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Dystopian Visions in Margaret Atwoods

The Handmaids Tale.

To what extent is Atwoods dystopian vision of the future based on ideas about
the past?

You may have noted that Atwood makes a crucial point in A Note to the Reader
before her interview:

All of the things I have written about have--as noted in the "Historical Notes" at
the end--been done before, more than once.

It is an imagined account of what happens when not uncommon pronouncements

about women are taken to their logical conclusions. History proves that what we
have been in the past we could be again.

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In other words, Atwood has not used any new ideas in this text - all her ideas
come from history, and mainly American history. Terrifyingly, Gilead is based on
real events. As Atwood states:

there isn't anything in the book not based on something that has already
happened in history or in another country, or for which actual supporting
documentation is not already available.

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She describes a possible future but uses the past violation of human rights as an
example of what could happen because, somewhere in the world, at
some time, it has.

As the author, Atwood is keen to stress the factual basis for a novel often
incorrectly classed as science fiction. The Handmaids Tale is instead a
dystopia and as such, a critique of contemporary society. Atwood argues,
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through her creation of Gilead, that any country which adopts certain tactics to
retain power is inherently corrupt. This is why the concept of control (control of
your name; occupation; clothing) is central to Gileads political strategies.
American history

The forms of repression in Gilead are mainly patriarchal. Atwood investigates the
correlation between totalitarianism and American Puritans in the Sixteenth and
Seventeenth Centuries. The Puritans mainly came to the USA from England, and
generally followed a strict Christian doctrine of salvation through suffering.
Much of Gileads social and religious practices stem from Puritanism (for
instance, they also used a birthing stool) and advocated the importance of
family life and total submission to Gods will.

Remember, that Atwood has not based Gilead entirely on Puritan America but
she has used some of their practices to help illustrate Gileads reliance on
religious observance as central to government.

Religion in the state of Gilead:

Gilead is essentially a theocracy, a state run by religion. Atwood criticises
the right wing religious fanaticism revealed to be at the heart of Gileads
government. Note the wealth of Biblical allusions in the text, from the
names used, such as Angels, Handmaids, Jezebels, Guardians of
the Faith and Marthas. All have a religious significance. Even some of
the punishments, for instance the "particicution" (participatory execution),
when someone is sentenced to be stoned to death, refers to the Old
Testament. However, stoning is still a punishment used in various
countries around the globe (as recently as 2005 in Afghanistan), and
proves Atwoods earlier statement that, ..there isn't anything in the book
not based on something that has already happened in history or in another
country. Remember that it would be far too simple to argue that Atwood is
anti-religion; she is actually criticizing religious bigotry in all its forms, and
shows a great distrust of all hard-line mind sets.
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Narrative Voice:
As readers, we are introduced to the state of Gilead through Offreds
narration. She relates her memories, presumably from some safe point in
her future. This naturally adds a layer of ambiguity to the text, as human
memory is unreliable, and as literary critics, we should always investigate
the reliability of any first-person narrator. Even Offreds assumed name
does not tell us her true identity, and we never learn her real name.
Offred reveals the narrators status; she is of Fred, signifying that she is
the literal possession of a man. Despite this, the female narrative voice is
essentially one of resistance.

Feminist Issues:
Under Gileads new regime, women have lost all their civil rights. They are
not allowed to have money, own property, read books, or even use their
own names. Their main role is to reproduce (fertility is a huge asset in
Gilead) and be subservient to men at all times.
However, not all women comply with these rules. Unusually for a heroine,
Offred is not very heroic or brave for most of the novel. She does not run
away with Moira at the start, and is very anxious about her involvement
with Mayday. Atwood offers the reader a variety of women within the text;
Moira is a rebellious figure always ready to challenge authority; Offreds
mother is a feminist; Ofglen is extremely brave and dies to protect other
members of the underground movement; and Serena Joy, forced to give
up her career to be a full time Wife, is also depicted as restless and
unhappy. Atwood represents all kinds of women in society in this novel,
and shows that some went along with the oppression (such as the Wives
and the Aunts). Not all the women are heroines, and it is important to
remember that men are also persecuted under Gileads laws (such as
homosexuals and priests). This illustrates Atwoods complex narrative
vision, and saves the novel from becoming a text solely about masculine
oppression or being anti-men.

America in the 1980s:

It is useful to consider the socio-political atmosphere in which
Atwood was writing:

Atwood was very involved in the Womens Movement in the USA. All the
women in the novel are survivors from the time before, and represent
varying feminist positions dating back to feminist revolution of the 1960s.
Atwoods role in the Womens Movement insisted on an individual voice,
as opposed to the lack of individuality endorsed by the Gilead system.
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Atwood feared that the feminist movement would be halted by the rise of
the religious right, Ronald Reagan as President, the rise of fundamentalist
religion and the growth of environmental pollution and nuclear testing. Her
concern was that ultimately, women would be silences, as they are in
Gilead.

It is highly significant that Gilead has been rendered sterile by pollution

and sexual disease. Atwood questions what would happen if this
scenario was countered by an extreme right wing group. The means of
control is by way of monitored reproduction; this places a womans role as
crucial in the new order but at an extremely high price.

An American nightmare?
It is important to remember that The Handmaids Tale is specifically set in
America. Atwood is directly commenting upon what she sees as dangers relating
particularly to contemporary life in the USA. This is a nightmare vision of
America, as opposed to the many American Dream narratives in literature,
where democracy has been overthrown and the new republic of Gilead
encompasses all that is oppressive. The US is famous for her military power, and
in Gilead this is used as a tool for maintaining discipline. In 1986, at the time of
publication, there was an anti-feminist backlash in the USA, and right wing and
ultra conservative views were gaining more power. Feminists were accused of
attempting to break up the traditional family unity by empowering women, so
Atwood developed this view to show the dangers if women are forcibly confined
to the domestic sphere.

Seeing and Being Seen:

Gilead has an efficient spy system and this is partly based on the Cold War
politics following the end of World War II. Offreds activities with the Mayday
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underground resistance movement are significantly reminiscent of European

resistance groups during World War II. Similarly, the Underground Femaleroad
refers to the Underground Railroad, a system for smuggling slaves into the
North in America during the Nineteenth Century.

A protest novel?
It is definitely possible to read The Handmaids Tale as a form of protest
fiction, designed to prompt the reader into thinking about wider political
issues involving gender, control and individualism.

Atwood clearly states in her interview the belief that novelists have a
social responsibility:

I believe as the Victorian novelists did, that a novel isn't simply a vehicle for
private expression, but that it also exists for social examination. I firmly believe
this.

So, Atwood is warning the reader against a society functioning as a catalyst for:

Female repression
Religious fanaticism
Environmental pollution
Big Brother surveillance techniques
Capital punishment
Martial law

In conclusion: to what extent is Atwoods dystopian vision of the future based on

ideas about the past?
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After reading the interview and completing this task, I hope you will agree
that Atwoods vision of the future is entirely based on ideas about the past.
It is crucial to aware of the central importance of history when writing
about this novel.
If you have enjoyed the novel and this task, remember you can learn lots
more about Margaret Atwood by visiting her official website at:

http://www.owtoad.com/.

Enjoy!