In the sixth installment of Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale, Offred learns more about the fate of herself and her fellow handmaids, and receives shocking news about her family from "before." Rather unexpectedly, the President of Mexico travels all the way from her homeland to Gilead, in order to dine with Commander Fred and discuss the future of trade between the two countries. While neither Fred nor the Mexican president get into specifics, they make it very clear that they wish to start trading with one another again, in order to sustain both of their national economies, although they do not mention what kind of products they would be trading. Offred assumes this trade deal would take the form of importing and exporting produce, after Fred comments on the abundance of oranges in Florida and the lackthereof in Mexico. However, as the episode progresses, the President's interest in Offred and her experience as a handmaid becomes increasingly disconcerting. She begins to ask Offred a series of questions, such as: Was becoming a handmaid your choice? Are you happy?
Because Offred is in the company of the commander and his wife, she is unable to tell the truth for fear of further punishment. Thus, she proceeds to lie, producing rather positive answers and commenting that she did choose to be a handmaid and that she is, in fact, happy. The president, however, is all too willing to believe her. While Offred responds affirmatively, her face tells a very different story, bearing an expression that one has to forcibly choose to overlook. The overall visit, however, seems to go particularly well for both the Commander and the President of Mexico, and they decide to host a formal dinner in an unused banquet hall. On the night of this dinner, all the handmaids are summoned to the foyer of the banquet hall, while the other guests and hosts are already seated. Aunt Lydia orders them to form a straight line, and walks past each and every maid, inspecting their dress and overall appearance. Serena approaches and tells Aunt Lydia to get rid of the deformed ones, i.e. those that had lost limbs, eyes, had scratches or cuts noticeable enough to cause concern. After they are extracted from the rest of the group, the handmaids are instructed to enter the banquet hall dining room, which they do very mechanically, walking in and sitting down in complete synchronization. The commanders and their wives, and the Mexican President and her official, sit and ogle at the handmaids. Soon after, the offspring of these handmaids and commanders are ushered into the room, running around and playing, but still ultimately being paraded around for the President's pleasure. It is at this moment that Offred realizes the two countries are not simply trading oranges. The handmaid sitting next to her informs of the devastating news, that it is, in fact, the handmaids who are the main commodity.
The next morning, upon the President's departure, Offred runs into her in the entranceway. Realizing no one is around to witness her disobedience, she approaches the President and her official, and finally tells her the truth about what it means to be a handmaid, that no one choses to live this life, and that no, she is not happy. How could she be? After hearing all of this, the President looks quite sympathetic but ultimately tells Offred that she can't help her. When pressed as to why, she claims that the town in Mexico she grew up in hasn't had a single birth in nearly sixteen years. However, this is her only justification for wanting to trade handmaids with Gilead. Importing handmaids would increase the chance of bringing new life to Mexico. Getting frustrated and outright furious with such a pathetic answer, Offred becomes extremely distraught, but their conversation is cut short by the sudden appearance of Commander Fred. While both Fred and the President move somewhere else to converse, the President's official suddenly breaks his silence and tells Offred that he can help her, confessing that not only was her husband alive, but he could get a message to him.
This is perhaps the first episode in which Offred is offered even a semblance of hope. While the future is almost entirely uncertain and unstable, she not only learns that her husband, whom she thought had been shot and killed in the crossfire of trying to escape, is indeed, alive, but that their reunion, or at least communication, is possible. What is particularly disturbing about this episode is the nature of the trade deal in relation to the President of Mexico. The President herself is a woman, and even after Offred confesses the reality of Gilead and their handmaids, she still chooses to give in to the corruption and take a step toward becoming a society like that of Gilead, one that values women solely for their reproductive organs. Of all the people to help Offred escape her unfortunate situation, it is the female president's male assistant who rebels against his superior in order to provide guidance and aid to the oppressed women of what was once the United States.
