The Unacknowledged Legacy of 19 th Century Slave Narratives
and their fellow slaves captured and brutalized . Nolan and Joy appropriate this historical legacy but use Dolores ’ s whiteness as a shield to ensure her heroism .
June ’ s finale in season one of The Handmaid ’ s Tale is also a moment of rebellion , though with less violence . Instead of a party , June and her fellow Handmaids arrive to a Salvaging — an event during which Handmaids execute someone — and learn they are to stone Janine for endangering a child ’ s life (“ Night ” 45:12 ). Aunt Lydia , who has always liked Janine , explains that they have no choice but to kill her : “ I know how difficult this is , girls . I do . But God gives us blessings and He gives us challenges . The price of His love is sometimes high ” ( 45:38-45:54 ). June ’ s shopping partner and a woman of color — Jones ’ s Ofglen — steps forward and speaks out against the stoning : “ Guys , this is insane ” ( 46:33-46:44 ). In response , a Guardian slams the butt of his rifle into her face ( 46:44 ); a slow-motion shot shows phlegmy blood and broken teeth flying out of her mouth as she collapses to the ground and is dragged away ( 46:47-47:09 ). Aunt Lydia insists again that they kill Janine , and June is next to step forward ( 47:48 ). The Guardian moves to assault her for disobeying , but Aunt Lydia — unlike for Ofglen — intervenes ( 48:18 ). June holds out her arm and drops the stone , saying , “ I ’ m sorry , Aunt Lydia ” ( 48:48-48:49 ). The other Handmaids follow . Outraged , Aunt Lydia dismisses the girls ; June leads the Handmaids back , with two other white women directly behind her ( 51:26 ). Over the slow-motion shots of the Handmaids returning home , Nina Simone ’ s “ Feeling Good ” plays . June has fully co-opted this moment of rebellion from Ofglen , who faced the physical consequences . Boyle notes that “ from the novel [ Atwood ’ s The Handmaid ’ s Tale ] to the television series , the acts of feminist resistance have migrated from private to public feminisms ” ( 853 ), and the comparison
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