The Handmaid's Tale- Quote- I believe in you

"By telling you anything at all I'm at least believing in you, believe you're there, I believe you into being. Because I'm telling you this story I will your existence. I tell, therefore you are. So I will go on. So I will myself to go on."(268)

This quote made by Offred i found to be of peculiar importance, not just to the characters in the book but to people as well. Offred, after basically cut off from society and social contact feels totally and utterly alone. Humans are by nature social creatures and although they do like their privacy, they also like company. Offred only has solitude. She is not allowed to talk unless spoken to, and even then she must answer not with what she feels or wants to say, but with what she is trained to say. Without an outlet to vent out to like a person or diary (reading and writing were out of the question for women) it is easy of one to go insane.

Offred's situation is much like the one from the well known movie, Cast Away. Without anther person to talk to, to relate to the main character- Chuck Noland- is unable to hold onto his sanity. Noland feels alone, scared, and miserable. To solve this problem, he makes a friend in a beach ball- Wilson- whom he creates to substitute for the lack of human contact on the island. Wilson becomes his best friend whom he talks to and relieves himself of his stress and worries. Offred does a similar thing in her thoughts. She creates an audience, a friend, a reader, to keep her sane. By believing in the reader she is able to make it through. The reader becomes her closest and most trusted friend. Although she is not sure if we even exist, just the thought of letting her feelings go, of breaking the rules and coming into contact with another person is enough to keep her going.

Through this quote it also becomes apparent how important social contact is to humans. Without this contact one feels totally alone. To believe in other people is to believe in yourself. Everyone needs a buddy in life to make them feel good, to spill their heart out to. Offred is at the end of her rope. She desperately needs someone to believe in, to believe in her. Because we are there for her, she is able to go on. Our presence in her mind is enough to motivate her to keep going. Everyone needs a support system, and we as reader are that to Offred.