The Handmaid's Tale
Margaret Atwood
The Handmaid's Tale takes place in the Republic of Gilead, a country formed within the borders of what was originally the United States of America after nuclear, biological, and chemical pollution rendered a large portion of the population sterile and a staged terrorist attack killed the President and Congress. After the attack, a revolution occurred which deposed of the United States government and abolished the US Constitution. New theoratic governments, including the Republic of Gilead, were formed under the rule of a military dictatorship.
The story is told from the point of view of a woman called Offred, who is kept by the ruling class as a concubine handmaid for reproductive purposes shortly after the beginning of what is called the epilogue the Gilead period. The story's narrative is disjointed and out of order and ends abruptly, which is revealed at the end to be caused by its supposedly having been narrated onto a series of unnumbered audio tapes.
