The Handmaid’s Tale Takes on the Power of Pleasure in “Faithful”

Just look at the way Offred (Elisabeth Moss) is treated throughout during the “Ceremonies.” She’s meant to simply lay there and take it. Or, in this episode, she’s pushed into the bed of the Commander’s driver Nick (Max Minghella) for the purposes of getting her pregnant at last. She has no real say in the matter and, even though she has growing feelings for her fellow employee, doesn’t enjoy it in the least.

That’s exactly what makes the closing scene in this episode so daring and so dangerous for Offred. She has already learned Nick is an Eye, a member of the secret police that rounds up enemies of the state and reports back to the people in charge, but she doesn’t care. She still storms his small apartment, strips him, and has proper, powerful, pleasurable sex with him. Most importantly, Offred gets on top. For a few glorious minutes, she’s going to be in control.

If you want another visual approximation of this same idea, you can enjoy Ofsteven deciding to enjoy one more glorious moment of rebellion at the farmer’s market. It’s there that she steals a recently vacated car and goes for a quick joyride that ends with her graphically squashing the head and body of a soldier who tried to stop her. She knew the risks. She was warned. Nevertheless, she persisted.

That’s what it takes in some situations to fuel a revolution: little instances, both public and private, where you can gain some ground. There’s the small hope that the many fellow Handmaids who saw Ofsteven make her final triumph will now find the seed of some similar discontent within themselves. Or that Offred will use what little agency she has in the Commander’s home and keep herself sane via an illicit affair that is all the more thrilling because she knows how much she is jeopardizing her safety. If she’s gonna get sent to the colonies, she’s gonna get hers before she goes.