The Role of Power and Social Structures in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (1985)

The Role of Power and Social Structures in The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (1985)

Expanding the Roles:
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood is a dystopian novel set in a society where women’s rights are severely restricted, and their primary function is reproduction. The story follows Offred, a woman forced into the role of a handmaid, and explores the consequences of living in a society structured around rigid gender roles and patriarchal power. For literature students, The Handmaid’s Tale provides essential material for understanding the relationship between power, social structures, and individual autonomy.

• Power and Control in a Patriarchal Society:
  The novel’s portrayal of Gilead, a theocratic totalitarian society, offers an in-depth look at how power is concentrated in the hands of a few and exercised over women’s bodies. Students can analyze how Atwood critiques patriarchal control, the reduction of women to mere vessels for reproduction, and the totalitarian systems that seek to control both bodies and thoughts.

• Resistance and the Fight for Autonomy:
  The Handmaid’s Tale also explores the ways in which individuals resist oppressive regimes. Students can examine how Offred’s internal and external struggles represent a broader fight for autonomy and human dignity, even in the face of overwhelming societal control.

What We Learn:
Through The Handmaid’s Tale, literature students can engage with themes of gender inequality, power structures, and social justice. The novel is a crucial study of the ways in which totalitarian systems oppress individuals, particularly women, and the various forms of resistance that emerge.