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Science Fiction And Dystopia In The Handmaid's Tale

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The Handmaid’s Tale, a science fiction and dystopian novel, is set in the near future in the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian Christian theocracy within the present borders of the United States of America. The Republic of Gilead consolidates power by creating a hierarchical Christian regime which follows social and religious conservatism inspired by the Old Testament. The novel is narrated by a woman named Offred, who describes her life as a handmaid. Due to extremely low reproduction rates and high rates of sexually transmitted diseases, Handmaids serve as a vital function in Gilead. Handmaids are assigned to elite couples to conceive children. Offred describes the structure of Gilead society, including the different classes of women and

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