The Handmaid's Tale

Lore & Background

The novel is set after the Sons of Jacob, a radical political group, assassinate the U.S. president and Congress, establishing the Republic of Gilead. Women are denied the right to read, own property, and have reproductive rights, with ranks indicated by clothing color. The protagonist, Offred, is a Handmaid whose name is a patronymic; she describes her life through present-day experiences and flashbacks of her failed escape and indoctrination. She is subjected to the monthly 'Ceremony,' a ritualized rape, and later engages in secret meetings with the Commander and a relationship with Nick.

Reader's Guide

The Handmaid's Tale is significant as a work of speculative fiction that satirizes social, political, and religious trends, drawing on historical Puritanism and real-world events such as the Islamic revolution in Iran. Atwood argued that all scenarios in the novel have occurred in real life, using newspaper clippings to support its basis in reality. The novel won the 1985 Governor General's Award and the first Arthur C. Clarke Award in 1987, and was nominated for the Nebula Award, Booker Prize, and Prometheus Award. Its legacy includes adaptations into film, opera, and television, and a sequel, The Testaments, published in 2019. The book was included on the 2022 'Big Jubilee Read' list for the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II.

Did You Know?

• The novel's title echoes Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and alludes to fairy tales where the central character tells her story.
• Atwood dedicated the novel to her ancestor Mary Webster, who was accused of witchcraft in Puritan New England but survived her hanging.
• The novel includes a metafictional epilogue set in 2195, where historians discuss Offred's narrative recorded on audio cassettes.
• Atwood was inspired by the Islamic revolution in Iran (1978–79) and the resulting theocracy that reduced women's rights.