The Founders refer to Aunt Lydia, Aunt Vidala, Aunt Helena, and Aunt Elizabeth, the four women who developed not only the Aunts but all of Gilead’s social structures and rules as pertaining to women. The Founders are legendary figures across Gilead.
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Founders Term Timeline in The Testaments
The timeline below shows where the term Founders appears in The Testaments. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 14
...wedding, Agnes hears a disturbing story at school. In their classroom hangs portraits of the Founders: Aunts Lydia, Helena, Elizabeth, and Vidala. Lydia’s portrait is largest and seems fearsome. Vidala announces...
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Chapter 34: The Ardua Hall Holograph
...the path she would take as an Aunt: six months on probation, and then the Founders would make their decision, at which point Becka would be a Supplicant Aunt until she...
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Chapter 40
The next step for Agnes is to be interviewed by each of the Founders. Becka gives her advice on how to handle each Aunt during her successive interviews. Elizabeth...
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Chapter 59: Ardua Hall Holograph
...who the source is. Aunt Lydia expresses her disbelief and says that all of the Founders should be investigated, including herself, though Judd seems not to suspect her. However, he feels...
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