Popular Culture Review 32.1
holds true in comparing a novel like Jacobs ’ s Incidents to the series . Not only is June ’ s resistance public ; it is also a point of pride for her . At first , June says , “ We said no . We refused to do our duty . To kill Janine ” (“ Night ” 53:36-53:43 ). Her diction suggests that the Handmaids are a collective body working for change . She goes on to say , however , “ I tried to make things better for Hannah . Change the world , even just a little bit ” ( 54:17-54:26 ). By shifting pronouns from “ we ” to “ I ,” June claims this rebellion as her own .
The Black women in these season finales play significantly different roles . In Westworld , Maeve ’ s narrative movement through the entire season has been to follow a new loop and try to escape . She fights her way through the Mesa — Westworld ’ s headquarters — and makes it to the train to the real world . During Ford ’ s speech and Dolores ’ s rise to action , Maeve sits on the train . After Ford describes the park as “ a prison of our own sins ,” he says , “ But then I realized someone was paying attention , someone who could change . So I began to compose a new story for them . It begins with the birth of a new people … and the choices they will have to make ” (“ The Bicameral Mind ” 1:26:05-1:26:25 ). The scene cuts from the party to the train , which is about to depart . Maeve stares at a mother and daughter sitting across from her and finally , for the first time in the series , breaks from her programming : she runs off the train to look for her daughter ( 1:26:38 ). As soon as it departs , the lights turn off and the PA system distorts , indicating Maeve ’ s newfound risks . Unlike 19 th century slave narratives , in which escape and the outraged mother archetype are inextricable , Nolan and Joy chose to deprive Maeve of the opportunity to escape so that she can search for her child from another life , a child who cannot remember her . Maeve , in her impulsive decision , does not recognize that , as she is now , she is not a mother . Instead of refining her iden-
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