The Testaments

Aunt Lydia shares a nightmare that she frequently suffers. In it, she is in the stadium, wearing the brown gown. She and several other women are holding rifles pointed at a group of kneeling women. The kneeling women do not wear blindfolds, and Aunt Lydia recognizes them. They are smiling. Aunt Lydia and the others fire, but it is she who and topples.

Aunt Lydia returns to her personal narrative, to the aftermath of the Thank Tank and hotel. After she dons the brown dress, she is brought back to Commander Judd, who tell hers that she was only subjected to Level One of their regimen. He reviews many elements of Lydia’s life, including the jobs that she has held, and her professional career, all of which has centered on promoting women’s rights. He comments on Lydia’s age of 53 and notes that she had both an abortion and a divorce, which are now punishable offenses. Finally, Commander Judd says he intends to end the suffering of women, he asks if she’ll join him. Lydia agrees, and he says that she will have to prove her sincerity.

For her first task, Lydia is an executioner at the stadium. The guards tell Lydia and her fellow shooters that some of the rifles contain blanks, while others have bullets; they don’t know who has which. One of the targets is Anita, and Lydia wonders if Anita wasn’t useful or if she rebelled after the Thank Tank.  

Lydia’s first meeting with Elizabeth, Helena, and Vidala takes place in a hotel boardroom. Vidala already has on a black uniform, while the others wear brown sack-like garments like Lydia. Commander Judd sits at the head of the table and congratulates them on passing their tests. He lectures the women that chaos and material greed have ruined society and the birth rate has fallen because of the selfish choices of women. He tells them that happiness and stability will be restored with the proper rules and boundaries. Therefore, he wants the women to help build a society in accordance with Divine Order. They will act as leaders among the women. Vidala, who has been with the movement from the start, will be their spiritual instructor.

The women, the Founders, will receive resources to develop their organization. Lydia cautiously says that if there is to be a separate sphere for women, then women must be the leaders. Men must not be allowed in their premises and the women should be judged by their results. Commander Judd agrees, within limits, with all reports going to him. Elizabeth and Helena look at Lydia with grudging respect for having taken this risk, but Vidala objects, saying that women are weak vessels and should not run their own affairs. Commander Judd brusquely tells her that men have more important tasks than worrying about the petty details of the female sphere.

Lydia and the other Founders settle in to design the new women’s sphere. The group designs laws, uniforms, slogans, hymns, and names, reporting each week to Commander Judd, who takes credit for their work. Lydia hates these creations, as they betray everything that women had struggled to achieve, but she is also proud in a way, to successfully accomplish so much. Lydia espouses the words of the faithful, because it is the only way to stay safe. There is jockeying for dominance of the Founders, and Lydia is determined to be the leader of the group, making Vidala an instant enemy. Helena and Elizabeth prove easy to manipulate.

Present-day Aunt Lydia recounts how the previous evening, Aunt Vidala asked to have a word with her. As they walk past Aunt Lydia’s statue, Aunt Vidala says that Aunt Elizabeth has expressed discomfort with the offerings left at the feet of the statue, as this attention verges on cult worship and is a sinful waste of food. Aunt Lydia thinks of the video she possesses of Aunt Elizabeth taking extra food in the Refectory. Aunt Vidala insists that they make a rule against the offerings, and Aunt Lydia says she will consider it.

Aunt Vidala reports to Aunt Lydia that she has personally seen Aunt Elizabeth placing food under the statue to create evidence against Aunt Lydia. Aunt Vidala thinks Aunt Elizabeth plans to denounce Aunt Lydia and be the Mayday traitor. Aunt Lydia is secretly delighted that Aunt Vidala is attempting to implicate Aunt Elizabeth. She thanks Aunt Vidala and says she will take these suspicions to Commander Judd. Aunt Vidala obsequiously says that she apologizes for having once doubted Aunt Lydia’s fitness to be the leader of Ardua Hall. Aunt Lydia graciously replies that everyone makes mistakes.