<P> The Handmaid 's Tale is a dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood . originally published in 1986 . Set in a near - future New England , in a totalitarian , Christian theonomy that has overthrown the United States government . The novel is based around the journey of the handmaid Offred , an emphasis on the possessive form `` of Fred , '' as handmaids are forbidden to use their birth names and must echo the male , or master , for whom they serve . The Handmaid 's Tale explores themes of women in subjugation to misogyny in a patriarchal society and the various means by which these women gain individualism and independence . The novel 's title echoes the component parts of Geoffrey Chaucer 's The Canterbury Tales , which is a series of connected stories ( `` The Merchant 's Tale '' , `` The Parson 's Tale '' , etc . ) . </P>
<P> The Handmaid 's Tale is a dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood . originally published in 1986 . Set in a near - future New England , in a totalitarian , Christian theonomy that has overthrown the United States government . The novel is based around the journey of the handmaid Offred , an emphasis on the possessive form `` of Fred , '' as handmaids are forbidden to use their birth names and must echo the male , or master , for whom they serve . The Handmaid 's Tale explores themes of women in subjugation to misogyny in a patriarchal society and the various means by which these women gain individualism and independence . The novel 's title echoes the component parts of Geoffrey Chaucer 's The Canterbury Tales , which is a series of connected stories ( `` The Merchant 's Tale '' , `` The Parson 's Tale '' , etc . ) . </P>
when did the handmaid 's tale take place
when did the handmaid 's tale take place
near - future
near - future