my thoughts on.. the handmaid’s tale

The first time I read this book, I didn’t understand why it was so integral to so many women’s lives. I flicked through the pages and skimmed sentences, hoping for a thrilling and decisive ending, and was majorly disappointed, feeling such hatred towards the ambiguity of the final pages. 3 years (and many many many books) later, I’ve returned to ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ in reaction to the release of the sequel with a vaster understanding of literature and a much greater interest in feminism/ politics and am so confused as to how could have so easily dismissed such gripping masterpiece. Every single sentence carries the weight of Atwood’s phenomenal imagination, intellect and ambition. It is heartbreaking, shocking and so essential to read. The book will never ever lose its relevance.

I am so glad that I gave this novel a second chance.

We walk, sedately. The sun is out, in the sky there are white fluffy clouds, the kind that look like headless sheep. Given our wings, our blinkers, it’s hard to look up, hard to get the full view, of the sky, of anything. But we can do it, a little at a time, a quick move of the head, up and down, to the side and back. We have learned to see the world in gasps.

‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ is set in a world where women have lost their independence, their thoughts, their essential human rights to property and freedom, their voices and their education. Technically, the state is defined as a theonomic military dictatorship. But, put simply, the system is ultra-conservative, religious and privacy is nonexistent. It follows Offred’s account of life in the Republic of Gilead as a handmaid- a woman whose only purpose is to produce children for the rich and powerful in a time when the birth rate is dropping at a devastating rate. She describes her past and the tranquillity of life before the totalitarian regime began- time spent with her husband, Luke, and their daughter. Now, she is uncertain of their fates and is desperate for information, befriending other handmaids who are involved in secret societies. She falls into dangerous situations and relationships and is put under monumental pressure. Yet, she always manages to cling onto her humanity, proving her heroic character. The first time that I read the book, I remember thinking that the protagonist was so bland. I didn’t sympathise with her at all. Now, I am shocked by her strength and courage and admire her continuous ability to hope and dream no matter what she is forced to face.

We were the people who were not in the papers. We lived in the blank white spaces at the edges of print. It gave us more freedom. We lived in the gaps between the stories.

What is most horrifying about the novel is that Atwood did not make a single thing up. All her ideas were compounded from the past. She studied punishments utilised by the Nazis, took examples of situations in the Bible and read petrifying tales from countries such as Romania and included them in her book. Writing in West Berlin in 1984, she was encircled by the Berlin Wall and stimulated to write by the political control she was witnessing. Atwood’s tale therefore truly highlights the potential for established orders to vanish entirely overnight- the status quo can be overturned in a matter of moments. This is why speculative fiction is so terrifying- it puts emphasis on the possible in what we expect can only be impossible. It transforms nightmares into reality. I have found myself drawn more and more to this type of fiction. After reading ‘The Water Cure’ by Sophie Mackintosh, a book that depicted a future patriarchal system where masculinity is viewed as literally toxic to women and took my breath away, I found myself craving similar stories. On my bedside table, I now have ‘1984’ eagerly waiting for me and am keen to pick up “Brave New World” from the library.

An icon.

Better never means better for everyone, he says. It always means worse for some.

After finishing the book, I put it down and suddenly realised how the ambiguity and sense of the unknown entrenched in the final pages is a huge reason why the novel is so powerful. Without the mystery of what on earth happened to Offred, the historical notes, that add an entire other layer to the book, wouldn’t have been possible. This got me thinking. Will the sequel damage the sense of finality that is emphasised at the end of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’? I really hope not. Despite my slight hesitation about the need for a return to Offred’s story, I know that Atwood would not have written ‘The Testaments’ unless she needed to. She must have something to say. Something to tell us. And so, I will definitely be picking up a copy soon. I can’t wait.

Have you read this book? Are you keen to read the sequel? Let me know in the comments!