As mentioned in my previous post, I began reading Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” a speculative fiction novel that tells an alternate future in the United States. Since then, I have finished the book and even started watching the 2017 television adaptation of the story, and I need to talk about it. This book was originally published in 1985, yet it could not be a more relevant topic in today’s America. So, without further introductions, let’s dive into the waters of “The Handmaid’s Tale.”
About the Book:
Margaret Atwood is a Canadian author and poet, who is known for her thought-provoking works that explore themes of gender, power, and dystopia. Born in 1939, Atwood has been a prominent voice in feminist literature and speculative fiction for decades. “The Handmaid’s Tale”, published in 1985, remains one of her most influential works to this day, resonating with readers across generations. The novel also has a lesser-known sequel released in 2019, titled “The Testaments.” Atwood wrote “The Handmaid’s Tale” during a time of global political and social change. The rise of conservative movements in the 1980s, particularly in the United States, influenced her vision of a society that suppresses women’s rights. She has stated that every event in the novel is based on real historical occurrences, drawing from Puritan New England, totalitarian regimes, and policies that have historically subjugated women. The novel’s continued relevance has led to numerous adaptations, including a critically acclaimed television series that is still running today.
Set in the near-future dystopian society of Gilead, “The Handmaid’s Tale” follows Offred, a woman forced into reproductive servitude. In Gilead, a totalitarian theocracy that has overthrown the U.S. government, women’s rights have been stripped away. Due to declining birth rates, fertile women, known as Handmaids, are assigned to elite households to bear children for their Commanders and their wives. Offred, whose real name remains unknown, navigates this oppressive society while reminiscing about her past life, her husband, daughter, and career before the regime took power. As she endures life in the household of Commander Fred Waterford and his wife Serena Joy, Offred secretly rebels, engaging in forbidden relationships and seeking hidden resistance networks.
Review of the Book (and Show):
Firstly, I want to discuss the book and all the greatness that comes with it. One of the novel’s greatest strengths is its compelling and disturbing premise. Atwood’s ability to craft a believable dystopian world immerses readers in Gilead’s rigid hierarchy and systemic oppression, forcing them to confront issues of power, control, and autonomy. The warnings about political extremism and the erosion of women’s rights continue to strike a nerve in modern audiences, including myself. This is not the first Atwood novel I have read, but a constant remains between this and the previous ones through its poetic and precise writing style that captures the psychological depth of oppression and the nuances of memory, resistance, and survival. Through Offred’s introspective narration, the reader experiences both the horror of Gilead and the fragility of hope. The characters are also deeply complex. Offred is not a conventional heroine, she is flawed, and passive at times, but deeply human. Even antagonistic figures, such as Serena Joy and the Commander, have layers of complexity that highlight the moral ambiguities of Gilead’s power dynamics.
Now looking a tiny bit at the show, which I have only watched the first three episodes of. Like many adaptations, there are some creative differences and there is a lot of rearranging of events. Many of the early events in the show do not take place as early as they do in the novel, and vice versa. I found this a bit strange at first but understand some of the reasoning. I will say that one of the main strengths of the show is that we find out much more about the world before the rise of Gilead and its regime.
Speaking of, the greatest weakness in the book, at least in my opinion, is that we find out so little about the world before, and the current world as it exists outside of this small region that Offred is stuck in. I understand the reason for this, being the increased feeling of isolation in the narrative, but I still really enjoyed these aspects of the television series. I have also read reviews that dislike the ending of the novel because of its major ambiguity that leaves Offred’s destiny open-ended, however, I disagree. I quite enjoyed the open-endedness of this story for the same reason I enjoyed it in my read and review of “Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta.” Put simply, the ambiguity is resemblant to the ambiguity of women’s rights and the fact that we don’t know what the future holds for us. Perhaps this is because of the current state of the world, but I think that this ending only intensified the themes of this novel and made it all the better, and more terrifying.
I don’t know what the ending of this novel means for the story of “The Testaments,” in fact, I have not read a single thing about it because I want it to be a surprise. Similarly, I don’t know how the show’s ending will differ from this novel because the plot of the first season is only following the events of the book and there is obviously more to that story, seeing as it is still releasing more seasons.
Overall, “The Handmaid’s Tale” is a masterful work of speculative fiction that continues to captivate and challenge readers decades after its publication. Atwood’s chilling vision of a dystopian future is a cautionary tale about the fragility of rights and freedoms, particularly for women. While its pacing and ambiguity may not appeal to all readers, its thought-provoking themes and literary brilliance make it an essential read. I will refrain from suggesting, or the opposite, for the show as I am still early into it, but I would highly recommend this book to every single American. The novel’s enduring impact underscores its relevance in discussions of gender, politics, and resistance in today’s U.S. and as I have said before, literature is the best exposure.
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