Sons of Jacob
The Sons of Jacob were the clandestine group of architects who conceived and engineered the Republic of Gilead. Operating through a series of top-secret think tanks, they synthesized religious fundamentalism, sociobiological theory, and brutal political strategy into the totalitarian system that would overtake the United States. Their meetings, the records of which were largely destroyed during the later Great Purge, produced the foundational philosophy and social structure of the regime, making them the single most influential force in Gilead's creation.
Origins and Ideology
The Sons of Jacob think tanks were organized shortly after the recognition of the superpower arms stalemate and the signing of the classified Spheres of Influence Accord. This geopolitical context left the superpowers free to deal with internal rebellions without external interference, creating the opportunity for a radical domestic takeover. The group drew on a range of sources, including sociobiological theories of natural polygamy, which were used as a scientific justification for the regime's practices. The official records of their meetings were later destroyed during the middle-period Great Purge, which also liquidated several of the original architects. However, some information survived through the cipher diary of Wilfred Limpkin, a sociobiologist who was present at the meetings but did not long survive the inception of Gilead itself.
Key Figures and Contributions
Two primary candidates for the most influential members emerge from the surviving evidence: Frederick R. Waterford and B. Frederick Judd. Waterford, with a background in market research, was responsible for the design of the female costumes, notably suggesting the Handmaids wear red—a color he borrowed from the uniforms of German prisoners of war in Canadian camps. He also originated the term "Particicution," lifting it from an exercise program, though the collective rape ceremony itself was suggested by a seventeenth-century English village custom. The term "Salvaging" may also have been his, though it had spread from its origin in the Philippines to become a general term for eliminating political enemies. Judd, by contrast, was more concerned with tactics. He suggested using an obscure CIA pamphlet on destabilizing foreign governments as a strategic handbook and drew up the early hit lists of prominent Americans. He is suspected of orchestrating the President's Day Massacre, which allowed the Constitution to be suspended. Judd also devised the National Homelands and the Jewish boat-person plans, privatizing the Jewish repatriation scheme with the result that some boatloads of Jews were simply dumped into the Atlantic to maximize profits. He is credited with devising the form of the Particicution ceremony, arguing it would serve as a steam valve for the female population.
The Role of the Aunts
Judd was of the opinion that the most cost-effective way to control women for reproductive and other purposes was through women themselves, a strategy with many historical precedents. The implementation of this idea, however, bore Waterford's mark. It was he who came up with the notion that the Aunts should take names derived from commercial products available to women in the pre-Gilead period—names of cosmetic lines, cake mixes, and medicinal remedies—to make them seem familiar and reassuring. This system offered women who were childless, infertile, or unmarried a way to escape redundancy and shipment to the Colonies, providing a powerful incentive for collaboration.
Legacy and Significance
The Sons of Jacob's genius was synthesis rather than originality, combining elements from various historical periods and ideologies into a uniquely oppressive system. Their work created a society where women were rigidly controlled, reproduction was state-mandated, and political dissent was brutally suppressed. The regime they built, though patriarchal in form, was occasionally matriarchal in content, as the Aunts wielded significant power over other women. The Sons of Jacob's blueprint ultimately led to a totalitarian state that redrew the map of the world, and their legacy remains a subject of intense study for understanding how such systems can emerge from seemingly stable societies.
