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Summary and Analysis of The Handmaid's Tale

Based on the Book by Margaret Atwood

OPEN ROAD INTEGRATED MEDIA

Summary

1

Offred is remembering the beginning — sleeping in what was once a high school gymnasium, overseen by "aunts" who carry cattle prods and guarded by men with guns. The women, even the Aunts, are not allowed to have weapons. The men must keep their backs to the women, never looking at them.

We don't know this yet, but Offred and the other women are being retrained for service in the new state of Gilead, brutalized and persuaded into becoming obedient Handmaids rather than free women. Yet, they still rebel in small ways, mouthing their names to one another in the dead of night.

Need to Know: This is America — but not the America we know.

II: Shopping

2

Offred is in another bedroom — ostensibly a much nicer one, with pleasant furnishings — but it's still a prison. The window is shatterproof, and anything that a woman might use to hang herself has been removed. Going downstairs to the summoning sound of a bell, Offred glimpses herself in the only remaining mirror — a woman dressed in red, with red shoes and a white head covering like a nun's wimple. In the kitchen, she overhears Rita and Cora, who are Marthas, or servants. They're talking about her and how she has it easy. She could have been shipped to the Colonies, or worse.

Need to Know: The heroine is under some form of house arrest.

3

Offred goes out into the garden, which is the domain of the Commander's Wife, and she thinks about how she is not allowed to have things like gardens anymore. Offred is aware that the Wife hates her, though we don't know why yet. She recalls their first meeting, only a little over a month ago: The Wife is dressed in blue, with diamonds on her finger. She is very much in a position of power over Offred. After allowing Offred to sit, she lays down the law: Offred must remember to whom the Commander belongs. Offred realizes that she recognizes the Wife from the period before Gilead. She was a televangelist named Serena Joy, who lobbied for a more Christian America.

Need to Know: The Commander's Wife has power over Offred but also resents her.

4

Outside, Offred sees Nick, the chauffeur, polishing the car. She'd like to speak to him, but it's too risky — perhaps he is an Eye, an informer. She meets up with Ofglen, her shopping partner. She'd like to talk to Ofglen, too, but again, it's too dangerous. So they make their way through the checkpoints to the shops in silence. This walk is part of her job each day. She must purchase goods for the household and exercise her body so it remains healthy for her duty.

Need to Know: The people in the house all have different classifications. Nick, the chauffeur, is a Guardian. The men who guard the checkpoints are also Guardians, while the real soldiers are called Angels.

5

This is a part of town Offred knows. She remembers walking here with her husband, Luke, before it became Gilead. She thinks about their life before the theocracy took over — their relationship was one of equals.

She and Ofglen wait in line for produce. Many foods are rationed. A pregnant Handmaid enters, showing off her large belly — everyone envies her. Though the woman is named Ofwarren, Offred recognizes her as Janine, someone who was at the Red Center with her. None of the others at the Center had liked Janine.

Need to Know: Offred and Ofglen are stopped by a group of Japanese tourists who gawk at them. The Japanese women are dressed in the type of clothes Offred used to wear, and they are free. When the tourists wonder if the Handmaids are happy, Offred lies and says they are, because she knows the translator with them is an Eye.

6

Offred and Ofglen walk back past the church and the Wall, where the hanging corpses of dissidents are prominently displayed. On this day, the bodies are those of doctors. Offred can tell because of the white coats they wear and the placards with pictures to indicate why they were executed hanging around their necks. These men were abortionists. Offred has become somewhat desensitized to sights like this. She mostly looks at the bodies on the Wall to make sure they are not Luke.

Need to Know: This culture has a very visible form of capital punishment.

III: Night

7

In bed, Offred indulges herself in the only way she still can, by remembering the past. She thinks of her college friend Moira, and of burning pornographic magazines at the feminist rallies her mother took her to as a child. She remembers her little daughter, too — taken away from her by the state at the age of five after their attempted escape.

Need to Know: Offred does not know what has happened to her child.

IV: Waiting Room

8

On a different day, Offred and Ofglen see new bodies on the Wall, including that of a priest. Religious dissidents are killed in Gilead — there is only room for one interpretation of Christianity here. The other corpses belonged to gay men, who are identified with placards declaring that they have committed "Gender Treachery." On their walks, Offred is always aware that Ofglen might be an Eye. She must be careful to speak piously and blandly to the other woman.

Offred remembers more about Serena Joy's past as a spokesperson for this sort of oppressive theocracy; the reality of it doesn't seem to have made her happy.

Need to Know: Offred finds the Commander looking into her room, which is forbidden.

9

Since coming to this house, her second posting as a Handmaid, Offred has explored her room thoroughly. She looks for clues about its former occupant, another Handmaid. Finally, she finds a tiny message scratched into the wood of the wardrobe: Nolite te bastardes carborundorum. Offred doesn't know what it means, but she is comforted by this message from the past and wonders what happened to the previous Handmaid.

Need to Know: No one will tell Offred what became of the woman who last held her post.

10

Offred has more memories of Moira and the past, including Moira organizing an "underwhore" party to sell kinky underwear. It's becoming summer, and Offred thinks of how they dressed before Gilead and how different things are now. What used to seem normal has gradually changed, and now there is a new normal. She glimpses the Commander from her window — she ought to hate him, she thinks, but she doesn't.

Need to Know:Offred's best friend from college is Moira, a girl who always liked to be outrageous.

11

Offred is taken to the doctor for her regular check-up, which is a gynecological exam. She goes every month to have her fertility assessed. The doctor is male, and he offers to make her pregnant. He wants sex, which is forbidden, but he claims he's doing it to "help her out." This is both a threat and an offer — he mentions that she be out of time soon, and older men like the Commander are probably sterile. That he would say this is shocking to Offred, not because she finds the concept surprising, but rather because the idea of men being sterile has been outlawed. It is always the woman's fault if there is no pregnancy.

Offred doesn't like the idea of sex with the doctor, but she doesn't want to run the risk of offending him either. She'll think about it, she tells him.

Need to Know: If Offred doesn't get pregnant, there will be dangerous consequences for her.

12

Offred takes a bath, supervised by Cora — the Handmaids are not allowed to bathe alone, in case they attempt suicide. She thinks about her lost daughter, now eight, and wonders what has become of her. Once, when her daughter was small, someone tried to steal her, which terrified Offred. Now, her daughter has been stolen, and Offred tries to cling to memories, but they always fade.

When Offred is given her dinner, she steals some butter, wraps it in a napkin, and hides it in her shoe.

Need to Know: Offred doesn't like to look at her body in the bath. Her entire worth in this society is her body, and she hates to be reminded of that.

V: Nap

13

While waiting for a ritual of some sort to begin, Offred sits in her room. To deal with the boredom, she remembers incidents at the training center. One of these happened during confession time: Janine, who is now the pregnant Ofwarren, confessed that she had been raped by multiple men as a young teen. The other women, led by the Aunts, jeered at her for this. Even a gang rape is the woman's fault — Janine must have led the men on. Janine's crying annoyed Offred at the time. Her weakness was unattractive.

Moira had been brought to the Red Center, too, her spirit undaunted. Offred and Moira found a way to talk in the restroom when the Aunts couldn't hear them. Offred felt happier and safer with Moira there.

Need to Know: As she waits in her room, Offred remembers her daughter. They were running, being chased by men with guns. She fell, hugged her child, and tried to protect her. But they were torn apart.

VI: Household

14

Offred and the household (including the Marthas and Nick) gather in the sitting room to wait for the Commander. He's always late, and Serena Joy lets them watch the TV news. The news is filled with unrest and crackdowns by the state, but Offred doesn't know how much of it is propaganda. African Americans are called the "Children of Ham," and the state is resettling them all in what used to be North Dakota. Dissidents shown being arrested include Quakers and Baptists.

Offred remembers her own escape attempt with Luke and her daughter. They were in their car, driving, having told their little girl they were going on a picnic.

Need to Know: The only things shown on television are religious or state-sponsored news programs. The channel broadcasting from Canada is blocked.

15

The Commander arrives and reads Biblical passages to his household, including the passage about handmaids — surrogate wives, such as Bilhah, who bears a daughter for Rachel. The Bible is kept in a locked case because none of the women in the house are allowed to read.

Offred thinks about Moira at the Red Center. Moira tried to escape by faking illness. When she was brought back in a black van — the vehicles driven by the Eyes — her feet had been severely damaged. She'd been tortured as a punishment.

Need to Know: As the Commander reads the Bible, his wife, Serena, cries. She does this every time they are going to hold the upcoming ritual.

16

"The Ceremony" takes place. Offred lies on Serena Joy's bed — in fact, on Serena Joy herself. Her head rests on the Wife's stomach, and both women are fully dressed, except for Offred's undergarments. The Commander engages in intercourse with Offred as Serena holds on to her hands. It's clear that this is a pretty grim experience for everyone concerned, including the Commander. He's doing a duty, not performing an act of pleasure, as he tries to impregnate Offred as a surrogate wife. Offred wonders whether she or Serena Joy hates this more.

Need to Know: The act of sex has become a ritual devoid of joy.

17

Offred takes the stolen butter from her shoe and rubs it into her face. The Handmaids are not allowed face lotion, and this is her only option, her small rebellion. But a bigger one is to come: She sneaks downstairs, hoping to steal something (anything, just to rebel) and finds a daffodil blossom, which she takes to hide in her room for the next Handmaid. Then, to her shock, she meets Nick. He tells her that the Commander wants to see Offred alone tomorrow in his office, which is forbidden.

Need to Know: Nick and Offred kiss hungrily, but pull themselves apart. The penalty for being together physically would be death.

VII: Night

18

Offred, back in bed, remembers her husband, Luke. She pictures him as a corpse, shot during their flight, or as a prisoner, or free — perhaps he managed to get to Canada after all. But these are all just imaginings. She does not know his fate.

Need to Know: The only way Offred can have hope is to believe in all the possibilities. Perhaps Luke is dead, yes, but she believes equally that perhaps he is not. Perhaps they and their daughter will eventually be reunited.

VIII: Birth Day

19

Offred has a dream about her mother, and later that morning, as if it were an omen, a Birthmobile arrives. They all have to go to witness the birth of a baby — borne by Ofwarren (Janine). There are other Handmaids in the Birthmobile and still more at the house where Janine lives. A separate car brings all the local Wives to the same house. There is almost a party atmosphere. The Wives are allowed alcohol.

Need to Know: Offred remembers Aunt Lydia teaching them about childbirth. There used to be doctors and medical treatment and painkillers, which Aunt Lydia says was awful. Now women give birth naturally, with no drugs to ease the pain.

20

As Janine progresses with labor, the Wives discreetly get drunk. They are in a separate room with the Wife of the house, who is treated as if she is having the baby herself. The Handmaids all stay in the room with Janine, who is attended to by Aunt Elizabeth.

Offred remembers watching movies at the Red Center. The point of the films was to demonstrate how terrible being a woman was before the Republic of Gilead, so they showed the Handmaids old pornography and documentaries about feminists, who are now considered Unwomen. In one of the films, Offred saw her own mother, as a young woman, at a protest.

Need to Know: Offred's mother was a feminist activist who raised Offred on her own. Before, Offred found her politics too extreme. Now she just wishes she could have everything back the way it was.

21

As Janine continues her labor, the Handmaids chant, which is supposed to help her. Indeed, some of them begin to feel as if they're in labor, too. Offred thinks they have all been drugged. Under cover of the bustling labor scene, Offred manages to speak covertly to another woman. They try to pass on information — Offred says she is looking for Moira, but the other Handmaid doesn't know Moira. She is looking for someone named Alma.

As the baby emerges, Commander Warren's Wife comes in and is seated behind Janine, as though she is the one giving birth. The baby is given a name and handed to the Wife. Janine will be allowed to breastfeed for a short time, but then she'll be reassigned. Her child belongs to Commander Warren and his Wife.

Need to Know: Offred remembers giving birth to her own baby. On the way home in the Birthmobile, she feels that all the other Handmaids are thinking of their own children as well.

22

Exhausted after the emotional day, Offred lies in her bed and thinks about Moira again. One of the main reasons that none of the Handmaids at the Red Center liked Janine was that she was an informer for the Aunts, willing to tell them anything. Because of that, however, the Aunts gave her information sometimes, too. Aunt Lydia had told the story of Moira to Janine, and Janine spread it to the other Handmaids.

After her first escape attempt and the subsequent punishment, Moira tried again. This time, she attacked an Aunt from behind, holding a knife to her. Moira tied up the Aunt, took her clothes, and walked out of the Red Center as if she herself were an Aunt. None of the guards stopped her. The knife, it turned out, was actually the metal rod from one of the center's toilets. Moira was always clever.

Need to Know: After Moira's escape, the others long for news of her. She represents what is possible — the idea that they could eventually have freedom, too. But Offred has not heard anything about Moira since.

23

Offred goes to see the Commander, as he has requested. She knows it's illegal, and she is afraid. She doesn't know what to expect — but the Commander wants her to play Scrabble with him. This is also forbidden for Offred, since it involves knowing how to read and write. Just to be allowed to do it feels like a small luxury. At the end of the evening, he asks her to kiss him.

Need to Know: Offred tells the reader that this entire story is a reconstruction of what happened, one that she will compose if she ever escapes from Gilead.

IX: Night

24

Back in her room, Offred takes stock of her life. She realizes that she needs to live in the present, work with what she's got, and not look back so much. But the effort — and the absurdity of sneaking around just to play a board game — gives her a bout of silent hysterics: She laughs and laughs, stifling the sound. If she is caught laughing, they might consider her to be unstable and take action against her. She lies on the floor, trying to compose herself.

Need to Know: Offred remembers a show she watched in her youth. The mistress of a high-ranking Nazi was interviewed and spoke of how she didn't consider the Nazi to be a monster. Offred reflects that anyone can be humanized, and it is clear she is thinking of the Commander.

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Excerpted from Summary and Analysis of The Handmaid's Tale by Worth Books. Copyright © 2017 Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.. Excerpted by permission of OPEN ROAD INTEGRATED MEDIA.
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