The Handmaid's Tale

I have heard that when Trump was elected Lord Mayor of Power and Dictator of Social Media (or just the US) sales for Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and George Orwell’s 1984 skyrocketed! Apparently everyone’s turning to the great authors for tips as to how to survive the impending ‘Trumpocapylse’ that will lead society into a state of nightmarish dystopia. Well, everyone’s turning to the right people. 

The Handmaid’s Tale is a wonderful depiction of a patriarchal dystopia where women are dried up wives, whores, domestics, or child-carrying vessels (known as Handmaids). It tells the story of Offred, a Handmaid living in this society and grappling with memories of her life before. As Offred spends her days doing her daily duties, always under the threat of exile or death if she deviates, drama blooms as she develops a forbidden relationship with her Commander as well as the household servant, Nick. Both men have the power to drastically change Offred’s life, maybe even help to reunite her with her husband and daughter whom she has not seen or heard from in years. 

On the surface, it seems that not much actually happens in The Handmaid’s Tale in terms of action or thrills. The irrepressible power of the book comes from Atwood’s marvellous ability to depict in great depth and detail such a world and such a character that envelopes the reader immediately and keeps them completely engulfed within the story right to the very last page. 

Told in the first person, it’s an engaging stream-of-consciousness type of story that not only creates images and feelings a dystopian society (very dystopian for women anyway), but really gets you into the head of this character and very subtly highlights this incredible struggle that she’s going though into trying to live ‘happily’ by being quiet and compliant, but on the inside being completely overwhelmed by hope that something will brighten; she’ll find her long-lost best friend or her husband will return and whisk her away to be a family again. 

But perhaps the most interesting thing about The Handmaid’s Tale is the time in which it’s set. Not a lot of concrete clues are away given away as to how far into the future this is set (if it be the future at all) because the Republic of Gilead is so isolated. Offred is one of many characters who can remember what life was like before, the tone of the book as well as some of the dialogue is quite modern, and there are many references that indicate that this sudden dystopia could be right around the corner (obviously that’s the feeling of a number of people at the moment). 

I think this is where the true brilliance of the book lies and indeed, you read it voraciously; practically inhale it, dying to find out where we are in space and time and are things too far gone for Offred to continue hoping. 

Margaret Atwood is an incredibly powerful writer and The Handmaid’s Tale is an incredibly powerful read that I think everyone should engage in. It may not have the action of a fantasy novel or the numbing anxiety of a good thriller or horror, but it creates an experience of a different kind and I think some of the thrills and fears that come out of it are created by its exploration of themes and social attitudes (particularly those towards women) which are a relevant to today. It’s a scary setting and unsettling thought, but a powerful and compelling read.

Author: Margaret Atwood

First published: 1985