Sex, drugs and rock and roll is a term that was brought into popularity during the nineteen sixties. It was the dream of many music fans to become rock legends and therefore gain power. The cliché is not entirely original. It is based off of a phrase used in many cultures around the world, wine, women and song. However because not everyone can obtain all three aspects, desire can lead to competition resulting in violence and an overall fight for power. A society ruled by greed is not able to succeed and it is not possible for any society to exist without desire. A functioning society is one that can maintain a balance between desire and selflessness. Functioning societies can be thrust into turmoil over an imbalance in these factors as evidenced in King Lear by William Shakespeare and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. By examining King Lear and The Handmaid’s Tale one can see that sexual desire, the need for more power and the desire for violence are causes of serious corruption but must be satisfied to maintain balance in any society.

Sexual tension and desire can be blatant, as it is in The Handmaid’s Tale, or well disguised, such as the tension in King Lear, in literary works. It is almost always, however, an impact on character’s decisions and therefore an impact on that character’s actions and effect on society. In King Lear by William Shakespeare there is sexual tension between the Edmund and the two sisters Goneril and Regan. The sisters compete against each other for Edmund’s love. Their competition for Edmund is so strong it causes Goneril to poison Regan and then kill herself in the final scene. Also the daughters’ decision to pursue Edmund leaves the kingdom in turmoil. In order for Edmund to marry Goneril had to kill Goneril’s husband, Albany, first. They communicated through Goneril’s servant and established a plot to kill Albany. According to Goneril, Edmund will “… have many opportunities to cut him off” (4, 6, 291-292). The plot however is discovered and it gave Edgar a chance to defeat his brother to restore order. Not all sexual tension and desire in society is hidden.

In The Handmaid’s Tale the sexual desire between characters is a lot easier to recognize as is the influence it has on the world. In the world of Gilead, sex for uses other than reproduction is viewed as a sin. However as the Commander says “… you can’t cheat Nature… Nature demands variety for men” (The Handmaid’s Tale 298). To meet the sexual desires of the high ranking officials the Gileadean government created the secret club, Jezebel’s. The club is completely contradictory to Gilead’s way of life and religious beliefs. However the club has a significant influence on important men and they “… can hardly do business without it” (298). Even in a society that has attempted to eliminate all sinful, sexual activities they continue to exist because of the desire for them. No matter how the society functions sexual desire is always a factor in the stability of that society. Some people just have the desire for it but in some societies, having children is a way to gain power.

The ability to gain power with one’s own hard work is the idea behind capitalism. One wishing to earn more wealth or power is able to achieve it. However there are many selfish individuals out there seek to gain power by any means necessary which causes corruption or chaos. For Edmund in King Lear that means betraying his father and brother to become Duke of Gloucester. Edmund went too far in his quest for power and that led to his downfall. After being betrayed by his brother Edgar worked to restore the balance of power. Edgar disguised himself in “a madman’s rags, t’ assume a semblance that very dogs disdained” (5, 3, 223-224). He used the disguise to monitor his half-brother and defeat him when the chance arose. Although Edmund had the opportunity to gain recognition through noble efforts his lust for power creates chaos for those around him. His actions result in the deaths of Lear and his daughters as well as his own father. Even if one creates a small imbalance in their attempt to gain power there can still be consequences.  

The society of Gilead did not allow most individuals to gain significant amounts of power. Instead those fought for the little victories such a steak for dinner because it is rare to find. Offred wishes she could have some of the freedoms she had pre-Gilead. When the Commander offers the chance to play Scrabble accepts. From then on she takes advantage of whatever is offered to her in order for her to make life in Gilead bearable. However during her trip to Jezebel’s she takes it too far and sleeps with the commander in order to gain his favor even further. She allows herself to be shown off by the Commander because she is told it is “Just another crummy power trip” (306). Offred risks her life in order to gain some of the power back from her previous life. Even in Gilead the need for power is an important motivator for the citizens. However in any society there must be a way for individuals to vent their frustration.

Some form of violence takes place in almost any society. During the age of King Lear it would have been a daily occurrence. Nobles fought for their honour and servants fought for the honour of their master. During the dark ages duels were a way to discover the verdict of a trial. Edgar challenged Edmund to such a duel in the last scene of King Lear. Edmund accepted the challenge by saying “With the hell-hated lie o’erwhelm thy heart, which, for they yet glance by and scarcely bruise, this sword of mine shall give them instant way” (5, 3, 176-178). Edgar defeated his brother and evened out the balance of power through violence. Violence is not always used this way however. It is often used as revenge or punishment. In Act 3, Scene 7 Cornwall pulls out Gloucester’s eyes because he aided Lear. Good or bad, violence is a prominent part of maintaining a society’s order.

Frustration and stress would build up for someone who is thrust from total freedom to a class based society where one’s level of importance is already decided. In Gilead the government has come up with an ingenious way to vent frustration as well as display propaganda. Salvagings are large public executions of murderers or religious criminals. However the most important events are called Particicutions. Particicutions were special executions of serious criminals, such as sex offenders, that were acted out by the Handmaids. They would circle the supposed guilty part and tear them limb from limb. The Particicution became a way for Handmaids to vent their frustration and anger. It would have been “gratifying for these Handmaids, so rigidly controlled at other times, to be able to tear a man apart with their bare hands every once in a while” (383). Acts of controlled violence allowed many Gilead to remain a stable society and stifle civil unrest. No matter the society violence can be a very effective tool to keep the population calm and under control. However used in the wrong way it can cause chaos.

Through King Lear and The Handmaid’s Tale one can see that sexual desire, the need to gain power and the thirst for violence are causes of serious corruption that must be satisfied in order maintain balance in any society. Sexual desire will always be prevalent among every class and must be satisfied in order to maintain a happy populous. The ability to gain power through hard work motivates citizens to work but can also be a source of corruption. Violence is the way many societies solve their issues and vent their frustration. As long as a society has a method to control all three factors it can be successful. If one of the factors becomes unbalanced there is a possibility of civil unrest and unrest can lead to the downfall of a society.

Works Cited

Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid’s Tale. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1998.

Shakespeare, William. King Lear. Toronto: The Folger Shakespeare Library, 1993.