Friday, September 20, 2013

The Handmaid's Tale, a Review


Even though it’s been a few weeks since I finished Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, I see Offred’s story in my mind still, like a ripe tangerine split open and glossy in the midsummer’s morning.  I see her, in her red burka like outfit, white wings as blinders on her face.  She’s tragic.  Defeated.  Her loss is gut-wrenching.  How she once had a life—a Life—so normal, just like everybody else.  Married.  A daughter.  A job.  Happy.  But all of that was in a time before the overthrow, before the government was decimated, before the regime took control and installed a patriarchal society.  Women’s rights were gone.

Just like that.

Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale is a classic dystopia that is devastating for its simplicity.  As often is the case in this genre, specifics aren’t exactly forthcoming, but there is enough worldbuilding put together to discern what’s happened.  The book is a quasi-stream-of-consciousness novel chronicling the life of an unnamed Handmaid.  The plot slowly reveals information about her life before she became a Handmaid, and much of this book is melancholic in recollection.

The way the sun would shine and cast a reflection on a man’s hair and send her spiraling backwards, remembering the way he looked in his mundane world.  How he sounded.  How he smelled.  And pages and paragraphs disjointed but connected, a weird juxtaposition that works well, especially as the frame becomes more aware.

Interestingly enough, the Handmaid’s tale never grows stale, and that’s largely due to Atwood’s superior skills as a writer and storyteller.  The language is powerful.  The imagery is rich.  (I really liked what she did with colors in this book.)  The message is a touch heavy-handed (it’s satirical) and required some strong suspension of disbelief on my part (I’m a Realistic altruist to a certain degree), but her point was well made.  I was affronted by the male portrayal throughout the book on many occasions, but her point is conceivably possible.

So what exactly is The Handmaid’s Tale?  It’s a simple story about a woman’s struggle to survive in the world.  She wrestles with past mistakes, with guilt, with a constant fear of death, with God, with many things most of us can relate to.  It’s a bleak picture of what America could become if things went absolutely cat-whiskers crazy.  It’s an absolutely makes-you-wanna-bawl kind of book if you have a two year old daughter (like I do).  It’s a funny kind of novel that elicits the occasional chuckle.


Honestly, The Handmaid’s Tale is novel that’s both striking and entertaining.  I believe Atwood was more concerned about the moral of the story than the actual plot, but both were well done.  The Handmaid’s Tale is a modern classic that may seem uninspired in this modern world of dystopias, but it’s a book that deserves its accolades and, at least in my opinion, deserves a read.  Boldly recommended.

Friday, September 06, 2013

No Subject


This is how I like dealing with spam.
Hello,
How are you doing?please I'm sorry for taking a little of your time,please I have an important issue I will like to share with you concerning my inheritance and character of my wicked Uncles that wants to kill me to enrich themselves.On hearing from you on my email address and i will give you more details.
Have a nice day.Sincerely,alexa oko

Dearest Alexa,

Oh my goodness.  I can’t believe you’ve finally found me.  I’ve been searching for you for years, ever since our wicked Uncles initiated the coup and seized control of our dearest city.  However did you obtain my electronic mail address?  I lost many good men in trying to maintain its secrecy, and yet I see that the wretchedness of our Uncles is once again superior.  They quite simply must stop it at once.  I no longer have the time or energy to fight this struggle.  I’m haggard and bedraggled.  I’ve not had a warm meal in months.  This gruel I commandeer from a kindly but portly Middle Eastern baker down the street is all that keeps me going, at least in terms of nutrition.  At night I lie awake and devise schemes of destruction, of sneaking into our Uncles compounds at night and setting free the Fires of Heaven, of covering them in raw meats and releasing a pack of dogs upon their wicked souls.  Oh yes, I have dreams and take mortal delight in them each and every night my dearest Alexa.  I fear that my mind has been bent beyond what is acceptable; no longer am I the innocent child I was when I played upon the bloodred waters of my homeland.  I am a scarred individual with ruthlessness within my bones.   This is, I think, the most evil of all the heinous crimes our wicked Uncles have done.  For I’m sure you remember me when I was the embodiment of pure naiveté and innocence, ever clothed in white, ever surrounded by butterflies and the sweet aroma of the primrose.   How they have wronged me.  How they have wronged you.  And now they are seeking to kill you and enrich themselves!  Oh the humanity.

Thanks for the update.  Take care!

Have a nice day yourself.

Sincerely, logankstewart