Review
This article contains mention of suicide.
June’s (Elisabeth Moss) battles with Gilead continue in The Handmaid’s Tale season 6, but the legacy of Eleanor Lawrence (Julie Dretzin) is still felt throughout the dystopian series. Adapted from Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel, the series explores a drastically changed America now called Gilead, where a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state forcibly assigns fertile women to become «Handmaids» to combat a perceived infertility crisis. The Handmaid’s Tale is centered on June Osborne, who lived through the rise of Gilead, endured the horrors of being a Handmaid, and vowed to escape and bring down the regime.
One such ally that June makes in her efforts is Gilead High Commander Joseph Lawrence (Bradley Whitford), a former academic who would find himself becoming an architect to Gilead alongside the Sons of Jacob. However, Lawrence does not share their ideology, only joining forces to create a sustainable system and later becoming ashamed of the regime he welcomed, despite his apparent indifference and acceptance of the status quo. As such, Lawrence harbors many Handmaids in his home and joins forces with the Mayday resistance.
Eleanor Was Commander Lawrence's First Wife — Who He Truly Loved
No Matter How The World Changed, Joseph Was Devoted To His Wife
Before the rise of Gilead, Joseph met Eleanor in college, falling in love with her and wooing her through a heartfelt mixtape he made. Both she and Joseph pursued academic careers, and she would later become an art professor with an eye to make sure that everything was «Beautiful.» However, the pair’s relationship was not free of conflict, as Joseph could never fulfill her wish of having children due to his own reluctance, though this disagreement never dimmed the affection they had for one another.
By the time of the series, however, Eleanor’s mental health had degraded, leading to Joseph confining her to her room and the relationship between the two becoming fraught. While Joseph’s feelings for her never waned, she held him accountable for his part in bringing Gilead into existence. However, she strikes up a friendship with June upon her assignment to the Lawrence house, and attempts to aid the resistance’s plans, even though her failing, increasingly unmedicated state made her a liability.
How Eleanor Died In The Handmaid's Tale
Eleanor's Passing Is A Tragedy, But Helps Shape The Fight Against Gilead
Ultimately, Eleanor makes her final appearance in The Handmaid’s Tale season 3, episode 12 «Sacrifice,» as June stumbles upon her overdosing on her medication. Rather than aiding the Commander’s wife, however, June hesitates, allowing her to pass rather than allowing her to suffer from her condition and become a threat to their shared cause. June sits beside Eleanor in her final moments, leaving her with a heartfelt farewell before quietly slipping away, before the Marthas find her the next morning.
Despite the role she played in Eleanor’s demise, June comforts Joseph as he mourns, sharing memories of their loved ones and celebrating Eleanor for her better moments, as opposed to her deteriorated self at the end of her life. Furthermore, Eleanor never leaves Joseph’s heart, as he regards her as his «real wife» even after Gilead’s laws push him and Naomi Putnam (Ever Carradine) together out of necessity. However, Eleanor’s continued impact on Joseph can be seen best in his continued support of the resistance.
Using her death as an excuse to keep the Canadian border open, Joseph and June are able to smuggle children out of Gilead and across the Canadian border. However, even with the opportunity to escape Gilead, Lawrence refuses June’s offer to join them, not out of fear of what the outside authorities would do to him, but out of a desire to do right by his beloved and bring down the regime he played a hand in creating. As such, Eleanor Lawrence’s legacy lives on throughout The Handmaid’s Tale, as Joseph Lawrence does all he can to make his one true love proud.
