The Handmaid’s Tale – Summary & Ending Explained
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is a chilling and thought-provoking dystopian novel set in the Republic of Gilead, a theocratic society that has replaced the United States. The narrative unfolds through the eyes of Offred, a woman stripped of her identity and forced into the role of a Handmaid—whose sole purpose is to bear children for the ruling class.
The Republic of Gilead emerges in the aftermath of societal collapse, where a theocratic regime seizes control, subjugating women and eroding individual freedoms. Offred, once a woman with a family and a name of her own, is reduced to a mere vessel for procreation. The society is divided into rigid classes, with Handmaids serving the elite in a desperate attempt to reverse the declining birth rates.
As Offred navigates the oppr...