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The Daily Insight

What was in Offred's ear?

Author

Sophia Koch

Updated on March 17, 2026

Free from her captors, she sheds her red robes and proceeds to cut part of her ear to remove the signifying tag. June goes to extreme lengths to get rid of the cuff. And as described by showrunner Bruce Miller, it signifies her separation from Offred. How it started vs.

What did they put in June's ear?

When June became a handmaid, her ear was affixed with a tracker — with that, June became another person's property. To remove the tracker, she has to physically cut into her ear.

What do they put on their ear in handmaid's Tale?

The hit Hulu series is an adaptation of the acclaimed 1985 novel by Margaret Atwood where a totalarian regime - Gilead - reigns over much of what was the United States. Within the regime, each Handmaid it tagged on their ear so they can be easily identified.

Why did they staple Offred's ear?

Well, if you think back to some of the flashbacks viewers encountered in Season 1, it's revealed that Aunt Lydia had tracking devices implanted in all the handmaids' ears — that cuff that was roughly stapled into June's ear apparently could provide her exact coordinates to anyone looking to hunt her down.

What did they do to Offred's ear in season 1?

Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) shocks her with a cattle prod for not apologizing properly ("I'm sorry, Aunt Lydia!") and later painfully outfits Offred's ear with an electronic tracker.

Vikings - Judith gets her ear cut off | Punishment (3x6) [Full HD]

Whats the red tag on Junes ear?

The number on June's ear tag is an Easter egg.

On the show, each Handmaid is given an ear tag with an ID number.

What did June pull out of her ear?

Free from her captors, she sheds her red robes and proceeds to cut part of her ear to remove the signifying tag. June goes to extreme lengths to get rid of the cuff. And as described by showrunner Bruce Miller, it signifies her separation from Offred.

Why does June spit out the cookie?

In privacy, June spits out the ornamental cookie. By purging out the pink mashed-up vile, June has refused to swallow the Wives' counterfeited piety. In the domain of Gilead, these cookies are a status symbol laid out before the Handmaid's eyes.

What are they shoveling in Handmaid's Tale?

Emily and her fellow "unwomen" are supposedly removing the Colonies' radioactive soil so that Gilead can plant crops in the area — the idea is that removing pollution will help solve the fertility crisis — but their labor is just as much a solution as it is a political tool.

Can a handmaid become a wife?

“They might actually become Wives if they stay on a track of loyalty.” The youngest members of Gilead, such as June's daughter, will eventually become Econowives or Wives, so long as they remain fertile and faithful. They'll be married off to working-class men at the young age of 14 or 15.

Is June's mom alive?

Holly Maddox is a character in The Handmaid's Tale. Before the rise of the Gilead, she was a staunch second-wave feminist and women's rights activist. As in the novel, it is still unknown if she is alive. June Osborne's mother is mostly depicted as in the novel.

What is the significance of hair in the handmaid's Tale?

signified loose morals and promiscuity in the Corinthian culture of the day. Aunt Lydia, however, is also punning on the idea of 'a close shave' as a situation where one only narrowly escapes disaster. She is implying that women who flaunt their hair may find themselves in compromising sexual situations.

What does the red tag mean in Handmaid's Tale?

In the show, the handmaids have red GPS trackers attached to their ears. See that little guy on Offred's ear? That's a GPS tracker that the government uses to watch fertile women and prevent them from escaping. The red tags basically indicate that a person is a handmaid and needs to be watched closely.

Is Nick mentioned in the Testaments?

it's often said that there is no mention of Nick in The Testaments, but that's not true. he's never mentioned by name and the details are vague, but there is enough to tell us where his loyalties lie and what his ultimate fate was.

What did they do to Ofglen?

Ofglen gets sentenced to "redemption," which means she gets to live, but she's forced to undergo genital mutilation to prevent her from "wanting what she can't have."

Why are they called Unwomen?

In a cold, dry, toxic wasteland, Unwomen (the term used to describe women who have violated Gilead's codes and lose their status) stand toiling in the dust, shoveling dirt into bags without the benefit of the gas masks that the guards wear.

What is an Unbaby in the handmaid's Tale?

Unbaby, or shredder, is the term used in the Republic of Gilead to describe infants that are suffering from birth defects or physical deformities. These die shortly after birth due to their defects. They are usually taken away to be disposed of.

What does Blessed be the fruit mean?

In Margaret Atwood's „The Handmaid's Tale“, „Blessed be the Fruit“ is a form of greeting between the people of the Republic of Gilead. This encourages fertility in a society where women with healthy reproductive system must produce children for the ruling class of men „Commanders“.

What was written under Fred Waterfords body?

In a brief flash, Fred's headless body is shown hanging from a wall — like so many Gilead victims at his hand — with the key Handmaid's Tale phrase written in blood below him: “Nolite te bastardes carburondorum.” His ring finger was also mailed to his pregnant wife, Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski).

What did the commander do to the first handmaid?

It is revealed that this Offred, like her successor, was coerced into an emotional affair with the Commander and that Serena was infuriated when she found out. Shortly after, the Handmaid hanged herself from the chandelier in her room, with her body being discovered by Cora, one of the two Marthas inside the house.

Is Aunt Lydia a gender traitor?

Aunt Lydia is a "gender traitor."

In the eighth episode of season 8, we saw Aunt Lydia as Miss Clements, a divorced teacher who didn't have much luck with men. After watching the makeup scene with Noelle, however, many Reddit users suspect that the strict, cruel Aunt is actually suppressing her sexuality.

How is Serena pregnant Handmaid's Tale?

A DNA test proves Fred is, indeed, the biological father of Serena's child. Past seasons of The Handmaid's Tale showed how Gilead was created after a worldwide infertility crisis. Serena assumed Fred was infertile and orchestrated a sexual encounter between June and Nick. This resulted in June's pregnancy with Nichole.

Why are the handmaids mouths wired shut?

The handmaids take "a vow of silence that's enforced by a physical ring on the mouth," Miller says. The image of women in red handmaid's uniforms unable to speak serves as a harsh reminder of the extent to which whatever is left of June's rights can still be stripped.

Why do they say under his eye?

“Under His eye”: How Handmaids formally say goodbye to each other in person. By extension, the phrase suggests that someone—a Guardian, a Commander, a fellow Handmaid, God—is always watching.