The Handmaid's Tale: A Twisted Mirror of Fairy-tales in a Dystopian Narration

Abstract

Margaret Atwood’s postmodern writings seem to be influenced by the literary
tradition that defines the imaginary of western culture, myths and tales. It is the aim of this
analysis to show and demonstrate how these works from the literary tradition are re- written
and re-interpreted in The Handmaid’s Tale whose dystopian world is consciously deeply
rooted in the Judeo-Christian scriptures and unconsciously the folk-tale tradition of The
Arabian Nights and the Grimm Brothers, concretely in “Snow White”.