The Handmaid's Tale

Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaid's Tale, constructs a society that is governed by its warped views of religion. Rather than seeing the whole picture of biblical stories, the society instead chooses to focus only on the excerpts that justify its actions. Through this society's biblical social code, the government has taken rights away from its people, and eliminated the basic rights of women and all who violate the newly established social order. It is in this society that men are deemed superior, and the women are one of four main potential positions. There are the Wives, women who are at the top of the societal food chain. Then come the Marthas, the women responsible for housekeeping, child rearing, as well as any other menial task that can be found for them. Then there are the Unwomen, those women who cannot have children, who have reached their prime, the women who refuse to conform to the new society's instructions and rules, or who previously violated the codes of the society. The most important, yet seemingly least liked of the groups of women in the story, are the Handmaids, women seen only for their potential as viable surrogate mothers. The Handmaids are, in a sense, merely walking uteruses, and if they become pregnant a celebration is in order. This society is absolutely ridiculous in how it controls, limits, and denies women basic rights, with its only defense being the Bible. Although the Bible is a valid learning tool, and something that people can use as a guideline to live their life, this society takes their interpretation too far, and in many instances is totally violating the basic principles set out in the Bible.


In this book, one of my favorite passages is:

If I turn my head so that the white wings framing my face direct my vision towards it, I can see it as I go down the stairs, round, convex, a pier glass, like the eye of a fish, and myself in it like a distorted shadow, a parody of something, some fairy-tale figure in a red cloak, descending towards a moment of carelessness that is the same as danger. A Sister dipped in blood. (Atwood)

Some of the key words of this passage, that make the tone of the passage are distorted, parody, and fairy-tale. The use of "distorted" is vital to this passage because it is reflecting the distortion of the Bible for the basis of the ideals of this society. Parody is also an important word choice because it is showing how the Republic of Gilead is a joke in itself, twisting the Bible to fit its own values, and ignoring the rest of the stories that are against what has been implemented. The reference to a fairy-tale is also important because it is emphasizing the surreal nature of the society of the novel, showing how the Handmaids are just like Little Red Riding Hood, running from the Big Bad Wolf, or society in this case.

Overall, I really liked this book. although it addressed some very tense social issues, and showed a mocking view of modern day society's philosophies, this book was serious and thought-provoking. I like books that make me think, and relate them to our current social situations, and The Handmaid's Tale is definitely relative to modern times.