What if American women were suddenly returned to their cloistered state of old in which their only freedom was the freedom from the dangers of the surrounding world? Then again, did women ever truly achieve "freedom to" at all? The first society is Modern America with its relatively liberal mores and customs, and the second is Gilead, a totalitarian Christian theocracy which takes control of America in the late 1980's in order to "save" it …showed first 75 words of 1191 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1191 total…simply taking a picture could not afford. Atwood has created a society employing not only visual images, but also images of societal ethics and forgotten traditions. Perhaps the devices used to create such a society are complex, but the expected result is simple. It is obvious, though, from Offred's devastation that dehumanization of women for any purpose is reprehensible. Although this dystopian novel may seem like a fantasy, the politics it criticizes are very real.