Aunt Helena
Aunt Helena is one of the four Founding Aunts of Gilead, a senior figure at Ardua Hall who, despite her high rank, is characterized by her physical frailty, weak will, and tendency to follow the prevailing wind, making her the most pliable and least formidable of the Founders.
Identity and Background
Aunt Helena is one of the four women who, along with Aunt Lydia, Aunt Elizabeth, and Aunt Vidala, were established as the Founders of the Aunts' system in Gilead. Her portrait hangs in the Vidala Schools, though in a silver frame, a rank below the gold-framed portraits of Baby Nicole and Aunt Lydia. Before Gilead, she worked for a lucrative weight-loss company and later did PR work for a high-fashion lingerie company, where she acquired an extensive shoe collection. This past is a source of nostalgia she once mourned openly before being shut down by Aunt Vidala. Her feet are ruined from wearing five-inch Blahnik stilettos in her youth, a vanity that would get her denounced under the regime she helped build.
Role and Character at Ardua Hall
Aunt Helena is the weakest of the three Founders who oppose Aunt Lydia. She is described as plump in the early days of Gilead, though she has dwindled since. She is the most unsure of herself among the Founders, and Aunt Lydia judges that she will follow the prevailing wind. Aunt Lydia considers her the easiest to steer. She is prone to hysterics, as when a Supplicant was found dead in the rooftop rainwater cistern. She is also a stickler for rules and protocol, once stamping her foot for emphasis during a discussion about Operation Dead End, a plan to eliminate the female emigrant problem. She is deeply concerned with the reputation of Ardua Hall, expressing horror at the thought of shame being brought upon it by a potential traitor.
Relationships and Conflict
Aunt Helena is part of the triumvirate—along with Aunt Elizabeth and Aunt Vidala—that is eager to overthrow Aunt Lydia. She is a frequent visitor to Aunt Lydia's office, often bringing complaints or suspicions. She once reported to Aunt Lydia that Aunt Victoria had been reading her own Bloodlines file without authorization, a move that Aunt Lydia suspected was instigated by Aunt Vidala. Aunt Lydia manipulates this dynamic, setting Aunt Helena to spy on Aunt Vidala by claiming she fears Vidala is the traitor within Ardua Hall. Aunt Helena eagerly accepts this commission, happy to have been given a purpose. She is also a regular presence at the bedside of the comatose Aunt Vidala, taking turns sitting with her, waiting for her first words.
Change and Ending
Aunt Helena does not undergo a significant personal transformation. She remains a secondary, reactive figure throughout the narrative, her actions largely dictated by the stronger personalities around her. Her final role is as a passive participant in the power struggles at Ardua Hall, her fate left uncertain as the regime begins to crumble. She is a figure of the regime's internal decay, a once-ambitious woman reduced to a nervous, limping functionary.
