It also serves as a method for stamping out every competing ideology, religious or not.
This society is very much opposed to abortion, thus restricting female freedom of choice, showing man as an oppressor. However it is ironic to note that they have turned this side of their "values" on its head - women are not only forbidden to abort unwanted babies, but are forced into a culture where their only purpose is to give birth to healthy babies, "we are two legged wombs, that's all: sacred vessels, ambulatory chalices". Any unhealthy babies are immediately destroyed and the mothers become Unwomen. "The Ceremony" where the conception takes place is not a form of rape - "There is nothing going on here that [she hadn't] signed up for". However, the Commander has complete control over the proceedings, and "one false move and [Offred] is dead" - quite literally. He "fucks, with a regular two-four marching stroke" which asserts this control. When the Ceremony is over he "withdraws, recedes, rezippers. He nods, then turns and leaves the room", conveying the seriousness and solemnity of the situation, as he "doesn't permit himself to sink down on [Offred]." In this society, men cannot be thought of as infertile - but women can be.
Although the Commander part way through the novel appears to be giving Offred some freedom, for example letting her read magazines and play Scrabble, he is in actual fact repressing her further - how much does she owe for this small bit of freedom? He takes her to "Jezebel's", a nightclub. This government run brothel is another means by which the elite male sector uses women in Gilead. There, we experience the juxtaposition of the Handmaid (Offred) used for procreation and the Prostitutes used purely for sex. This portrays a society that no matter what you choose, you are ultimately a slave to men. This is taken further when the Commander "thought [they] could jump the gun".
