"The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood

In the novel, there are levels of society that are bodly defined.  First, the Cmmander and his wife, important for building a family.  However, several Commanders and wives are on the upper end of age and connot reproduce, so they call for handmaids.  Handmaids are needed for reproduction, and solely reproduction, nothing else.  There are also Martha's, used for cooking, cleaning, and house chores.  The Commanders are working men, while the wives stay home and sit around knitting or relaxing.  In this particular situation, there is the Commander, his wife, Serena Joy, the handmaid Offred, and the Martha Cora.  They all live in the Commander's house, however, in very different living conditions.  Focusing on the handmaids, there rooms are primarily white, and all objects that they could possibly use for self harm are removed.  Once a month there is a ceremony, involving the Commander, his wife, and the handmaid.  This respected ceremony is the sole purpose of the handmaid.  Offred must once a month hope that the Commander impregnates her, allowing her to fulfill her duty as a handmaid.  However, this novel is based in an age where births are declining, so the pregnancy rate is extremely low, that is why the position of handmaids has been brought into play.  Although, the Commanders tend to be on the older side affecting the chances of becoming pregnant.  On the contrary, men claim they cannot be sterile, that if a handmaid does not become pregnant, that it is their fault and they are sterile.  If a handmaid does not become pregnant within a certain amount of time, they can be sent to another home.  For Offred, the home with the Commander and Serena Joy was her second home.  For Offred, she had a life before this society changed, she had a husband and a daughter, however, when things changed she lost them both.  She does not know where they are or even if they are alive.  Sadly, being a handmaid is the only thing she has left in her life, the only reason to be alive, hence the reason why all dangerous objects have been removed from their grasp.  Offred later learns that her mother was of the rebellious type, supporting the pro-choice option of life.  In the society that Offred lives in, they do not have a choice, once they have given birth to the child the commander and wife take and raise them.  Handmaids are viewed solely as a uterus, a womb for a child to grow and mature in, then to eventually leave.  Handmaids do not raise or be a part of the childs life.  This novel shows the corruption that can occur if a society bases its laws off of selective views.  Nothing productive can come from a society such as this one.

In this novel, there are many powerful quotes, however, one that stood put in my opinion and is my favorite is "I can listen to my own heartbeat against the bedsprings, I can stroke myself, under the dry white sheets, in the dark, but I too am dry and white, hard, granular; it's like snow.  There's something dead about it, something deserted.  I am like a room where things once happened and now nothing does".  This quote is extremely powerful, given from the mind of Offred.  She is looking back on how degrading this society can be.  This society and its rules degrade a handmaid, and view them as only a source for reproduction, when in fact there is a person under their clothing.  Offred used to be full of life and happy, however, now that every enjoyment in her life has been stripped from her, leaving her nothing.  Luke and her daughter were her main reason for living, now they are gone.  What must she do to remain sane?  Maragaret Atwood wrote this novel to tell people how not to run a scoiety and basically how to prevent tragedy. 

In my opinion, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is an excellent book about a distopian society controlling the actions of its citizens.  Everyone has a place whether it be a Commander, handmaid, or Martha.  This society even has people called Eyes.  The Eyes monitor the actions of citizens to ensure they are abiding by the set laws.  People of this community cannot function without the thought in the back of their mind that what if they were to do something that an Eye would see.  In my personal opinion, if I was dropped into a society such as this, I would not be as calm and collected as Offred is.  However, I dont think going crazy and being irrational will help in anyway.  The way to accept what is happening to you is to accept it and move on.  I would recommend this book to a mature audience.