Drinking tea in The Handmaid's Tale

Is it only me or is there a weird obsession with tea in The Handmaid's Tale?

If the show was happening in the UK, I could understand them drinking tea all the time, but it's happening in the US (well geographically). I don't remember anyone drinking coffee in the show, and everyone constantly drinks tea.

Is this a symbol of something? Is there no coffee left due to environmental issues?

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Best Answer

It's a symbol of religious oppresion. Handmaids are not allowed to keep uneaten food and consume "stimulants" like coffe, nicotine and alcohol.

In Season 1, Episode 3 we have a "flashback" to Coffeshop scene

Many people assumed that they really didn't have any money. But by the clerk's reaction, it was more of his own decision to not sell them any. Not only as a sign of having the ability to deny the service to women, but also to make them more docile.

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What drink does Offred order at the club?

Offred looks entirely uncomfortable, but when in Rome \u2026 she orders a Manhattan. If she has to endure this, it should be drunk and on good liquor.

Why do Handmaids wear rings in their mouths?

Show runner Bruce Miller also spoke to Business Insider about the reveal of the mouth rings. He said: \u201cIt was my idea to put it in the show. It was an extrapolation of the enforced silence, which is the idea that handmaids are told to be quiet, and they're forced to be quiet.\u201d

What is forbidden in the Handmaids Tale?

As in many totalitarian societies, females in Gilead are forbidden from reading and writing\u2014the punishment for a first offense is having one's hand cut off\u2014which enables the authorities to more easily maintain control over them.

Why are biblical allusions used in the Handmaids Tale?

Thesis: The obvious biblical allusions in the novel \u201cThe Handmaid's Tale\u201d are used to portray irony through various character's titles and control the Republic of Gilead by professing passages from the Bible while using them out of context, and promoting the vicious God from the Old Testament.

The Handmaid's Tale: Framing Strong Women | Video Essay

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