Other
The Handmaid's Tale Notes
- Institution
- OCR
Includes: Contextual notes Novel summary Key Quotes Critical Approaches
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
Content preview
TheHandmaid’s
Tale
Margaret
Margaret Atwood
Atwood (1985)
(1985)
, Novel Summary
*The novel begins with Offred, the first-person narrator, remembering her
restricted life at the Rachel and Leah Center, a training camp for
Handmaids in an old high school.
*The scene changes to her current residence, where she lives with a
Commander and his wife, Serena Joy.
*Offred puts on a red uniform and goes on a shopping trip with Ofglen, and
afterwards they stop by the Wall to look at the bodies of recently executed
men.
*In the evening, Offred lies in bed. She remembers her spunky friend
Moira, her activist mother, and the loss of her daughter and her husband,
Luke. She thinks about the previous Handmain who left a Latin message
scratched into the wall.
*She describes her trip to the doctor on the previous day. The doctor
suggested that her Commander might be sterile and offers to have sex
with her. Though her life depends on getting pregnant, Offred refused.
* After her bath, she and the rest of the members of the household gather
to listen to the Commander read the bible. Then the Commander, the
Commander’s wife Serena Joy, and Offred perform the Ceremony: the
Commander has impersonal sex with Offred while she lies between
Serena Joy’s legs.
*Afterwards, Offred sneaks downstairs in a rebellious gesture and runs
into Nick, who gives her a message from the Commander to meet the
following night.
*In the evening she sees the Commander, who surprisingly only wants to
play Scrabble and get a chaste kiss. Afterwards she can’t stop laughing.
*Months pass. Offred and the Commander meet often, and the Ceremony
becomes more fraught for Offred now that she and the Commander know
each other.
* One night the Commander explains the meaning of the previous
Handmaid’s Latin, and Offred learns that the previous Handmaid hanged
herself.
* After a shopping trip one day, Serena Joy tells Offred to have sex with
Nick in an effort to get pregnant, and Offred agrees.
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller minabarakzahi. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for £5.99. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
56326 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy revision notes and other study material for 14 years now