This quote is broken down into four literary devices: imagery, simile, repetition, and point of view. When the pronoun "we" is used, a direct connection is brought into the quote. One can see that this is a personal view on the subject emphasizing the deep feeling that cannot be conveyed through a person outside looking in. The imagery presented in the short two sentence quote elaborates on how deep the feeling really is. We can see that "love" is not something that is experienced often in this society, so just having the opportunity to experience love gives the handmaids the experience of imagination and hope. Something that was oppressed by their dystopian society. The similes "like flying" and "like heaven" are completely parallel to love giving an idea or analogy to what being in love or experiencing love is like. When they use "like flying" it can be expressed that love is similar to being up high and soaring above it all. Most likely above the hate and torment the handmaids and women of less power (non-wives) had to endure. It was like an escape mechanism. Also with the simile "like heaven" explains that love is like an utopia since heaven is the symbol of perfect living which is also something they cannot really speak on. These similes suggests that love is their only escape away from the world that they live in. Lastly repetition is used throughout the quote as well. The use of "so" allows there to be a highlight to what is being described, love. By adding "so" to the beginning of certain adjectives it allows there to be more expression which elevates what the narrator, the handmaid is trying to say. This gives more imagery to the tone of the quote. It is understood that love is allowing these women to gain hope and want more for themselves and since it "was always just around the corner" it allowed for them to gain a little bit of prosperity in their minds to know that there is something more than just hate and suppression. Love was their way out.
