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On Friday we watched an episode of Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unknown in which the chef, restaurateur, and global connoisseur traveled to the recently liberated Republic of Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
Are there any similarities between Myanmar and Gilead, or in other words, why would I show this episode during our Handmaid's Tale unit?
Please respond to this question in a comment posted to this blog by midnight, Wednesday, April 30th.
"Your daughters will have greater freedom. We are working towards the goal of a little garden for each one, each one of you -- the clasped hands again, the breathy voice -- and that's just one for instance. The raised finger, wagging at us. But we can't be greedy pigs and demand too much before it's ready, now can we?"
ReplyDeleteMy connection deals with Theravada Buddhism. The people of Burma attach themselves to the belief that life is a cycle of birth, suffering, death, and rebirth. Their hope lies in the future, i.e. the next life will be better; they seem to be prepared to suffer in the present life.
This resembles the lives of the Handmaids. The aforementioned quote, the words of Aunt Lydia, are intended to distract the Handmaids from the horrors of their present lives. They are led to believe that obedience and suffering now will result in a better life for the future and improved circumstances for the women of the future.
Unlike the people of Myanmar and the women of Gilead, I have not been oppressed, but I cannot help but be skeptical about investing in a "next life." As an eternal skeptic, I personally believe in only a present. To me, life is lived entirely in the present; the past is simply an intangible concept, and the future is not guaranteed.
The Republic of Myanmar and The Republic of Gilead both reflect each other. In the Republic of Myanmar there is a great lack of freedom and liberty. A monstrous amount of people are incarcerated and there is a great limit to what can be seen or even done in the public streets. Only a few years before Bourdain visits, cameras were banned from the streets. Also, people are today banned from certain parts of the country. In Myanmar, the people are oppressed and controlled by the overpowering "republic."
ReplyDeleteIn comparison to Myanmar, the society of Gillead is very similar. Spy cars travel through the street and capture people who secretly or publicly rebel from society. The Handmaids are completely oppressed by society, which also limits what they are allowed to view. There is a strict handle on not only what people can see, but what they can know. Thus, this is the reason that Offred wants answers to what is going on in society.
The Republic of Myanmar and The Republic of Gilead are two strict society's limited by a oppressive government that limit the knowledge of their citizens; ultimately knowledge is power.
The society of Gilead and Myanmar are very similar. For example, both societies suffer from oppression. The people of Myanmar are being imprisoned for such trivial actions and some parts of that area are still not open to the public. For a long time, cameras were not permitted. Also, the episode of Parts Unknown showed how the musicians had to have their song lyrics approved before their song could be played in front of a crowd. Likewise, in Gilead, the government took control of everything and enforced ridiculous rules that required the people to live a strictly monitored lifestyle. For handmaids especially, their wardrobe was determined, they weren't allowed to handle money, and all forms of literature were prohibited. In conclusion, both Gilead and Myanmar live under harsh conditions that do not give their people the freedoms or liberties that we as Americans take for granted everyday.
ReplyDeleteThere are couple of similarities between
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ReplyDeleteThe Republic of Myanmar and the Republic of Gilead are very similar. There's many things and beliefs that both the republics do or belief that are similar. For example, there governments are both strict. They took control of everything and enforced many laws that restricted peoples live styles. This goes for the handmaids also. All forms of literature were abolished and they were banded from handling money. The people if Myanmar are being imprisoned for certain actions and some parts were cut off to the public. Also song lyrics had to be checked by a higher being before played in front of a crowd. Therefore, The Republic of Myanmar and The Republic of Gilead are both two strict society's that limit there citizens of freedom.
There are couple of similarities between the Republics of Myanmar and Gilead. For example, people didn't have rights. Period. Burmese police can arrest you for anything, even for being a loser. In Gilead, you could be sent to the Colonies for not being pregnant. Also, anyone in these nations can imprison anyone for not like the system. Humans are treated like dogs from the streets and forced to live life a certain way. In fact, there are no humans. People ARE dogs slaves to the government.
ReplyDeleteMr. Clark, you wold show us this episode of Bourdain because you want to show us what life is really like in societies similar to the book we are reading currently. America isn't the worst country, and we Americans take things for granted. We Americans take for granted that we can say whatever we want without being punished. We Americans take for granted that we get an education, then we waste it and end up homeless like people in Las Vegas or Atlantic City. We Americans take it for granted that we have rights and no one could take control of them, not even the government. Because of this, we abuse all of this. We Americans EVEN take for granted that our pizza from Pizza Hut will arrive to our house within thirty minutes! You are trying to tell us what life is like in other countries, since We American children are ignorant of the outside world. You are trying to tell us that we should be lucky we have rights like those guarenteed by the Constitution, and we have an education that allows us to be successful in life (for those taht take full use of it).
"Burmese police can arrest you for anything, even for being a loser. "
DeleteNo.
You are also trying to tell us that life in Gilead and the real world is pretty harsh, and you are showing us this episode so that we can understand what Offred is going through in Gilead.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I meant to say about Burma that all of that happened in the past. Not much anymore. No offense intended to anyone who took it.
The republic of Myanmar and the republic of Gilead are almost the same. Both societies have to fight the battle against some sort of oppressive ruling. In Gilead, the people were stripped of their rights to dress how they pleased, handle any form of currency and, even read literature. The people of Myanmar live with restrictions as well. They have to get certain things approved like song lyrics in order to present them to the public. To conclude, the governments of both of these societies, have oppressive power over their citizens.
ReplyDeleteBoth the society of Gilead and Myanmar suppress their citizens. In Myanmar, the public was and still is cut off from certain areas and cameras are only now being allowed back in. The people of Gilead also suffer this weird strict and new life of "freedom from" and hope that someday their obediance will turn once again into "freedom to" This same idea of hope occurs in the lives of the Myanmar citizens, they hope for a better afterlife. I believe the point of this episode was to make the connection that these type of societies aren't just made up dystopias, but very real.
ReplyDeleteFreedom to versus freedom from! Yes!
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ReplyDeleteGilead and Myanmar are similar in multiple ways. For instance, Gilead is known for its strict censorship. The Bible is kept locked up because the rulers of Gilead felt that it would give people hope. This same idea of censorship is applicable to the Republic of Myanmar where the government censors things such as music. Furthermore, the people of Burma are living a life of pain and suffering in order to end the cycle of rebirth. In Gilead, the women are constantly suffering under a false guise of protection created by the rulers of the dystopian society. The women of Gilead are not allowed to have an education or property. In fact, the entire society is held together by the idea that it is the man who has all of the power. In Myanmar, many people were thrown in jail without a fair trial. It's really scary to see just how easily the government can oppress its people
ReplyDeleteThere are similarities if we compared both societies of Gilead and Myanmar. For starters, the governments of both nations key goal is to completely subjugate and oppress their citizens. To achieve this disdainful goal of theirs they set absurd rules and regulations to control their people.An example of these laws would be like in the Gilead society people basically couldn't express themselves to their fullest, for instance, if some one was to oppose the government they would be killed then hanged on this giant wall that surrounds the city, that deceased person sets an example for everyone to avoid revolting or not complying the government. It is basically the same thing with the the Myanmar society too,but instead of people being hanged in front of everyone, they mysteriously "disappear" from their homes over the night, this is a sign to everyone to keep in line because they could be next. To include, like any other society with a dictator in charged, the woman are treated like if they are materials or things of position. In Myanmar i suspect that the woman are to be home, producing food for the family, and cleaning the house.In the Gilead society, the women are things that birth out more humans, and because of this mentality they suffer to the point that they want to die by suicide. As i read and watch the way these people live, I realize how lucky i am, but then again our government is quote controlling, but not as radical and sinister as those societies.
ReplyDeleteGilead and Myanmar have similar qualities making up their oppressed society. Life for Myanmar citizens is not anything close to something Americans can relate to but women in Gilead share the same isolation. In Myanmar those who are caught whispering about freedom, or have spoken out against the government are to be put in jail. Gilead has similar traits to this controlling government. Women are not to even hold money, money is dealt with electronically so it does not have to be searched for. Women are not even allowed to seek education and are constantly watched over by men. Between Myanmar and Gilead just about everything is censored. Such as magazines, music, words. As for the people of Myanmar they are optimistic about the future, and in Handmaid's a bible is kept locked up so there will be no optimism or false hope about the future.
ReplyDeleteThere are obvious reasons as to why you showed us this episode of Anthony Bourdain Part's Unknown during our reading of The Handmaids Tale. Both Myanmar and Gilead are society's that mirror each other very closely. For instance, in Myanmar things like the newspaper and music are heavily censored. Similarly, to the society in Gilead where you are not even able to read a bible or handle money. In these society's the governement has complete control over the things that the public is able to see.It's scary because while reading The Handmaids Tale, everything about it just seems completely exaggerated and unreal. However, some governments have all the potential to do these things to its people.
ReplyDeleteThe fictional society of Gilead and the society of modern day Myanmar are similar in a couple different ways. The one way stood out the most to me was that in both of these societies the citizens never knew if the government was watching them or not. In the episode of Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unknown, Bourdain was constantly talking about how all the people in this country were extremely friendly and said that they would love to help them with the show, but they couldn’t. Most that were willing to help with the show but simple didn’t want to go to jail again because most of the citizens have been in jail due to how oppressive and constrictive the government used to be. The people of Myanmar were still very afraid that if they helped Anthony Bourdain and his show that the government would find out and put them back into jail. This is just like in the society of Gilead, Offred always see the vans with the “eye” on the side (spies in the Gilead society) and other kinds of government people, so she never knows whether or not officials in the society are listening in on her or spying on the things she does, hence her always being very cautious of what she does in front of whom.
ReplyDeleteThe similarities between Myanmar and Gilead is that in both societies the people are oppressed and under strict control of the government. In the Handmaids Tale the women are under the control of the Guards and are not even allowed to handle money or dress as they please. They are not allowed to express themselves and are being watched by “spies” just as in Myanmar singers have to get their lyrics approved by someone in higher power and are imprisoned for stupid things because there are government officials constantly watching them. In both societies they are kept under the control of the government and are just trying to get through the present and hope for a better afterlife.
ReplyDeleteGilead and Myanmar are so similar from how they act and treat life and even how they oppress certain things. Probably the biggest similarity between the two is their absence of women’s rights. Throughout the entire video the host was only able to socialize with one woman. Although Myanmar laws are not as forceful as Gilead’s of course but, they are still favorable towards males. Another similarity in these societies is that everything needs to be signed off on. Even small things such as lyrics for a song. Like in Gilead, you need permission to do just about anything or be willing to serve the consequences. Even though Gilead’s structure to their society is much more forceful than Myanmar, they still share their similarities.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to know more about the role of women in Myanmar.
DeleteGilead and Myanmar are similar in many ways. The people of both societies are being oppressed by the government. In Gilead they are only allowed to wear certain clothing, they are given credits to buy food instead of money and are separated from the rest of the society. The women are not allowed to know what is going on in the world around them just like in Myanmar. In the episode of Unknown there are not many women interviewed he only speaks to one women they are treated as property instead of people. Before the artists can release their music to the public it needs to be censored by the government. In both societies they aren't free to do what they please the government controls every aspect of their lives.
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ReplyDeleteThe society of Gilead and Myanmar are similar in multiple ways. For example, in both societies the people aren't allowed to talk about the government in public. In Gilead, Offred and Offglen had to whisper in order to share their opinions about the government. In Myanmar, the people were taking a risk talking about their society to Anthony because they had already been to jail for it before. Also, the kids in the indie band had to send in their lyrics to the government for them to be revised. Another similarity is that the woman are treated as the lesser sex. In Gilead, all the woman have little to no rights and are treated as property and not human beings. In Myanmar, there was only one woman interviewed and there weren't many woman around in the town.
ReplyDeleteHi, who is this?
DeleteGilead and Myanmar are really similar. They both are oppressed by the government. Women are not allowed to be aware of what is happening in both. The government controls everything that they do. Females are not seen as individuals but more as property. The two situations are very similar because in both the government controls their lives and women don't have much if any freedoms at all.
ReplyDeleteBetween the republic of Gilead and the country of Myanmar, there are many similarities. For example, the censorship on both nations. In Gilead, everything pertaining to freedom is censored, even Bible verses. In Myanmar, everything is submitted to government review; newspaper articles, lyrics, paintings, every medium of expression is controlled tightly by the government.
ReplyDeleteThere is hope for the people of both societies, however. In Myanmar, the government has started to loosen up its grip on the people. The censorship laws are on their way to abolishment, freedom speakers are being released from prison, and the overall mood of the people has begun to improve. In Gilead, things have almost started to get better for Offred, in a way. She seems to almost have some freedoms, and is starting to feel "lust" again.
Gilead and Myanmar are similar in numerous ways. They are both heavily plagued with censorship and oppressed. For example in the handmaids tale all books are taken away except the bible which has also been censored to compliment the beliefs of the republic. In Myanmar the newspapers are censored to fit the view of the government and reporters, writers and other public literacy figures are controlled and surveyed. In addition both society's are greatly oppressed and both oppressed civilizations were created with good intentions. For example The republic of Gilead was formed from the increase affiliation of radical feminist. They finally got there way but it was interpreted in a oppressive way. Secondly , Myanmar won their independence from Britain but instead of gaining a democratic government they created a totalitarian government. In conclusion they are both radical oppressive governments were the only difference is that Gilead is a work fiction and Myanmar is real.
ReplyDelete- Tim
Gilead and Myanmer are similar in several ways . Both of the governments are very controlling. There are tourist sections for both countries. In the episode, Anthony Bordien interviewed a journalist, who had spent much time in jail for not abiding the censorship laws. There is also censorship laws. Both peoples are being oppressed by a government and the governments are very strict.
ReplyDeleteThe republic of Gilead and Myanmar are very similar. Both society's lack liberty and freedom of expression. The government has taken control of the people and become the ultimate power in both Myanmar and Gilead. There is a general fear that has been imbedded in the people and this keeps them obedient, that's how the tyranny has been successful in both corrupt society's.
ReplyDeleteIn the dystopia of Gilead people have limited freedom, their entire lives are planned out down to the smallest details like when they can eat and what they can buy. The government makes sure to keep a tight leash on everyone ensuring that the republic will continue to function as it has. these people have been trained and brain washed, forced to accept this as their reality, and have seem to give up on the idea of change.
In Myanmar you see the same tyranny taking place. the government has set it up so that they dominate their people. Almost all liberty's and freedom of expression have been stripped from these people. this has been taking place for the past fifty years and the hope of change had seem to die along with their rights.
these two society's are similar in the way of how tight restrictions are placed on its citizens. in Gilead they cant even read or express themselves in anyway while in Myanmar people will be thrown in jail for speaking out against the government.
The Republic of Gilead in the Handmaids Tale is similar to Myanmar. Anthony Bourdains adventure into the Mynanmar society has revealed that they were and still are a oppressed society with a lack of freedom. Lots of civilians were thrown in jail for speaking their minds on their society. They are also not allowed to express their feelings freely without it being censored or revised. If the government finds what they wrote to be "wrong" they can send it back to them. This is similar in Gilead because the women their were being oppressed as we'll and we're contained in jail. They had no freedom or no way to express themselves.
ReplyDeleteIn the society of Gilead and The Republic of Myanmar, there are many similarities between the two. In the Republic of Myanmar, the government has suppressed the citizens so much, that even when musicians wanted to write songs for their band and to release them, they'd have to send them to the government for them to censor the lyrics and even make suggestions for words to add in or words to substitute in the song. Also, every person that Anthony Bourdain had talked to had an experience in jail, for saying things they weren't supposed to say, everything was censored. In the society of Gilead, the citizens are just as censored. The women had burned magazines, the handmaids aren't allowed to speak to each other, let alone anyone else, and they have spies called "Eye's" who are the secret police who discover those who violate the rules of Gilead. In both societies the people are being oppressed by their government.
ReplyDeleteThe fictional Republic of Gilead parallels some of the characteristics of the modern day Republic of Myanmar. Both of these places are faced with serious oppression from government. In his television series, Unknown, Anthony Bourdain got a look at the life in Myanmar. He talked to citizen and learn firsthand about the oppression and the strong censorship implemented by the government. In the Republic of Myanmar, citizens were sentenced to prison for voicing their minds. This is similar to the serious censorship that is enforced by the government in control of Gilead.
ReplyDeleteThe oppression that previously took place in Myanmar is quite similar to the oppression in the Republic of Gilead. In Myanmar everything was censored, from their media to the songs they wrote. Similarly, the women in Gilead could not read anything or talk or even think about much. Both societies do not have freedom to do much of anything. By censoring songs and the media and even the places tourists can travel, one is making others ignorant, just like in Gilead they kept the women ignorant by not letting them read or watch the tv much. If the leaders of the society could keep the people ignorant they could attempt to control their minds. Both societies suffer from severe ignorance as well as oppression.
ReplyDeleteThe Republic of Myanmar and The Republic of Gilead are extremely similar. My connection deals with the strict censorship of both societies. In Myanmar, a large majority of journalists and reporters have been jailed and labeled convicts for speaking out about their oppression and their views on the government. If what they say or write does not agree with the views of the government they're censored drastically and if the offense is "severe" enough, the consequence is jail. In Gilead, the Bible is drastically censored taking all things of freedom and free will out, leaving only the things that support and agree with the new government. Anyone who speaks out against the Republic, like the rebels, are severely punished. Both of these societies face a tyrant government and oppression. However unlike Gilead, Myanmar is slowly but surely on it's way to becoming a free land. The people of Gilead may never experience the freedom of being uncensored like they once were.
ReplyDeleteThe Republic of Myanmar or formally Burma reminds me of the Republic of Gilead in "The Handmaid's Tale". In both Myanmar and Gilead the government suppressed the citizens rights. In Myanmar though the government suppressed everyone and sent them to prison if they spoke publicly against the government. In Gilead the government in place is only suppressing women's rights because the society is extremely conservative and the birth rates are at an all time low. Also, in both Republics the government has or had spies everywhere to scare citizens into conforming to what the society demanded of them.
ReplyDeleteThe Republic of Myanmar and the Republic of Gilead are very similar; the people have very little freedom if any at all, and the government controls basically every little thing the people do. In the Handmaids Tale, the people are not allowed to do specific things like the handmaids cannot walk alone and the people cannot believe in a different religion. They cannot speak badly of the government, and if they do any of these things or more, they will be arrested or killed. In Myanmar, the people are practically in the same situation as the people of Gilead. They cannot say certain things, their song lyrics were even censored by the government. Some of the citizens there were even afraid to be seen with Anthony Bourdain’s cameras or help him for fear that they would be arrested, some not for the first time. Most of the people that Bourdain talked to had in fact already spent some time in prison. Both the Republic of Myanmar and Gilead are run by oppressive governments, and the citizens do not have much freedom.
ReplyDeleteGilead from "A Handmaid's Tale" depicts that the society is oppressed. The handmaids cannot do what they want, when they want and are restricted on many things. Such as, not being allowed to have, write, or read any form of literature. Also, they could only wear certain things and couldn't go into certain areas, or just had to be with someone at almost all times. Myranmar from "Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unknown" society is basically the same way and the people are basically kept in check to make sure they dont do anything "wrong." Such as, people being arrested for crimes that aren't actually that bad. Also, if they wanted to make a song, it had to be approved. In both areas the government is like a dictatorship and the people cannot do many things that really take away peoples will to live since most of those things are the pleasures in life.
ReplyDeleteThe society's of both Myanmar and Gilead are both strictly controlled by the government in a lot of ways and even in many similar ways. The society of Myanmar is heavily restricted and watched the people of Myanmar have to be careful on what they do and say. The government is watching them to make sure the rules and laws are carried out. The government has harsh penalties for not censoring, protesters, and just people against the government completely. Many are sent to jail for these acts and treated wrongly. It wasn't till a few years back where the cameras were allowed at all in Myanmar and parts of the place were cut off and restricted to go to. This is just the same as the society of Gilead where everything is monitored and rules are kept in place. There are vans with eyes on them that belong to the government. They are spies that listen, watch, and tract what everyone does to make sure there is no rebellions or suspicious acts going on. If they see you doing something questionable you will be sorry for it and punished. Offred knows this so she is always looking out for herself and careful to say when she is around certain people. These two societies are ruled and kept under lock by the government so they have no liberty.
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