Butler VS Atwood by Emilee

Butler VS Atwood by Emilee - December 2024 Scholarship Essay

Dystopian literature often begins as fiction but increasingly mirrors reality. In The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, both authors examine censorship as a means of societal control, highlighting the power struggles within oppressive regimes. While Butler presents a chaotic, decentralized world, Atwood offers a more direct portrayal of censorship, resonating with contemporary issues.
Atwood’s protagonist, Offred, embodies the impact of a rigid system that dictates women’s lives and choices. She reflects on her isolation, writing, “spaces between so we could not talk,” emphasizing the enforced silence among women. This theme echoes today’s real-world attempts at censorship, such as efforts to ban social media platforms like TikTok to limit the spread of information. In contrast, Butler's Lauren navigates a chaotic environment where societal structures are crumbling. She describes “blocks of boarded-up buildings burning,” illustrating a world where essential resources, like water, are scarce, paralleling current inflation issues affecting housing, food, and energy.
Censorship profoundly shapes both women’s journeys. Offred yearns for change and a brighter future, stating, “We yearned for the future.” Her situation mirrors contemporary struggles for women’s rights and access to reproductive health. Atwood forewarns of potential future restrictions under initiatives like Project 2025, which could strip women of reproductive autonomy. Lauren, however, maintains a sardonic hope, wondering if society can avoid a complete descent into chaos. Both characters are shaped by their environments, yet their responses reflect their unique circumstances—Offred’s struggle for change contrasts with Lauren’s focus on survival.
The novels illustrate how censorship dictates societal choices and their consequences. In Atwood’s world, women are silenced yet still possess the potential for resistance. She writes, “If only we could talk to them… we still had our bodies,” suggesting that even within oppression, there is a yearning for agency. Butler highlights how neglect and chaos suppress freedom, with the grim reality that “unless it happens in front of a police station, there are never any witnesses.” This stark truth points to a larger systemic failure in both fictional worlds.
Atwood maintains that her depiction of Gilead is rooted in real societal trends, stating she “invented nothing” in her portrayal of women’s rights and reproductive issues. Both authors depict women as objects within corrupt systems, yet they also embody resilience and the fight for equality.
Ultimately, both The Handmaid’s Tale and Parable of the Sower explore censorship as a mechanism of power and societal control. Butler’s narrative shows how chaos can arise from neglect, while Atwood presents a more structured yet equally oppressive system. Dystopian themes often reflect societal fears, and Atwood’s predictions about censorship and women's rights remain alarmingly relevant today. This raises a poignant question: will we ever rise against such systemic oppression?