"The Handmaid's Tale" tells the story of a near-future society where women who have proven their child-bearing prowess are protected and other women are thrown away. The society is incredibly stratified, women are not allowed to read or walk on the street other than in pairs. They are not allowed to be alone with men or have any possessions other than their giant red capes and white winged hats.
All of this is supposed to protect women, and more importantly protect the future of society. The environment has become so wrecked that many people are sterile and most children are born unhealthy or cannot be carried to term. So these rules supposedly have to be put into place in order to protect those who can have children to make sure they are impregnated by only the most worthy men, those who rank highly in the organization.
The story follows one of these handmaids as she tries to settle into her new life, tries to forget the husband and daughter she was taken from and the freedoms she has lost. She does as little as possible in the way of following the rules to survive and gives us a look at this fragmented and bizarre society, which seems to only have dark sides.
I first read this story in high school, and it disturbed me then, but I recently wanted to read it again. I had an idea for a story I wanted to write that I knew in my memory was somehow related to this story, but I really wanted to read it because for some reason the U.S. Patriot Act reminded me of this story. Ashocroft's idea to get people to spy on each other reminded me of the REpublic of Gilead's Eyes. Reading it again I remembered why: the new society was built after a terrorist attack took out the federal government.
I'm not saying this could really happen or would really happen, but it's a chilling thought that this story written decades ago could hit so close to reality. When religious fundamentalism is allowed to take over a nation and a whole major segment of society is forced to give up its humanity, its right to make decisions for itself, only bad things can happen. That's the lesson of "The Handmaid's Tale."
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