Margaret Atwood, Canadian literary icon and dystopian visionary, experienced a career renaissance with Hulu’s 2017 The Handmaid’s Tale adaptation, making her 1985 novel terrifyingly relevant.
Handmaid’s Tale Phenomenon
- Hulu series (2017-): 15 Emmy wins, 75M+ viewers
- Book sales: The Handmaid’s Tale hit #1 NYT 32 years after publication
- Activism: Red robes/white bonnets became protest symbols globally
- The Testaments (2019): Sequel, Booker Prize winner, instant bestseller
Political Symbolism
The Handmaid’s Tale became shorthand for:
- Reproductive rights battles
- Authoritarianism warnings
- Women’s bodily autonomy debates
- “The Handmaid’s Tale is not an instruction manual” activism
Literary Authority
At 85+, Atwood remains culturally vital:
- Twitter presence (2M+ followers)
- Climate activism (Oryx and Crake trilogy prescience)
- Mentoring Canadian writers
- Public intellectual on democracy, feminism, environment
Beyond Handmaid’s
Other works gaining renewed attention:
- Cat’s Eye, Alias Grace, The Blind Assassin
Sources:
- The New Yorker: https://www.newyorker.com/
- NPR: https://www.npr.org/