The Prayvaganza

A public ceremony of arranged marriages, showcasing the regime's control over women's lives and Offred's observations.

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Procession to the Prayvaganza

Procession to the Prayvaganza The Walk Offred and Ofglen walk in their red dresses, two by two, to the Prayvaganza. They look like Dutch milkmaids on a wallpaper frieze. The lawns are picked clean of dandelions. The Checkpoint They are processed through the checkpoint. Offred longs for a dandelion, a symbol of freedom. She remembers making chains from them with her daughter. The Venue The Prayvaganza is held in a covered courtyard. Wives and daughters sit on chairs; Handmaids kneel on the cement floor behind a scarlet rope. Offred feels like an animal in a pen.

The Ceremony

The Ceremony The Commander's Speech A Commander leads the service, reading from the Bible: "Let the woman learn in silence." Offred tunes out. She thinks about the arranged marriages, the young girls in white. The Weddings Twenty Angels and twenty veiled daughters are married. The mothers give them away. Offred imagines the future: the girls will be stuck with their husbands, expected to produce children. The Whispering Ofglen whispers that the Commander should tell that to the Wives when they're into the sherry. Offred giggles internally. The ceremony drones on. She thinks about the obscenity of power.

After the Prayvaganza

After the Prayvaganza The Walk Out Offred and Ofglen walk out. Ofglen whispers that they know Offred is seeing the Commander alone. She asks what he wants. Offred says kinky sex, but it's more complicated. The Request Ofglen asks Offred to find out information and tell them. Offred agrees but feels conflicted. She is now a double agent, serving both the Commander and the resistance. The Danger Offred realizes the danger of her position. She must be careful. The Prayvaganza has exposed her to new risks.

summer, during Offred's posting

during the Prayvaganza

after the ceremony