Women of Gilead: A critical analysis of the oppressed life of women in Gilead

Utkarsh
Dr. Alka Singh
English
31 December, 2020
Enrollment no: 200101148
Abstract
This study attempts to analyse the lives of women in the famous dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale
(1985) written by one of the most celebrated Canadian author Margaret Atwood (1939- ). It attempts to
critically analyse the lives of women, their roles and their social status in Gilead. In this novel, Atwood
highlights various feminist issues such as loss of individual identity, violation and curtailment of their
rights, gender inequality, misogyny and oppression of women in a patriarchal society where a woman’s
body is treated an object, a tool and consumable item. Through this novel, Atwood challenges the
inferior status of women and also rejects the cultural and the biological mechanisms of oppression. In
Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, women of Gilead, especially handmaids, suffer from the
oppression imposed upon them not only by the Republic of Gilead power but also by the patriarchal
ideology which is similar to the situation of colonized subjects, particularly women, in previously or
currently colonised countries. This paper explains how the female characters of the novel are treated
and forced to experience a life of passivity, submissiveness and are subjected to both the dictatorial
government of Gilead and the patriarchal society.

Keywords: gender inequality, patriarchal society, cultural and the biological mechanisms of oppression,
loss of individual identity, passivity, submissiveness, handmaids, misogyny, consumable item

Introduction

Margaret Atwood is one of the most famous authors of contemporary Canadian Literature. She has
taken an active part in Canadian Politics and its feminist movements. Most of her works are related to
major social and political issues. Issues related to gender are a major concern of the author’s works.
Oppression of women and the search for their lost identities in the patriarchal societies are recurring
themes which can be seen evidently in her writings. Moreover, gender is the main concern for
examining The Handmaid’s Tale. In Gilead society, women are deprived of their individual freedom
and ordered to serve the state in different ways and functions.
Through her various writings, Atwood portrays the suffering of her female characters confined in their
feminine roles in her novels. The Handmaid’s Tale for instance, depicts a society where women are
meant to support and serve the men who hold the positions of absolute power. Their roles are confined
to bearing children. They have no voices, opinions or identity of their own.
About the Author
Margaret Eleanor Atwood is a Canadian poet, author, literary critic, essayist, teacher, environmental
and social activist. She was born in 1939 and took a keen interest in reading from a very young age.
She completed her graduation in the year 1957.
In 1961, Atwood published her first book of poetry, Double Persephone. Since then, she has published
18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of non-fiction, nine collections of short fiction, eight children's
books, and two graphic novels, as well as a number of small press editions of both poetry and fiction.
She is the recepient of various accolades including the Booker Prize (twice), Arthur C. Clarke Award
Governor General's Award, Franz Kafka Prize, Princess of Asturias Awards, and the National Book
Critics and PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Awards.
Atwood also received numerous honorary degrees from various institutions including The Sorbonne,
NUI Galway as well as Oxford and Cambridge universities. A number of her works including The
Handmaid’s Tale, Alias Grace have also been adapted for film and television series.
About the Book
The Handmaid’s Tale is a dystopian novel. It was written by the critically acclaimed Canadian author
Margaret Atwood in the year 1985. The novel is set in the near future in a military dictatorship called
the Republic Of Gilead that overthrows the United States Government after a military coup. The novel
is narrated in first person by a character named Offred who belongs to a group of women known as
Handmaids. The Handmaids are women capable of bearing children who are forcibly assigned to
produce children for the "Commanders" – the ruling class of men.
Through this novel, Atwood explores themes of patriarchy, loss of individual identity, gender
discrimination, oppression and objectification of women and their bodies, misogyny, violation of
human rights, and the numerous ways by which women resist and attempt to gain individuality,
independence and show their resentment towards the authoritarian government.
Margaret Atwood was awarded the 1985 Governor General's Award and the first Arthur C. Clarke
Award in 1987 for The Handmaid’s Tale. The novel was also nominated for the 1986 Booker Prize. In
the year 1987, she was awarded the Prometheus Award. The novel was later adapted into a film in 1990
directed by Volker Schlöndorff and finally it was adapted into a television series in 2017.
The sequel novel to the Handmaid’s Tale, The Testaments was published in 2019.

Plot
After a military coup that kills the President of the United States and most of Congress, a radical
political group known as the "Sons of Jacob". The group uses quasi-Christian ideology to launch a
revolution. The new regime overtakes all other religious groups. In addition, the regime reorganises
society using a peculiar interpretation of The Bible, and a new dictatorial, social order is created. The
United States Constitution is suspended, newspapers are censored, the rights of the citizens are
curtailed, and what was formerly the United States of America is changed into a military dictatorship
known as the Republic of Gilead. Above all, the most drastic change of all is the gross violations of the
human rights, especially those of women. Women are not allowed to hold jobs, read, write, hold
political offices, handle money, or own property. Most significantly, they are deprived of control over
their body. They role is limited to the domestic sphere.

The story is narrated by Offred in first person. The novel depicts an era of environmental pollution and
radiation due to which the fertility rates have declined sharply. Offred is one of few fertile women
remaining. She is forcibly assigned to produce children for the "Commanders", the ruling class of men,
after she is forcibly seperated from her husband and daughter. She is known as a "Handmaid" based on
the biblical story of Rachel and her handmaid Bilhah. Apart from Handmaids, women are segregated
into different social classes- Wives, Marthas, Ecowives, and Aunts. They follow strict dress code. The
handmaids wear red clothes. Wives are supposed to dress in blue cloaks. The Marthas and the Aunts
wear green and brown dress respectively and the Ecowives wear milticoloured dress.
Offred narrates about her life starting with her third assignment as a Handmaid to Commander Fred.
Her narratives of the present are interspersed with her flashbacks from her life before the Revolution
took place including her experiences at the training center for her indoctrination into life as a Handmaid
by the Aunts, her friend, Moira’s escape from the training facility and her failed attempt to escape to
Canada with her husband and daughter. At the Commander’s house, she is treated poorly, especially by
the Commander's wife, Serena Joy. Serena is a former Christian media personality who supported
women's domesticity and subordinate role even before Gilead was established. Now, she tries to hide
her past as a media personality. Also, Offred thinks the Martha at the house dislikes her. In the days
between her visits to the Commander, Offred is informed by her shopping partner, Ofglen, another
handmaid, about the Mayday Resistance. She learns that the Mayday is an underground network which
has been working to bring an end to the oppressive regime of the Republic of Gilead.

After some time, to Offred's surprise, the Commander requests to see her outside of the "Ceremony", a
reproductive ritual obligatory for handmaids and intended to result in conception in the presence of his
wife. Both of them begin an illegal relationship. The Commander requests Offred to play Scrabble with
him. And subsequently Offred is allowed to ask favours of him, both in terms of information or
materials. In time Offred realises that he lets her win in the game they play together. Ultimately, one
night, he asks her to kiss him which he reluctantly does.

Finally, the Commander gives her lingerie and takes her to a covert, government-run brothel called
Jezebel's. Ther, Offred unexpectedly encounters Moira and she learns that those who are found
breaking the law are sent to the Colonies to clean up toxic waste or are allowed to work at Jezebel's as
punishment. Moira narrates her story and tells her that after she escaped the training center she was
caught and then she was given an option of either working in colonies or working in the jezebels as a
prostitute. She chose the latter. Offred realises that Moira has already given up on escaping Gilead.

Unaware of Offred's forbidden acts with her husband, Serena begins to suspect that the Commander is
infertile, and arranges for Offred to have sex with Nick, the Commander's personal servant. After their
initial sexual encounter, Offred and Nick begin to meet on their own accord. Offred discovers that she
enjoys these intimate moments with Nick despite memories of her husband, Luke. Shortly afterwards,
Ofglen disappears (which is reported as a suicide). Offred learns that Ofglen commits suicide in order
to avoid getting captured and avoid giving any information about the Mayday resistance. Serena finds
the lingerie that the Commander had given Offred and learns of the illegal relationship between Offred
and the Commander, which causes Offred to contemplate suicide.

Offred informs Nick that she is pregnant. Shortly afterward, men arrive at the Commander’s house
wearing the uniform of the secret police, the Eyes of God, known informally as "the Eyes", to take her
away. As she is led to van, Nick tells her to trust him and go with the men. It is uncertain whether the
men are Eyes or members of the Mayday resistance. Offred is still unsure if Nick is a member of
Mayday or an Eye posing as one, and does not know if leaving will result in her escape or her capture.
Ultimately, she enters the van with her future uncertain.

The novel concludes with an epilogue, described as a transcript at an international historical association
conference taking place in the year 2195. The keynote speaker explains that Offred's account of the
events of the novel was recorded onto cassette tapes later found and transcribed by historians studying
what is then called "the Gilead Period." Professor Pieixoto makes a sexist joke, causing laughter from
the audience—highlighting lingering issues regarding attitudes towards women.

Characters

Offred

Offred is the protagonist and narrator of the story. She tells about her life in Gilead. Her narration of the
story of the present is interspersed with her flashbacks from her life before the Revolution. She was
labeled a "wanton woman". During the formation of Gilead, all divorces were nullified hence making
all second marriages invalid. As a result Offred was declared an adulteress as Luke was a divorcee.
While trying to escape Gilead, she was separated from her husband and daughter. Since she was proved
fertile, she has been assigned as a "handmaid" in the house of Commander Fred and his wife Serena
Joy, to bear a child for them (Serena Joy is believed to be infertile). She was treated cruelly by Serena
Joy. Along with other handmaids she was also tortured and threatened at the training center by the
Aunts. Offred's resistance and dissatisfaction towards The Republic of Gilead is clearly evident through
her thoughts.

Offred is a slave name that describes her function: she is "of Fred" (i.e., she belongs to Fred –
presumed to be the name of the Commander – and is considered to be his concubine). The Handmaids'
names say nothing about who the women really are; their only identity is as the Commander's property.

In The Handmaid’s Tale, Offred's real name is not revealed. The Hulu Television web series, however,
gives her a real name- June.

The Commander

The Commander was previously involved in market research before Gilead's inception. He was one of
the architects of the Republic and its laws. He engages in forbidden relationship with Offred, such as
playing Scrabble, and introduces her to jezebels. He also askes favours of her like kissing. Offred later
learns that the Commander also had a similar relationship with his previous handmaid, who later
committed suicide when Serena Joy found out.

In the epilogue, Professor Peixoto speculates that one of two important figures in the establishment of
Gilead, may have been the Commander. It is his belief that the Commander was a man named
Frederick R. Waterford. He was later executed in a purge after Offred was taken away. He had been
charged with harbouring an enemy agent.
Serena Joy
Serena Joy is a former media personality and the Commander's wife. After the formation of the
Republic of Gilead she tries to hide her past as a television figure. She is often cruel and cold towards
Offred. Serena is believed to be sterile, she is forced to accept that he has use of a handmaid whereas
the truth is that the Commander, and not Serena, was sterile.

She does not like having to take part in "The Ceremony" and hence she hates Offred. She coerces
Offred to have sex with Nick in order for her to become pregnant. According to Professor Pieixoto in
the epilogue, "Serena Joy" is believed to be pseudonym; her real name is implied to be Thelma.

Nick

Nick is the Commander's chauffeur. He is an ambiguous character, and Offred has no idea whether he
is loyal to the State or a part of the resistance, though he identifies himself as the latter. Due to the
arrangements made by Serena Joy's, he and Offred start a sexual relationship in order for Offred to get
pregnant. Eventually, both Offred and Nick begins to develop feelings for each which both of them
realise could be very dangerous for the two. In the epilogue, it is revealed that he really was part of the
resistance, and he indeed helped Offred in escaping the Commander's house.

Ofglen

Ofglen is Offred's shopping partner and a fellow Handmaid. Ofglen is daring by nature and a part of the
Mayday resistance. She kills a Mayday spy who is to be tortured and killed in order to save him the
painful and violent death. Offred is informed when Ofglen vanishes. Ofglen actually commits suicide
before the government can take her into custody due to her membership in the Mayday and torture her
for getting information.

A new handmaid, also called Ofglen, takes Ofglen's place, and is assigned as Offred's new shopping
partner. She warns Offred against any thought of resistance. In addition, she breaks protocol by telling
her what happened to the first Ofglen.

Luke

Luke was Offred's husband. During a failed attempt to escape Gilead he was captured. Luke had
divorced his first wife to marry Offred. Under the laws of the Republic of Gilead, all divorces were
declared void. As a result, Offred was declared as an adulteress and their daughter was declared to be
illegitimate. Since their failed attempt to escape to Canada, Offred did not hear anything of Luke. She
believes that he is either dead or captured.

Moira

Moira is a close friend of Offred. She is a lesbian. In the novel, their relationship represents a female
friendship that the Republic of Gilead tries to block. Moira is taken to be a Handmaid soon after
Offred. She escapes the Training Center by stealing an Aunt's pass and clothes but gets caught. Offred
later finds her working as a prostitute in a jezebel. At that point Moira is mentally broken. She has
already given up. When she was caught, she chose the brothel rather than to be sent to the Colonies.
Moira represents defiance against Gilead by rejecting every value that is forced onto the citizens of the
State.

Professor Pieixoto

Pieixoto is a history professor who discovered Offred's tapes. In his presentation at an academic
conference of history in the year 2195, he talks about "the 'Problems of Authentication in Reference to
The Handmaid's Tale'".Pieixoto is the person who narrates Offred's story, and so makes the narration
even more unreliable than it was originally.

Thesis statement

The Handmaid’s Tale depicts an extreme example of misogyny and sexism. This is depicted by the way
of the complete objectification of women and their bodies in the Republic of Gilead. It also highlights
the inhumane treatment and mental and physical torture of women in the Gileadean era. Through this
novel, Margaret Atwood clearly suggests that gender discrimination, sexism and misogyny are deeply
embedded in the society and that these problems are agrevated in the times of humanitarian crisis.
Atwood believes that serious attention must be given to these forms of discrimination in order to
eliminate them.

1.1 Women denied basic human rights

Margaret Atwood’s novel is a dystopian nightmare where women are nothing but slaves of men. They
are treated as second class citizens who are meant only for the purpose of bearing children. The State
has robbed women of their rights and forced them to live a life of passivity and submissiveness in a
patriarchal, oppressive, and a misogynistic society where women are not allowed to work outside their
home, hold political offices, read, write, handle money or have voices and opinions of their own. Most
significantly, women are deprived of control over their body.

Of all the women of different social class it is perhaps the handmaid’s who are the worst sufferers.
They are prisoners of state who are viewed merely as a vessel meant solely for the purpose of giving
birth. They are nothing but “walking womb” meant to serve the high ranking Officials of Gilead.

Handmaid’s in Gilead are denied their right over their bodies and children and threatened with violence
and physically abused if they do not submit to the new order. They are forced to become surrogate
mothers which is a gross violation of rights to bodily integrity and reproductive autonomy. They are
threatened, tortured both mentally and physically and subjected to degrading inhumane treatment if
they do not submit to the new order which is clearly a gross violation of human rights.

They are raped, separated from their children and families and tortured not only by the Wives, but also
at the training center by the Aunts who are responsible for ‘training’ the handmaids. They are also
despised by the Wives who have to give up their intimacy with their husbands because Handmaids are
the concubines of the Commanders and the Marthas despise them for the ‘importance and attention’ the
Handmaids are given in Gilead.

It is not only the Handmaids who lose their human rights. Each woman in this story looses her rights
irrespective of her rights. None of the women have political freedom or freedom of speech and
expression or the freedom of choice. Everything is controlled by the State. The dress they wear, the
friends thy make are all determined by the State. Their role is limited to the domestic sphere and hence
they exist only to support and serve the men who hold the positions of power.

The level of intrusion, and curtailment of the freedom by the State in the personal lives shown by
Margaret Atwood in her novel The Handmaid’s Tale surpasses unsettling and goes straight to
nightmarish.

1.2 Women grouped according to their domestic functionality

One of the important themes that The Handmaid’s Tale highlights is the loss of individual
identity in an oppressive, patriarchal regime where the only function of women is to bear
children while men hold the position of power in the society. There are some women in this
story that hold positions of authority, however, their power is limited as well. According to this
 story, we owe the state basic human rights in the time of crisis. Atwood makes a point to show
that women are more effected in times of crisis versus men.
In Gilead, the roles of women are limited to the domestic sphere and are segregated according
to their domestic functionality.

• Wives
Wives are at the top of this social level which they have achieved not by the virtue of their merit
but by the virtue of their husbands who are high ranking officers in Gilead. Wives always wear
blue cloaks and dresses suggesting traditional depictions of the Virgin Mary. After the death of
their husbands, Wives become Widows and wear black clothes.
• Daughters
Daughters are the children of the ruling class of Commanders. They are either natural or
adopted. Daughters are supposed to wear white until their marriage which is arranged by the
government. In the novel, Offred presumes that her daughter, who was snatched away from her,
might have been adopted by a couple of the ruling class.

• Handmaids

Handmaids are fertile women whose function is to bear children for infertile Wives and
Commanders. They dress in ankle-length red dresses. Handmaids are women of proven fertility
who have broken the law which includes both gender crimes, such as lesbianism; and religious
crimes, such as adultery (redefined to include sexual relationships with divorced partners since
divorce is no longer legal. For example Offred’s marriage with Luke). Handmaids are assigned
to Commanders and live in their houses. Handmaids who successfully bear children continue to
live at their commander's house until their children are weaned, at which point they are sent to a
new assignment. Those Handmaids who do produce children are never sent to the colonies.

• Aunts

Aunts are the trainers of the Handmaids. They wear brown dress. Aunts are responsible for
promoting the role of Handmaid as an honorable way for a sinful woman to redeem herself of
her sins. Their main responsibility is to monitor the Handmaids and keep their behaviour in
check. They also beat, torture and threaten the Handmaids. They are often cruel to the
Handmaids and torture them physically and mentally. The aunts, as compared to other women
 of Gilead, have greater autonomy. They are permitted to read. This, however, is only for the
purpose of their administrative role.

• Marthas
Marthas are older, infertile women. They have domestic skills and hence they are the servants
of the house. They dress in green coloured clothes.

• Econowives
Ecowives are the women who are married to men of lower-rank. They are not members of the
ruling class. They perform all the female functions including domestic duties and child-bearing.
Their dress is multicoloured red, blue, and green indicating these multiple roles that they are
supposed to perform, and is made of notably cheaper material.

• Unwomen

Unwomen are sterile women, the unmarried, some widows, feminists, lesbians, nuns, and
politically dissident women. Gilead exiles these Unwomen to "the Colonies", areas both of
agricultural production and deadly pollution. Moat of the women in the colonies end up dying
sooner or later due to the lethal levels of radiation and toxins they are exposed to. Along with
them, handmaids who fail to bear a child after three two-year assignments are also sent to the
colonies.

• Jezebels

Jezebels are women who are forced to become prostitutes. They are available exclusively to the
Commanders. Offred portrays Jezebels as attractive and educated. They have been sterilized, a
surgery that is forbidden to other women. They operate in unofficial but state-sanctioned
brothels, unknown to most women. They dress in the remnants of sexualised costumes from the
time before the revolution took place, such as cheerleaders' costumes, Playboy Bunny costumes,
school uniforms, etc. Jezebels are the only women who are permitted to wear make-up, drink
alcohol and socialize with men, but are tightly controlled by the Aunts.

This segregation among women generates resentment and dissatisfaction among them. Marthas, Wives
and Econowives perceive Handmaids as promiscuous and are taught to scorn them. Serena Joy, for
instance, clearly hates Offred. Also, she is frowned upon by the Marthas. In her narrative, Offred
mentions that she notices the Marthas whispering and murmuring somethings behind her back. Offred
mourns that in time of such a huge humanitarian crisis women have lost their ability to empathize with
each other. They seem indifferent towards the cause of other women. They are divided in their
oppression.

1.3 The dissatisfaction of women in Gilead

The novel “The Handmaid’s Tale” makes it clear that a woman’s body is not her own. Offred,
forcibly becomes a handmaid. In the context of this novel, a handmaid is basically a sex slave for
married couples who can’t conceive. These women aren’t the only ones who don’t have control
over their bodies, each woman in this story has lost her human rights no matter what her rank.
For example, Serena Joy, is the wife of a Commander and therefore has more freedom than other
women however, her body is not her own. She has to give up the intimacy between her and her
husband to another women because the Commander thinks that Serena is infertile when in reality
he’s sterile.
Atwood creates a dystopia society specifically targeted towards women to place emphasis on
issues such as shaming rape victims, rape in general, infidelity, silencing of women, etc. In this
dystopian society it’s clear the main reason women don’t have control over their bodies is
because of men.
Naturally, this breeds discontent and dissatisfaction among women. This dissatisfaction among
the women of Gilead is clearly evident by the high suicide rate of the handmaids. Ofglen, for
instance, commits suicide in order to avoid giving information about Mayday and possibly avoid
any kind of torture. Another example is of the Handmaid before Offred, whose name is not
revealed in the story, also committed suicide because Serena discovered her relationship with the
Commander.
The discontent among women in the story is apparent from the narration given by Offred.
Handmaids were despised by Wives and Marthas. Offred, in her narration narrates several
instances making it evident that Serena Joy hates her. She is often cruel to Offred. At times, it
seems that Offred’s plight might break her spirit and she even contemplates suicide.
This bitterness among women has disunited them in the time of crisis. Women have lost their
ability to empathise with each other.

Research Methodology
Feminist research methodology for Literature is a research method used to analyse literary works from
a feminist prospective. It is more inclusive than review of a literature as it not only critically analyses
but also examines the literature from a feminist viewpoint and highlights the various feminist aspects
including social, political, economic, cultural aspects.
While there are some debates over the feminist research method, there is a general consensus that the
feminist methodological stance focuses on uncovering the social relations which deny the lived realities
of oppressed groups, particularly women.
Feminist research methodology uses a variety of methods including surveys, critical analysis of literary
works statistical formats, experimental research, cross-cultural research, oral history, content analysis,
case studies, action research, multiple-methods research, to access the often neglected and suppressed
voices of women and attempts to highlight them.
What is the most distinguishing feature of the feminist research methodology is the importance that is
accorded to women’s experiences and subjectivity.

Implications of the study

This study has sought to answer various questions related to the status of women and the types of
restrictions, discrimination faced by them. It also highlights the consequences of a dictatorial regime in
the time of a humanitarian crisis.
This study being of an exploratory in nature raises a number of opportunities for future research, both
in terms of theory development and concept validation. This study expands the scope of research in the
field of feminist studies highlighting the discrimination and various other challenges faced by women
all over the world especially in the third word countries. This study also expand the scope for future
research on Gender Gap which is one of the biggest issues of the 21st century as highlighted by the
United Nations in its Gender Gap report of 2020.
This study also raises a number of opportunities for future research in terms of case studies highlighting
the outcomes or possible consequences of a neo-conservative religious society and a consequences of
religious fanaticism.
Lastly, this study gives various opportunity for future research in the field of Literature in terms of
Literary review, literary criticisms, comparative analysis and also in the study of contemporary
Canadian Literature.

Style manual
The MLA Handbook formerly the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (1977–2009), is a
system of documenting sources in a research paper or any other form of scholarly writing. It is
published by a United States organisation named Modern Language Association.
The MLA handbook system is widely used in United States, Canada and other countries. It is used for
writing and documentation of research especially in the field of humanities and English studies
(including the English language, writing, and literature written in English). The MLA Handbook
system is also used for the study of other modern languages and literatures including comparative
literature, literary criticism, media studies, cultural studies, and related disciplines.

Conclusion
The Handmaid’s Tale is a dystopian novel which presents extreme misogyny where women are raped,
oppressed and abused in a patriarchal society. It depicts a dystopian society where women have only
one function, to bear children. It is a place of whispers, silence and lies. This novel, as Obidič (2017)
states, “deals with a futuristic post-apocalyptic and nightmarish world which mirrors our … society of
today … [and] criticizes the evils already present in our contemporary world.”
Through this novel, Atwood depicts possible consequences of a neo-conservative religious society
where women have no rights and also challenges the existing problems, oppression and abuse faced by
women all over the world in some or the other form. She rejects the cultural and biological instruments
of oppression which have always portrayed women as inferior and the weaker sex.
This study clearly shows that women in Gilead, are definitely not treated at par with men. Rather, they
are treated like some second class citizens who are not supposed to have no rights, voices or opinions
of their own. Revolving around the issues of power, domination, oppression, inequality, dependency,
deepening identity crisis, class divide, racial discrimination, and sexuality, this novel depicts the
subjugation of handmaids, their marginalization as well as their struggle to survive and resist the
imperial/patriarchal order. In this novel, the victimized and silenced handmaids—Offred, Ofglen, and
Moira—move to consciousness and begin to show their resistance to the oppression and imperialism of
the Republic of Gilead.
 References
1. Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid’s Tale. Penguin Books, 2016.
2. McCarthy, Mary "Breeders, Wives and Unwomen". The New York Times Book Review, 1986.
3. Sanderson, Maria “The Handmaid’s Tale and the Loss of Human rights”. 2017.
4. Newman, Charlotte. "The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood". The Guardian, 2010.

5. Callaway, Alanna."Women disunited: Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale as a critique of

feminism".San Jose State University. 2008.

6. "The Handmaid's Tale: A White Feminist Dystopia". theestablishment.co. 2017.