The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Over the summer, I read The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. The book takes place in the Republic of Gilead, a future Christian regime that rules over where the United States now exists. Gilead is a society in which women are forced to cover themselves, leave the house only with other women, and in other ways repress women and treat them as property as opposed to people. The main character, Offred, is a handmaid. Handmaid’s purpose is to produce children, and they are given three chances to do so before being exiled. The handmaids are given a certain amount of time to live in a household and attempt to produce a baby with the head of the household. If they succeed, they are honored. If they fail, they move onto another house (another chance). The Handmaid’s Tale is pertinent to the world today and the problems modern women face.

The Handmaid’s Tale relates to today’s world in many ways. One example is the obligation women are under to cover themselves in public. In the book, women (handmaids in particular) are forced by the government of Gilead to wear long dresses with gloves and veils when being seen by others. The government says that women are mandated to dress in this way because they will face the lust and violence of men if they let skin show. This is almost exactly the same as men who wish women to cover up today. Women today are told that the clothing they wear is inviting sexual predators to violate them on the street. We are told that it is because of our clothing that men act in offensive and violent ways, and that it is our responsibility to cover up and prevent violation. Many places in the Middle East mandate that women cover themselves for the same reason.  Another example of how similar the Republic of Gilead is to the modern world is the attacks on women who advocate for change. In Gilead, women of the past are diabolized for their belief that women should be granted the right to sexual freedom. Today, feminists are often portrayed as radical man-haters who only want women to have all the power. Men and women criticize and shame feminists for trying to abolish sexism.

All of these attempts to oppress women are horribly wrong. Telling women that it’s their responsibility to prevent sexual assault lifts the blame off the shoulders of men and onto those of the victims. The predator’s actions are the predators choice, they need to take responsibility and be acknowledged for it. The things victims are blamed for are rights that all people have. Everyone is allowed to wear what they want, walk how they want, and smile at whomever they wish. Men take this right even further, making rude and invasive street comments that overstep the boundaries of human decency far more than wearing a skit that’s a tad too short. So why do we place so much blame on women? Because society has set an atmosphere that screams “women’s rights are not equal to men’s.” People are caught up on shaming and attacking feminists primarily for two reasons: 1. They don’t understand what feminism is, or 2. They feel vulnerable in the face of equality. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “feminism” as “the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities: organized activity in support of women's rights and interests.” Note that the definition does not include any mention of “man-hater” or like terms.  Yes, some individual feminists hate men, but those people do not represent the majority of feminists who only believe in equality. Many men are feminists, it’s not a movement made up of misandrists and radicals. Just people trying to make a change. As for the second reason, many men do benefit from misogyny. Men come home without having to do any work; women are there to do it for them. They didn’t have to compete with women for jobs. Sexual pleasure was seen as a right, not a privilege that requires mutual consent. Many men, and many women as well, don’t want to leave this comforting womb of inequality. People will use sensationalism to distract from the real issues.

All in all, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood brings up issues that are not remotely alien. Do we want to go from democracy to the Republic of Gilead?