Feminism In The Handmaid's Tale

Feminism has always been an incredibly relevant issue in all societies and is still no exception in today’s day and age. One of the most highly acclaimed writers of today that tackles the plaguing issue of feminism and the unfortunate belittling of women is Margaret Atwood. Among her many successful novels, poems, and other works, her masterpiece of a novel The Handmaid’s Tale emphasizes the dangers of downplaying women and their roles in society. Set in a future dystopian society, Atwood’s novel is best understood and interpreted from a critical feminist viewpoint; if the reader adapts this perspective, the novel comes to life and its message to protect women’s rights is unmistakable. In order to fully understand Margaret Atwood’s purpose …show more content…
Instead of simply standing by and further going along with the unethical treatment towards women, people began to speak up and no longer allow for the discriminatory government to keep reign. Coincidentally, Atwood’s literary appearances during this time established her writing style and craft. Although she’s from Toronto, the Women’s Liberation Movement played a potential role in Atwood’s future works, such as “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Jean-François Vernay also advocates that the historical context of the novel as a “critical feminism…of feminine resistance to patriarchy” which correlates the the movement (Vernay). Since Atwood witnessed the movement and was able to watch the progressive change from a considerably conservative to a more liberal society towards women, she channels those experiences into her literature as a way to prevent the negative aspects of a conservative perspective to infringe on women’s rights again. For example, in “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the main character, Offred, is essentially imprisoned by her government which is a parallel to how women were treated by the U.S. during Atwood’s time. Although comparing the misogynistic society in which Offred is surviving in to the U.S. during the 60’s is