Serena’s dialogue is also another indication of her power and how she intimidates Offred, The first time she is presented to the reader her first words are ‘so you’re the new one’ these are not warm and inviting as you would expect from someone who is meeting someone for the first time. This demonstrates Serena as a hostile and abrupt character who has not much feeling.
Her actions on their first meeting also portrays aggressive behaviour she stands at the door and Offred describes that ‘She wanted me to feel that I could not come into the house unless she said so’ This begins to show the structure of society, the fact that the commanders wives want a ‘toehold’ over the handmaids as that is the only matter they hold authority over. Here Serena is portrayed as a frosty character and seems intimidating and unwelcoming to Offred and treats her like an object, which leads to the readers perception of her as an unsympathetic character.
Another way of presenting Serena Joy as an unsympathetic character is through symbolism, Offred describes the way Serena stubs out hr cigarette as ‘One Jab and grind’ it appears as a stabbing motion, as if she is holding something back or is angry, the reader gets the Impression that Serena is strong and dangerous, but also mistrustful as she has cigarettes which are off of the black market and so she is bending the rules, Again this is showing her as unsympathetic and mysterious.
By working backwards, describing her then revealing who she used to be as Offred ‘knew where [I’d] seen her before’ Atwood distances Serena from the reader so that they have nothing to sympathise with her, because they don’t know the reasons for her hostility. If these were to be revealed it would prove less effective. Also she seems mysterious leading to the readers mistrust in her.
Atwood portrays Serena Joy as unsympathetic and mysterious by presenting her from Offred’s perception of her. The reader doesn’t really get to know Serena Joy and so does not yet sympathise with her and in some ways mistrusts her. Later on in the book the reader begins to feel sympathy for Serena Joy as her position becomes clearer, she too is just another victim in society.
