The Handmaids Tale - Context

Question 1

Margaret Atwood

Answer 1

• Atwood is known for her engagement with feminist and environmental causes, and she often critiques patriarchy, power structures, and social inequalities in her writing

Question 2

Religious Extremism

Answer 2

• Gilead’s government is based on theocracy, where a fundamental interpretation of the Bible is used to justify utilitarian control

Question 3

Second-wave feminism

Answer 3

• Atwood’s novel is often read as a critique of second-wave feminism, which was at its height of the 1970s-80s. It fought for women’s rights such as workplace equality and reproductive rights
• Reproductive rights are a central factor for the novel, fighting for equality regarding birth control and abortion

Question 4

cold war and dystopian literature

Answer 4

• the novels setting in a toteliariasm society can be liked to fears of nuclear war and communism
• dystopian fiction became increasingly popular during the cold war period, exploring themes of surveillance and loss of identity

Question 5

social context - gender and feminism

Answer 5

• Atwood’s novel is often read through a feminist lens. Gilead’s society is a patriarchy that systematically oppresses women by stripping them of their rights
• Women’s rights are strictly delineated; wives are expected to bear children for the ruling class, marthas are domestic servants and handmaids are forced to bear children for the elite