Offred, now a Handmaid in Gilead, lives under strict rules: daily trips to picture‑sign markets, monthly sexual ceremony with the Commander in hopes of pregnancy, and she reflects on her lost past with husband Luke and daughter.
Women are confined to a repurposed gymnasium, sleeping on army cots under dim lights while Aunt Sara and Aunt Elizabeth patrol with electric cattle prods; the “Angels” (guards) guard the perimeter, and the women develop a silent network of whispers, lip‑reading, and hand‑touch to exchange names such as Alma, Janine, Dolores, Moira, and June.
Offred provides a detailed description of her Red Center room—the chair, lamp, half‑opening window, wooden floor, rug, flower print, lack of glass, and the bell that marks time. She notes her red uniform elements (shoes, gloves, skirt, wings) and the symbolism of blood. She moves through the hallway, observing the runner carpet, grandfather clock, front sitting room, fanlight, mirror, and umbrella stand with distinct umbrellas for the Commander, his Wife, and herself. In the kitchen she meets Rita, a Martha, who hands her three tokens after kneading bread and engages in a brief, tense dialogue about the colonists, reproductive control, and the token exchange system. Rita’s sister‑like companion Cora appears, discussing the Colonies and the risk of “Unwomen.” Offred reflects on the enforced isolation, the desire for touch, and the invented term “sororize.” The chapter ends with Offred receiving tokens for fresh eggs and a chicken, cementing the quotidian barter system in the Red Center.
Offred meets the Commander’s Wife for the first time; the Wife’s garden, knitting, and black‑market cigarettes are described; a tense initial confrontation over Offred’s arrival and belongings occurs; Offred identifies the Wife as Serena Joy, revealing her public persona and personal cruelty.
Offred meets Nick, a low‑status Guardian who works on the household car and is hinted to be an “Eye”; she is paired with a new Handmaid walking partner, Ofglen, and they exchange the standard greetings while discussing war news; they pass a checkpoint guarded by two very young Guardians, experience a brief, almost‑defiant eye‑contact moment, and Offred reflects on the power dynamics of the encounter.
Offred and Ofglen leave the Red Center, walk through Gilead’s residential streets, shop at Milk and Honey and All Flesh, encounter a visibly pregnant Handmaid (Janine), observe a group of Japanese tourists and an interpreter, and reflect on the regime’s imposed “freedom from” and their own constrained happiness.
Offred and Ofglen take a detour past All Flesh, stop at an old museum‑church, then view the Wall where six newly‑hanged men—identified as former doctors by fetal‑drawn placards—are displayed under floodlights, prompting Offred’s stark reflections on the regime’s punishment and Ofglen’s ritualistic posture.
Offred spends a solitary night reflecting on language, memory, and imagined scenes. She recalls a conversation with Moira about a school paper on date rape, visualizes a public burning of magazines/books attended by her mother and other women, witnesses a woman in a white dress being shown in a photograph, and engages in meta‑reflection that the chapter may be a story she tells herself.
Three newly hanged bodies appear on the Wall—a priest in a black cassock and two Guardians labeled “Gender Treachery.” Offred and Ofglen observe a funeral procession of three Econowives, one carrying a black jar of a still‑born fetus. Offred and Ofglen exchange the “Under His Eye” farewell before passing the barrier again. In the driveway Nick polishes the Whirlwind and silently acknowledges Offred’s walk. Offred reflects on Aunt Lydia’s warning about Wives. In the garden she watches the Commander’s Wife, Serena Joy (real name Pam), whose public speeches and failed assassination attempts are recalled; she notes Serena’s silent, withered presence. Back at the house Offred enters the kitchen, offers Rita oranges from Milk and Honey, and discusses a chicken; Cora arrives and comments on the food. Finally, the Commander appears alone in the hallway of Offred’s room, violates protocol, then steps aside without speaking.
Offred discovers a faint, fresh‑scratched Latin‑sounding phrase “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum” hidden in the corner of her cupboard, adopts it as a private mantra, and learns from Rita that previous Handmaids have left messages and that an underground grapevine exists among the women.
Offred recalls outlawed songs, endures Aunt Lydia’s moral lecture, meets Moira who offers contraband and proposes illicit business, watches the Commander and Nick arrive in a car and contemplates violent retaliation, revealing her conflicted feelings toward the regime.
Offred’s compulsory monthly medical exam introduces a talkative doctor who secretly offers her a chance of pregnancy by using his own fertility, revealing the existence of fertile men and the lethal risk of illicit intercourse.
Offred takes a private bath, reflecting on her pre‑Gilead life, a ghost child she once knew, and Aunt Lydia’s teachings; she notices the tattoo on her ankle that marks her as a national resource, then dresses, receives a modest dinner from Cora, and secretly hides a pat of butter in her shoe for later use.
Moira is re‑introduced when she is brought into the gymnasium during a catnap; the Handmaids observe her bruised face and the red dress prepared for her. The Aunts enforce a daily “rest and meditation” routine that includes lying on Japanese mats while a tape of Les Sylphides plays, and later a “catnap” that is actually a conditioning exercise. Janine’s Testifying session is described in detail: she recounts a gang‑rape and an abortion, the class chants “her fault” under Aunt Helena’s direction, and Janine later blames herself, prompting Aunt Lydia to praise her as an example. The narrator describes a secret communication spot in the boys’ washroom: a hole in the wooden stall where she whispers to Moira, confirming their location and sharing a cigarette. The chapter also contains the narrator’s extended internal monologue about boredom, animal experiments (pig balls, rats, pigeons), and a vivid bodily metaphor that frames her uterus as a dark pear‑shaped object with a monthly moon. These elements deepen the portrayal of imposed idle time, surveillance, and the Handmaids’ covert attempts at connection.
Offred witnesses the evening Ceremony in the sitting‑room, describing the décor, Serena Joy’s arrival, Nick’s close presence, and a state‑run news broadcast about the war, “Resettlement of the Children of Ham,” and Quaker arrests. Afterwards she recalls a detailed escape plan with Luke: a Saturday morning car trip, forged passports, stolen jewellery, a sleeping pill for their daughter, a border checkpoint, and the intended route to “National Homeland One.”
The Commander breaks protocol and reads a locked Bible aloud to the Handmaids, prompting a silent prayer that ends with his biblical sign‑off and dismissal. Serena Joy silently weeps during the reading. Offred internally repeats the hidden mantra “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum.” The chapter also flashes back to Moira’s botched escape attempt, the ambulance raid, her brutal punishment and swollen, crippled feet.
The monthly Ceremony is performed with Offred lying between Serena Joy’s legs under a white canopy while the Commander penetrates her; the scene details the stark, clinical nature of the ritual, Serena’s controlling grip, the Commander's detached demeanor and appearance, and the post‑act instructions that highlight the power imbalance and lack of intimacy.
Offred secretly moisturises her skin with butter hidden in her shoe, performs a nocturnal ritual of buttering herself, and then sneaks through the house at night. She attempts to take a small item, settles on stealing dried daffodils to leave for the next Handmaid, and is caught by Nick, a Guardian. Nick reveals he was sent by the Commander, who wants to see Offred in his office the next day.
Offred, trembling in bed, drifts into a vivid, fragmented inner monologue about Luke’s possible fate—imagining him dead in a thicket, shot, or imprisoned—while yearning for physical love. She constructs multiple contradictory narratives: Luke as a corpse, as a captive being tortured, and as a fugitive aided by a resistance network that might smuggle him inland. She clings to hope for a secret message that will rescue her and reunite them, believing in “thought transference” and in a hidden resistance. The chapter ends with her reflecting on a gravestone bearing an anchor, hourglass, and the words “In Hope,” pondering whether hope belongs to the dead or the living.
Offred awakens from a disorienting dream, suspects drugging, and notes the missing “Faith,” “Hope,” and “Charity” cushions. After a ritualistic breakfast centered on an egg, she hears the distant siren, sees the red Birthmobile arrive, and, with Cora’s help, dons her cloak and boards the vehicle with other Handmaids, including Ofwarren (Janine). Inside the Birthmobile, the women exchange nervous greetings; Ofwarren embraces Offred tearfully. The van departs amid the siren’s wail, and Aunt Lydia delivers a didactic lecture in the birthing center about declining birth rates, the probability of “Unbabies,” and the glorified role of Handmaids, punctuated by a graph and carvings on desks. She condemns past reproductive failures and urges sacrifice. The van stops, Guardians herd the Handmaids out, and a separate blue Birthmobile for the Commander’s Wife (Serena Joy) arrives, emphasizing the hierarchy of birthing rituals. Offred reflects on environmental contamination, genetic defects, and the oppressive language of the regime throughout the chapter.
Offred attends a Commander’s promotion ceremony where the Wife of Warren (a thin woman in a nightgown) is celebrated; Janine (Ofwarren) is laid on a king‑size bed, prepared with baby‑oil and a birthing stool while Aunt Elizabeth watches, and Aunt Lydia delivers a doctrinal speech about the “transitional generation.” Afterwards the Handmaids gather for their weekly movie session, viewing a succession of films—from harmless geography documentaries to graphic pornographic violence and an “Unwoman” documentary—culminating in a protest film that shows a young version of Offred’s own mother holding a banner reading “TAKE BACK THE NIGHT” and other feminist slogans, prompting Offred’s personal reflections on her mother, her own advanced pregnancy, and the regime’s reproductive politics.
Janine (referred to as Ofwarren) goes into labor, delivers a baby girl who is named Angela by the Commander’s Wife; the birthing ceremony is carried out with chanting, Aunt Elizabeth’s assistance, and the presence of other Handmaids, Wives, and a Martha. After the birth, the baby is given to Janine for nursing, the naming ceremony concludes, and the Birthmobile returns the Handmaids to their households. Offred reflects on Luke and the meaning of the new “women’s culture.”
After the Birthmobile ride, Offred returns home, exhausted, and lies in bed, drifting into a vivid memory of Moira’s rebellion. Through Janine’s retelling of Aunt Lydia’s interrogation, the chapter details Moira’s sabotage of a toilet, her capture and hostage‑taking of Aunt Elizabeth, the use of a cattle‑prod and a whistle, the forced walk to the furnace room, the swapping of clothes, the binding of Aunt Elizabeth, and Moira’s daring exit past the Angels. The story ends with Moira disappearing, leaving the Handmaids to wonder whether she is alive, dead, or still a threat, reinforcing the theme of fragile alliances among the women.
Offred secretly enters the Commander’s private study, where he proposes a game of Scrabble; they play two rounds, after which he asks her to kiss him. She kisses him, he pulls away and rejects the intimacy, hinting at his control over the encounter. The scene is framed as a reconstruction, with Offred reflecting on forgiveness, power, and even a imagined plan to kill the Commander.
Offred reflects on the need for visual perspective and describes herself physically, recalling a childhood documentary about a Holocaust overseer’s mistress and its terrifying reinterpretation. She experiences a sudden, uncontrollable laughter fit, hides in a cupboard, discovers the scratched Latin phrase “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum,” and adopts it as a personal mantra. She also recounts the Commander’s invitation to play Scrabble and his request for a kiss, contemplating how his desire might become a leverage point or downfall, while recalling Aunt Lydia’s teachings on manipulating men.
Offred falls in the kitchen and Cora helps hide the accident; she watches Serena Joy pruning in the garden; the secret hat‑signal for clandestine meetings with the Commander is explained; the Commander initiates Scrabble games, gives her a 1970s Vogue magazine, and later supplies hand lotion, deepening a covert, transactional intimacy.
After a second Ceremony, Offred notices a new awkwardness and self‑consciousness; she feels the Commander may actually be looking at her, experiences jealousy toward Serena Joy, and recognizes a subtle power shift that makes her feel both guilty and privileged, while Aunt Lydia’s prophetic promise of future female harmony is recalled.
Offred and Ofglen walk the summer street, visit the empty Wall, discuss Luke and the Library, stop at the Soul Scrolls prayer‑machine franchise, and witness a pair of Eyes in a black van seize and silently eliminate a civilian, underscoring the ever‑present threat of the regime.
After the national catastrophe, the narrator fails to purchase cigarettes when her Compucard is rejected, is abruptly fired from her library “discing” job by a drunken director, and is ordered to leave under threat of armed men. She returns home to find her mother and Moira unreachable, learns that a new law now forbids women from owning property and that all Compucards have been frozen. Moira, now working for a women’s collective, confirms the accounts are locked and offers limited help. Luke comforts the narrator but their sexual intimacy is strained, and Nick, a young Guardian, appears at the house, prompting speculation about his loyalties. The narrator also reflects on past riots, the collapse of government, and the ongoing oppression under the new regime.
Offred engages in a Scrabble game with the Commander, discovers the phrase “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum” hidden in her cupboard, and learns its meaning (“Don’t let the bastards grind you down”) after the Commander reveals it was a juvenile Latin joke from his school days. The Commander shares details about his work as a scientist and mentions Serena’s suicide and the removal of a light fixture, while Offred questions whether to continue these clandestine meetings and asks to learn “whatever there is to know.”
Offred spends a sleepless night alone in the house, watches Nick appear briefly outside her window, and internally revisits the night they fled with Luke, the forced killing of their cat, the betrayal that led to their capture, and her solitary prayer to an uncertain God, reinforcing her guilt, fear of betrayal, and the regime’s moral indoctrination.
Offred reflects on her physical decline and aging, notes the two bodies marked with a red “J” on the Wall, learns Ofglen’s secret password “Mayday” for the underground network, and receives a covert invitation from Serena Joy to help her become pregnant, including a suggestion to use Nick. Serena gives Offred a cigarette and tells her where to find a match, while Offred internally debates colluding with the Commander’s Wife.
Rita hands Offred a match and an ice cube, prompting Offred’s contemplation of smoking and the possibility of using fire as a means of rebellion. Offred reflects on the Commander’s recent drunken conversation, wherein he laments men’s loss of purpose, their disengagement from sex and marriage, and muses that “better” for some means “worse” for others, while physically placing his hands on her shoulders and demanding her opinion.
Offred and Ofglen attend the district Prayvaganza, are herded into a cordoned red‑rope enclosure, kneel, and listen to whispered gossip. Offred spots Janine, now thin and paired with a new woman, and learns from Ofglen that Janine has suffered two miscarriages—including an eighth‑month loss and a baby that was “shredded.” The conversation reveals Janine’s likely transfer to a new household and the death of her baby, Angela. The chapter then shifts to a flashback of an earlier morning in the Red Center: Janine remains in a white nightgown, Alma and Offred approach her, and Moira intervenes, violently slapping Janine, berating her, and warning her about the Infirmary, Colonies, and the Chemistry Lab. Janine eventually tries to dress herself under Moira’s harsh commands.
The narrator recounts a desperate escape attempt with Luke: they drive toward the border with forged passports, are stopped by soldiers, Luke reverses, they flee on a dirt road into woods, and ultimately abandon the car to run toward a cottage or boat. Throughout the flight the narrator muses on love, the phrase “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum,” and the futility of resistance. Later, in the present setting, Serena Joy arrives with a Polaroid photograph of a woman in a white dress, handing it to the narrator, who feels erased by the image. The narrator eats creamed corn with a fork (no knife allowed) and reflects on being a “refugee from the past.”