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A review by james1star
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
The Handmaid’s Tale was my first Atwood novel and I am so excited to read more, this was truly a masterpiece in psychological and descriptive writing. We are transported to Gilead via incredible world building which is reinforced and added to throughout the book and Offred’s life. Her accounts are disjointed and horrific but can be conceived to be true. This is because the novel is a dystopian ‘speculative fiction’ based on real life events that Gilead worked into a synthesis to create their totalitarian theocracy. This was done so the events can be thought of as possibly happening which is super scary especially in July 2022 with the recent US’s overturning of Roe v Wade ‘banning’ abortions as a method of powerful men to have control over woman’s bodies - in the novel (Caucasian from the historical notes) low fertility and growing power of woman is a reason for implementing the regime. Additionally, in the story pre-Gilead world is dealing with nuclear contamination and political stalemates due to superpowers and in the notes it states no country was willing to interfere - Russia Ukrainian war? Scary stuff
My favourite theme within the Handmaid’s Tale is how Offred is shown to bring up this separation of the mind and the body. She does this in a society where women are defined and characterised by their bodily attributes and abilities and so she takes ownership of her own mentality and in doing so showcases her rebellion. This spirit and drive does wither and her internal monologue is characterised by disjointedness expressing the impact that her circumstances has had on her. Her flashbacks to the past and telling of her story is mixed but you are very hooked on it and Offred is portrayed as a very real person.
Unlike some I actually really liked the ending because it is super ambiguous where she enters ‘into the darkness within; or else the light’ so we will never know what happened to her. There is a sense of hope but also tragedy. However the main point Atwood puts forward is unknowing and this is reinforced by the historical notes where they’re questioning the accuracy and credibility of her account by historians of the future at a convention on Giledean studies. Despite teetering on her Tale being true, I mainly got a sense of distrust and ‘brushing off’ of the events which Offred so courageously shared. Towards the end of her account she is shown to be in psychology pain thinking about what she’s endured, it’s hard for her to tell these things and she wants to get them right but undoubtedly it’s hard because of the traumatic nature of the circumstances. And for historians (academic professionals who specialise in the subject and we trust to interpret it) to in a way belittle her efforts is such an injustice. But true, we’ve done that to past accounts of people in horrific situations, further emphasising a need to not repeat the past.
I do want to mention I did watch the show long before reading the book (only got into reading the past 5 months) and I do enjoy it so I did have my own opinions and idea of the storyline. However, I definitely enjoyed the book way more and I imagined and realised Offred more vividly in my head then seeing her physically real. Also I love how in the book we know Offred knows her name, but she has power in withholding it from us and her being the property ‘of’ the commander ‘Fred’ we’re constantly reminded she is property, her value is merely in her bodily functions for Fred and his household (yes she does pose mental stimulation in the book but under the Gileadan regime, as a Handmaid that is her function) and the show outright giving her a name in a way diminishes the significance of Atwood not revealing her name in the book. A thought.
To conclude I did really enjoy this novel, I initially was listening to as an audiobook but this was removed from YouTube so got the book and actually much more enjoyed reading it myself, it took me a long time to get through it and I think that’s because of the method in which I took it in. It is hard to read in parts but is okay exceptionally well written and really hooks you in. Bring on The Testaments.
My favourite theme within the Handmaid’s Tale is how Offred is shown to bring up this separation of the mind and the body. She does this in a society where women are defined and characterised by their bodily attributes and abilities and so she takes ownership of her own mentality and in doing so showcases her rebellion. This spirit and drive does wither and her internal monologue is characterised by disjointedness expressing the impact that her circumstances has had on her. Her flashbacks to the past and telling of her story is mixed but you are very hooked on it and Offred is portrayed as a very real person.
Unlike some I actually really liked the ending because it is super ambiguous where she enters ‘into the darkness within; or else the light’ so we will never know what happened to her. There is a sense of hope but also tragedy. However the main point Atwood puts forward is unknowing and this is reinforced by the historical notes where they’re questioning the accuracy and credibility of her account by historians of the future at a convention on Giledean studies. Despite teetering on her Tale being true, I mainly got a sense of distrust and ‘brushing off’ of the events which Offred so courageously shared. Towards the end of her account she is shown to be in psychology pain thinking about what she’s endured, it’s hard for her to tell these things and she wants to get them right but undoubtedly it’s hard because of the traumatic nature of the circumstances. And for historians (academic professionals who specialise in the subject and we trust to interpret it) to in a way belittle her efforts is such an injustice. But true, we’ve done that to past accounts of people in horrific situations, further emphasising a need to not repeat the past.
I do want to mention I did watch the show long before reading the book (only got into reading the past 5 months) and I do enjoy it so I did have my own opinions and idea of the storyline. However, I definitely enjoyed the book way more and I imagined and realised Offred more vividly in my head then seeing her physically real. Also I love how in the book we know Offred knows her name, but she has power in withholding it from us and her being the property ‘of’ the commander ‘Fred’ we’re constantly reminded she is property, her value is merely in her bodily functions for Fred and his household (yes she does pose mental stimulation in the book but under the Gileadan regime, as a Handmaid that is her function) and the show outright giving her a name in a way diminishes the significance of Atwood not revealing her name in the book. A thought.
To conclude I did really enjoy this novel, I initially was listening to as an audiobook but this was removed from YouTube so got the book and actually much more enjoyed reading it myself, it took me a long time to get through it and I think that’s because of the method in which I took it in. It is hard to read in parts but is okay exceptionally well written and really hooks you in. Bring on The Testaments.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Violence
Moderate: Infertility, Suicide, Genocide, Rape, Sexual violence, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Abortion, Classism, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, and War