Repost: Aunt Lydia

 

In the Hulu series "The Handmaid's Tale" (being played out for reals in slow-motion in Texas), there is a terrifying character named "Aunt Lydia" played by Ann Dowd. I think the reason I feltl Aunt Lydia to be so scary was that Ms. Dowd delivers a flawless rendition of some of the Roman Catholic nuns I had as teachers when I was a little boy during the 60's.  Ms Dowd's Aunt Lydia displays every bit of the ignorant self-assured swagger, condescension, greasy piety, meanness and unpredictable brutality that dear Sister Ellen-Patrice, Sister Antoinette, Sister Imelda, Sister Marie and one Sister who I can only remember by the name that the children gave her - "Atom Bomb" all had. In "A Handmaid's Tale", Lydia, like the nuns of my childhood, acts the way someone does when they know they are untouchable. When I first saw Aunt Lydia's character on screen, my blood ran cold. I was momentarily transported back across the decades to St Joseph's, St Patrick's and St Mary's, and re-witnessed in my mind the physical abuse that happened with frightening regularity.   Unlike Aunt Lydia - Roman Catholic nuns did not carry cattle prod batons. They had to make do with the tools that were available to them, oversized habit-rosaries, rulers, yard sticks, pointers, black boards and of course their own two hands. The Sisters loved slapping children's faces open-handed. Using a child's ears as handles they liked pounding children's heads against chalkboards. They absolutely loved the way a handful of hair could turn into a useful leash with which to direct recalcitrant children.    One of the meaner nuns, Sister Imelda, used to verbally assault children while she beat them (like Aunt Lydia does in The Handmaid's Tale). This behavior went along fine for her (probably for decades) until she ran into a boy who didn't meekly suffer her assaults like the rest of us.. One day, this kid did something to irritate Sister Imelda and she called him up to the front of the class where she yelled at him and slapped him across the face. The lad reacted out of instinct and punched Imelda in the mouth, sending her dentures sailing through the air and skittering across the floor. Before Imelda could recover and call for help, the boy jumped out the first floor classroom window and ran off. He was a hero to his classmates. His mother, much to her credit withdrew him from the school.   In the Handmaid's Tale season four, a very bad actor in the Gilead hierarchy met their demise in a very satisfying way - but Lydia survives.. Hopefully the writers are saving the best (Lydia's own downfall) for last...

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