Jr., Britney Spears, and
Jimmy Carter.
Eurydice: a figure from Greek Mythology.
Orpheus and Eurydice were passionately in
love, but one day Eurydice was bitten by a
serpent and died. Orpheus, son of the God
of music and poetry, Apollo, went to the
King of the Underworld, Hades, and begged
for the return of his beloved. Hades' hard
Birthmobiles: ambulance-like vans that
pick up wives and Handmaids (separately)
to go to the women in labor.
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heart was touched, and he agreed to return
Eurydice, but only if Orpheus could walk out
of the underworld without once looking back
to make sure Eurydice was with him. After
walking for a long time, just as he was about
to leave the cave that lead to the
underworld, Orpheus looked back. He saw
Eurydice just as she was snatched back
below the earth.
Identipass: universal identification cards
used to move around Gilead. An identipass
is necessary to move through a checkpoint.
Eyes- a network of spies and secret police
working on to maintaining social order in
Gilead.
Keeper: a physically acceptable baby.
Jezebel: an old-fashioned term for a woman
who is regarded as evil or morally corrupt. It
comes from an Old Testament story about a
Phoenician Princess named Jezebel who
encouraged idolatry.
Libertheos: a military enemy of Gilead,
perhaps fighting for religious freedom.
Feels on Wheels: a truck that provided
sexual acts for a fee and was outlawed
soon after the suspension of the
Constitution. The name is a pun on "Meals
on Wheels", an organization that provides
meals for the elderly and terminally ill.
Martha: a woman without viable ovaries
who acts as a cook or general servant in the
house of a Commander. Most were
presumably in similar jobs before the
regime.
Gender Traitor: a homosexual or lesbian.
The punishment for gender traitors is death
by hanging.
Memorial Hall: nineteenth century High
Victorian Gothic building erected in the
1870s to commemorate those Harvard
graduates who fought for the Union during
the American Civil War.
Guardian of the Faith: one of the armies of
Gilead, but not as important or powerful as
the Angels. The Guardians' jobs range from
standing at checkpoints and helping the
Wives dig their gardens, to keeping an eye
on Commanders and their houses.
Handmaid: a woman with viable ovaries
who pre-Gilead was either divorced, married
to a man who had been divorced, or
(presumably) had reached a certain age
without ever marrying. The Handmaids are
assigned to a Commander for a period of
two years. If they conceive and give birth to
a baby (rather than an un-baby), they will
continue to serve as Handmaids until their
term is up, but they will never be sent to the
Colonies. After two years, a Handmaid is
moved to a different house. After three
houses, if the Handmaid had not had a
child, she is sent to the Colonies or
"shredded".
Nolite te bastardes carborundorum: a
variation of the mock-Latin phrase Illegitimi
non carborundum (Don’t let the bastards
grind you down). The phrase originated
during World War II. US Army general
"Vinegar" Joe Stilwell retained it as his
motto during the war. Later, it was
popularized by 1964 presidential candidate
Barry Goldwater. Illegitimi non carborundum
is the first line of the unofficial college fight
song “Ten Thousand Men of Harvard.”
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Particicution: a ceremony during which the
Handmaids are encouraged to physically
punish an enemy of the regime for alleged
crimes against women.
Pornomarts: stores selling pornography,
which were outlawed soon after the
suspension of the Constitution.
Prayvaganza: public ceremonies
segregated by gender. Women's are usually
for group marriages, men's for military
victories.
Shredder- see Unbaby.
Quakers: a protestant religious movement
(Religious Society of Friend’s) known in US
history especially for practicing pacifism and
opposing slavery. Notable American
Quakers include Dolley Madison, Edward R.
Murrow, John Greenleaf Whittier, Susan B.
Anthony, Levi Coffin, and Richard M. Nixon.
Salvaging: public executions, also
segregated by gender. Particicutions also
take place at women's Salvagings.
Save the Women Societies: societies
formed in other countries to try and help the
women of Gilead. Probably similar in form
and content to anti-slavery societies formed
in other countries during the period before
the American Civil War.
Rachel and Leah Centers: centers where
women are re-educated to prepare them for
being Handmaids.
The Republic of Gilead: the name of the
new country that stands in the place of what
used to be the United States of America.
Sectarian Roundups: governmentsponsored purges of people belonging to
religious groups other than that supported
by the Gilead state.
The Sabine Women: possibly The Rape of
the Sabine Women (below) by Nicolas
Poussin (1594-1665). In legend,
vanquishing Roman soldiers abducted
women of the Sabine to take as their brides.
The reference may also be intended for The
Intervention of the Sabine Women by
Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825). The
reference is not clear. Both works are
permanent exhibits at the Louvre in Paris.
Sons of Jacob Think Tanks: the groups
that originally devised the general plan for
Gilead, including how they would take over
the government and how they would reorder society.
Soul Scrolls: machines that write out
prayers. They are automated, so people can
call a number and punch in the number of a
prayer and their compuaccount number,
and purchase prayers that will be written out
by the machines.
Sufi: a religious movement in Islam.
According to Alan Godlas, University of
Georgia, Sufism is “the inner, mystical, or
psycho-spiritual dimension of Islam.”
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Les Sylphides: a ballet blanc
(choreographed by Michael Fokine, set to
the music of Frédéric Chopin) first
performed in St. Petersburg, Russia, in
1907. The ballet has no plot. In the ballet,
several “sylphs” dressed in white and one
male dancer, also dressed in white, dance
in the moonlight.
The Wall: the wall that used to encircle part
of Harvard University's main campus.
The Whore of Babylon: the allegorical
idolatress prophesied in the Book of
Revelations. She is the embodiment of evil.
She is referred to as a mystery, and as
such, many religious bodies throughout
history, including the Roman Catholic
Church and Islam, have been branded the
Whore of Babylon by their enemies.
Testifying: one of the activities at the Reeducation Center. Testifying involves
sharing misdeeds such as illicit sexual
activities (including rape), abortions, etc.
from previous lives while the Aunts lead the
other women in a chant condemning the
speaker. This activity is supposed to help
Handmaids understand why they deserve and are even lucky - to be in this position.
Unbaby: a baby born with abnormalities
that make it unable to survive or otherwise
unacceptable.
Underground Femaleroad: similar to the
Underground Railroad from the abolition
era, the Underground Femaleroad is a
network of safe houses through which
people attempt to smuggle women out of
the country, usually into Canada.
Unwoman: a woman without viable ovaries
who does not serve any useful purpose for
society, and who is either sent to the
Colonies or killed.
Venus de Milo: ancient Greek statue of
Aphrodite. Currently a permanent exhibit at
the Louvre in Paris.
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