The Handmaid's Tale
A woman trapped in a theocratic future U.S. recounts life as forced reproductive property under a brutal regime.
First published 2017 · The Handmaid’s Tale
More about this book
Story
Offred lives in the Republic of Gilead, a near-future theocratic state that has replaced the former United States. Women are divided into rigid roles, and her role as a Handmaid means her body is controlled by the regime for reproduction. She moves through a tightly monitored daily life shaped by fear, ritual, and surveillance.
The narrative unfolds through Offred’s first-person memories, with flashbacks to the time before Gilead and to her conditioning under the new order. As she remembers lost freedoms, family, work, and ordinary life, the present-day story reveals how the regime works and how women are made compliant. Explanations arrive gradually, so the reader pieces together the society alongside her.
The book builds tension through small acts, forbidden knowledge, and the possibility of resistance, while keeping much of Offred’s fate unresolved. Its structure leaves several questions open and emphasizes atmosphere, trauma, and the psychological cost of survival. The result is a bleak cautionary story about power, control, and what remains of identity under oppression.
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In the The Handmaid’s Tale series
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Details
- Authors
- Margaret Atwood
- First published
- 2017
- Genres
- Classics, Dystopia, Science Fiction, Feminism, Fantasy
- Subjects
- brothels · Canadian authors · Canadian fantasy fiction · Canadian fiction (fictional works by one author) · Christian fundamentalism · Dystopian fiction · Dystopias · fantasy fiction · Fiction · Fiction, dystopian · Fiction, fantasy, general · handmaids · Large type books · Man-woman relationships · Man-woman relationships, fiction · military dictatorship · Misogyny · New York Times bestseller · nyt:e-book-fiction=2017-01-22 · nyt:trade-fiction-paperback=2017-02-26 · Old Testament · Political · political fiction · pregnancy · religious fanaticism · revolution · science fiction · Scrabble · Social aspects · theocracy · theonomy · totalitarianism · United States Congress · Women · Study guides · History and criticism · Handmaid's tale (Atwood, Margaret) · Roman canadien de langue anglaise · Misogynie · collectionID:EanesChallenge · Romans, nouvelles · Femmes · collectionID:ConroeChallenge · FICTION / Dystopian · FICTION / Political · FICTION / Science Fiction · Teen fiction · World literature · Fiction subjects · Science fiction & fantasy · Comics & graphic novels, adaptations · Comics & graphic novels, literary · Comics & graphic novels, fantasy · Dystopian · Foreign relations · Neutrality · Long Now Manual for Civilization · collection:otherwise_tiptree_award=retrohonor · English literature
- ISBN-13
- 9781328879943
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