The theme of hope and how it is represented children of men, handmaids tale, and essay sample

Hope may be defined as a belief that there is a better future a head. This is a feeling that keeps a person on track as they hold on to the principles they hold dear. With hope there is a reason to belief but when hope dies, a person lives a meaningless life. Focusing on three novels, Children of Men, Handmaids Tale, and Never let me go; we learn that hope played a pivotal role in helping the characters through their blink situations. These are men and women who were faced with various challenges yet chose to hold onto hope. Thesis: hope is a virtue that keeps a person going amidst challenging circumstances. The assurance that everything will work out for the better in the coming days gives a person the strength to hold on. In this paper, we shall critically analyse the literature from the texts and how hope has been presented.

Children of Men

‘ Children of men’ is a story that revolves around the life of an asylum seeker. There is however hope for her as she finds a friend who walks with her through the distress. The main point of her connection is Thoe who is distressed after the loss of his son to flue and the separation from his wife. This is during a period of infertility where children are hard to find. Through this hopeless situation faced differently by Kee and Theo, they find comfort in each other and ultimately carry them through life. Taking a look at Kee and her hopelessness as a refugee, she might have thought, all was over for him. He happens to be pregnant yet found in a circumstance where she needs help and support. Theo becomes her source of hope even as he accompanies her through her journey of finding some refuge (James 82). Even though he did this with the promise of some good money, the sacrifices that he had to make for Kee are more than what any money could buy. Through the story, the two develops a friendship that money does not become the centre of their company.
Theo on the other hand is a distressed man who needs some sought of comfort and solace especially after the events that happened in his life. His hopes of being a father and a husband were thwarted with the death of his son and the subsequent separation from his wife. However, his encounter with Kee makes him feel accompanied and even important. He takes pleasure in taking care of Kee who is also pregnant. This sense of responsibility gives him hope and strength to face the future. Even though he has no aspiration of being romantically engaged in Kee considering that he is mainly serving as a messenger, he takes comfort in knowing that he is engaged in a worthy cause that also makes him responsible (Walsh 133).
The relationship between Kee and Theo turns out to be a symbiotic one as they both benefit from each other. They derive strength from being together even though they go through conflicting situations. For Kee, it is all about the support and company that he needs considering her expectant situation. On the other hand, for Theo, it is all about the solace that he finds in the responsibility of taking care of an expectant woman who is in need. The various benefits they derived from each other made them stick to each other as they found the satisfaction that they need. There was surely hope for them as long as they kept each other company (James 37). The ultimate of their hope is revealed when Kee is assisted and even rescued by Theo especially during the crucial moment when she had to give birth and even sustain the baby. Even though Theo died in the process of rescuing and helping Kee, he died hopefully after Kee promised to name her baby after his son that had died.

Handmaids Tale

Hopelessness in The handmaiden’s tale is displayed through the story of women who are subject to a culture that denies them freedom of expression. They are even forbidden from using their own names and are only referred to by the names of their masters. Their sex life with their masters is not for pleasure but to help them fulfil the obligation of making children on behalf of their mistresses. This perspective of women as instruments of procreation rather than perfect companion to the men is demoralizing. The story is told as a narration from one of the women referred to as Offred and the predicament she goes through after she lost track of her husband and her daughter. She was initially married to a divorced man whom they had a child with him. This was the time when women were independent and were not subject to any rule or limitations. However, everything changed when the government was overturned and toxic chemicals used to make women infertile (Atwood 29). This marked the beginning of a troubled society where women were meant to be subjects to the men.
Amidst this hopeless Offred finds friends who share similar predicament and hence being a source of encouragement. He is also connected to some men who are not inclined to the thoughts of the society against women. In fact, they condemn such actions and especially the fact that some men end up blaming their infertility on women. This was a society where it was believed that it is only women who had infertility issues and not the other way round. One of the supposedly friend of Offred that empathised with her situation organized to deliver her by not only having a secret fulfilling affair with her but also organising for her escape. Offred now has hope of being able to enjoy her sexuality as a woman by having sex not out of compulsion but willingness. Nick provides her with the sexual satisfaction she has always craved for (Walsh 135).
Just when it seems as if all hope of her deliverance has reached a halt, her situation works out well for him. Being prohibited from having sex with her master outside the home and away from her master’s watch is something that is prohibited in this society. Just when she thinks she has gotten the opportunity to have this moment, the secret is spilled out and is ultimately in for a punishment (Atwood 73). Her punishment meant that she be taken away by a police army of which she cannot object about. She however goes away in the police car with hope from Nick who assures her that it was his ultimate plan to ensure that he is rescued.

Never let me go

Never let me go is a scientific fictional story that displays a group of young people who are reared for the purposes of reproduction. These are men and women who have no freedom or choice of their lives as it has been predetermined by their circumstances. They live their lives to donate their organs which are used to clone other human beings (Ishiguro 98). They try to live normal lives yet the thought of them living their lives for some other people limits their freedom. Just as Walsh states in the article, friends can find ultimate comforts amidst their situations and circumstances. By develop a strong friendship that stems from their childhood through their adult life, they are able to empathise with each other and hence granting the needed support (Walsh 140). Kathy and Ruth however, seem to have an attraction for the only man in their life, Tommy, who seems to have no power of choice between the two. He however enjoys the company of the two ladies until when jealousy crops in and a decision ultimately has to be made.
Kathy who is genuinely in love with Tommy feels uncomfortable around him and Ruth who are apparently n a romantic relationship decides to leave. Kathy made the decision to save herself from heart ache as well as to give them an ample time to relate. This seemingly dead hope of Kathy ever having Tommy is revived when Ruth ultimately comes out clearly to state that she was not genuinely in love with Tommy and only stuck close because she was jealousy of the two. She pleads for forgiveness and ultimately dies leaving the two with the freedom to love and relate. Despite the bliss that is ultimately to be enjoyed by the two lovers, they are haunted by their lives, which involve frequent operations and a risk to their lives just for the sake of others (Ishiguro 36). In as much as they love each other, they cannot run away from the responsibilities of donating organs.
In the last scene of the play which was ultimately the first, there is a ray of hope as displayed through the facial expression of Tommy and Kathy. While Tommy is on the operation table where he ultimately died, he was smiling at Kathy who was also smiling back. The two lovers had accepted their fate of having to die as they underwent the operation. The hope was however on the fact that they knew they loved each other and no matter what happens to them, they will die knowing that they had genuine feelings towards each other which they expressed to each other any moment they were together.

Conclusion

Hope is an important ingredient that makes people stay alive in their seemingly dead situation. The characters of the three novels have displayed such faith which ultimately made them to have happy endings. Even though their circumstances never changed, it is the hope they had that they will change that kept them alive and going. With the hope that each one had, they aspired to deliver and do good to those that were around them. It may in fact be said that the hope in their situations made them realise the importance of keeping and nurturing meaningful relationships. Giving hope to a friend who was in a desperate situation as they were made them feel important enough to live another day. Their lives were based on impacting on the lives of other people.
The article by Walsh ” A family resilience framework: Innovative practice applications,” Highlights some of the means through which families and friends can psychologically assist their loved ones and help them though their hopelessness. Simply being close to them will provide them with the resilience they need to overcome their challenges (Walsh 130). Throughout the novels, we experience characters who share similar predicaments. They realise that their situations cannot hinder them from impacting on other people’s lives. They in fact realised that they were in the best position to offer the help and support as they understand what it feels to be in such a desperate situation. Most of the characters died with a lot of hope that they had accomplished their mission on earth.

Works cited

Atwood, Margaret. The handmaid’s tale. New York: Paw Prints, 2008.
Ishiguro, Kazuo. Never Let Me Go. California: Klett Ernst /Schulbuch, 2012
James, P. D. The Children of Men. London: Knopf Canada, 2012.
Walsh, Froma. ” A family resilience framework: Innovative practice applications.” Family relations 51. 2 (2002): 130-137.