A Novel Born from Reality
When people ask Margaret Atwood where the haunting inspiration for The Handmaid’s Tale came from, her answer is always the same: It’s all happened before.
Everything in the book, she emphasizes, is based on real historical events. There’s nothing in her dystopian world that humanity hasn’t already witnessed—oppression, surveillance, control over women’s bodies.
That haunting truth hit harder than ever when Atwood appeared on The Velshi Banned Book Club. Just one day after her interview, in which she voiced how much more concerned she is now than in 1985, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. If you ever doubted the prophetic nature of The Handmaid’s Tale, now’s the time to take another look.
The Handmaid’s Tale: Fiction Imitating a Frightening Reality
The Hulu series based on Margaret Atwood’s novel recently concluded its sixth and final season.
And while Elisabeth Moss deserves every accolade for her portrayal of June, the character who hits closest to home in today’s political climate is Serena Joy, played with chilling grace by Yvonne Strahovski.
When the show began in 2017, the Trad Wife movement wasn’t yet a mainstream topic.
There was no strong public resurgence of women advocating for ultra-traditional gender roles. That’s what made Serena so surprising.
She wasn’t just a victim of Gilead’s theocracy—she helped create it. A true believer, Serena used her influence, books, and conservative rhetoric to lay the groundwork for a society that would ultimately oppress her too.
Serena Joy: The Face of Complicit Conservatism
In Gilead, Serena isn’t dragged along for the ride. She’s driving the car. And even after becoming a victim of the very regime she helped build, she doubles down. In Season 6, Serena finds herself on the run, exposed as “Mrs. Waterford” and labeled a war criminal.
Yet she clings to her warped ideals, defending Gilead as a place where children are “saved,” not stolen.
This is where Margaret Atwood shines as a writer. She doesn’t give us one-dimensional villains. Serena is complicated.
She’s both the oppressor and the oppressed, the mastermind and the manipulated. Her story becomes a mirror for real-life women who advocate for regressive systems that ultimately turn on them. It’s uncomfortable, it’s thought-provoking—and it’s real.
Forgiveness or Foreshadowing?
In the series finale, we witness a rare moment of vulnerability. Serena, holding her son Noah, tearfully apologizes to June.
Her words carry the weight of years of cruelty: “I’m ashamed.” June forgives her, and that hug, followed by a simple line—“You have to start somewhere”—leaves viewers asking: Is forgiveness the start of healing, or a warning that the cycle might begin again?
This moral gray area is a hallmark of Margaret Atwood’s storytelling. She never spoon-feeds us answers. Instead, she hands us a mirror and asks: What would you do?
The Real-World Echoes
It’s no longer shocking to see women like Serena outside of fiction. In today’s media landscape, many conservative female influencers promote submission, biblical living, and patriarchal values—all while profiting handsomely. They are modern Serenas, polished and powerful, yet advocating for systems that limit women’s freedom.
Margaret Atwood warned us. Through her fiction, she mapped out how quickly rights can be rolled back under the guise of “protection” or “tradition.” The scariest part? We didn’t listen the first time. But maybe we should now.
🎁 Goodie: Atwood’s Own Rule for Dystopias
Margaret Atwood has one rule when writing dystopian fiction: she only includes things that have already happened in real life. That means every element in The Handmaid’s Tale—from forced births to book burnings—has historical precedent. When you read or watch her work, you’re not just seeing a story. You’re seeing history, repackaged to warn us not to repeat it.
Conclusion
The Handmaid’s Tale is no longer just a fictional warning—it’s an eerie reflection of our present. And through the chilling clarity of her vision, Margaret Atwood continues to challenge us to ask hard questions about society, power, and how quickly things can change. Serena Joy may be a character, but she represents a very real phenomenon. And Atwood’s work reminds us that complicity, no matter how well-intentioned, always comes with a cost.
