Who Are The Eyes? Gilead Secret Police Role & Powers Explained

Warning: SPOILERS ahead for The Handmaid's Tale season 4.

Though the commanders of Gilead enjoy all the the wealth, status and public perks of power in The Handmaid's Tale, the true power of the dystopian state belongs to the Eyes. Serving as the secret police force and intelligence arm of the Gilead government, the "Eyes of the Lord" are so-called because they have eyes everywhere, constantly searching for violations of the country's strict laws - and no one, not even commanders, are safe from retribution. After all, everything in Gilead is done "under His eye."

At the start of The Handmaid's Tale season 1, Commander Fred Waterford and his wife, Serena Joy, appear to be the highest power in June's life as a handmaid. As the series goes on, however, it becomes clear that commanders and their wives are not immune to the fear that permeates Gilead. After boldly defying Gilead law by reading a passage from the Bible aloud, Serena Joy has a finger amputated as punishment. When his sexual abuse of Janine outside of the "The Ceremony" is exposed, Commander Warren Putnam has his left hand removed. And while toiling in the Colonies, Emily encounters (and kills) a commander's wife who was sent there for the crime of adultery. It is the role of the Eyes to root out transgressions like these, and to carry out the punishments as well.

Related: Handmaid's Tale: Where Is No Man's Land? Gilead-Canada Border Explained

Though ostensibly their role is to gather intelligence, the Eyes are also designed to passively instil fear and quell even the faintest whispers of rebellion in Gilead. Their constant quiet presence and their sudden, violent public arrests have turned Gilead into a panopticon, where citizens are never certain if they're being watched or not. Anyone could be an Eye, and plainclothes agents are often given subservient jobs as a cover for monitoring people. Nick, for example, was Commander Waterford's driver. When Fred smuggled June out of the city for sordid nights at Jezebel's, he did so under the watchful gaze of an Eye, and the other commanders at Jezebels were no doubt being watched as well.

This reveals another key detail about the Eyes: though they're constantly gathering evidence of Gilead's laws being broken, those crimes are only actually punished when the sinner is low-status (like an econowife, a handmaid or a Martha), when the crime has been committed in the public eye (like Serena's was), or when it becomes politically expedient to get rid of a commander. Illegal businesses like Jezebel's are permitted to exist by the Eyes in spite of violating Gilead's laws, so long as they operate with discretion. Moreover, the Eyes can use any activities there to build up a dossier of justifications for executing, imprisoning or exiling any commander who starts causing too many problems.

The Eyes are also in charge of controlling Gilead's borders. Under Nick's leadership, they arranged for Fred Waterford to be taken out to the woods instead of returned home in The Handmaid's Tale season 4 finale, and thereby played a direct role in Fred being killed by the former handmaids living in Canada. The Eyes are led by a commander, but even that commander is not safe from them - as proven when Serena forged an arrest warrant for Commander Cushing and had him arrested by his own men.

By their very nature, the Eyes are the most powerful and feared element of Gilead's government. Their authority stems from their vast swathes of intelligence material, which can be used at any time to cut down even in the most powerful men in Gilead. This is why Nick, despite having climbed the ranks all the way to his own command post and being closely connected with the Eyes, is not free to help June as much as he'd like. One wrong move, and the Eyes of the Lord could turn on him next.

More: The Handmaid's Tale Season 4 Ending Explained (& What Happens Next?)

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