“I am Ofglen.”— The new Ofglen expressing indifference to her predecessor's whereabouts.[1]
The second Ofglen is a recurring character in The Handmaid's Tale. She is the Handmaid assigned to Commander Glen and replaces the previous Ofglen.
Story[]
Soon after the Salvaging, Offred goes out for a shopping trip, comforted by the ordinariness of the routine. To her dismay, the Handmaid who meets her is not the Ofglen she knew. When Offred asks her where Ofglen went, the woman replies, “I am Ofglen”: Since this new Handmaid now lives with the Commander named Glen, her name becomes Ofglen. Offred realizes how women get lost in this ocean of fluctuating names.
Trying to see if the new woman belongs to the resistance, Offred suggests they go to the Wall. As they walk there, Offred works the password “Mayday” into the conversation by mentioning the old holiday of “May Day.” The new Ofglen looks at her coolly and tells her that she should forget such “echoes” from the old world. Terrified, Offred realizes that the new Ofglen knows about the resistance and does not belong to it. She suddenly imagines herself found out and arrested. She thinks that perhaps they will torture her daughter until she tells them everything she knows. She and the new yet treacherous Ofglen walk home. As they part, the new Ofglen suddenly whispers that the old Ofglen hanged herself when she saw the van coming to arrest her. “It was better”, she says, and then walks quickly away[1].
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Novel, Section 44