Webster's dictionary defines shames as "a painful emotion caused by a strong sense of guilt... the capacity for such a feeling." It describes shameless as "feeling no shame; impervious to disgrace." Offred, unhappy and ashamed handmaid, feels unworthy of everything. Finding the society thrust upon her constant source of shame, she wishes freedom from it. Without shame, Offred can parade around in clothes of shining happiness. Shameless, she could parade around in nothingness--feeling no remorse. Simply a complex manifestation of current societal trends, The Handmaid's Tale uses Offred as the perfect model for today's woman. The essential difference between the absence of shame and shamelessness is simple: society throws shame, a person's natural reaction to existence (read: Adam and Eve...