A few weeks ago I purchased a book from the Cornell Store that has been on my reading list for ages. It is of course the famous The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. I felt consumed by the pages, as I spent hours leafing through and immersing myself in the world of dystopian Gilead, which is more than just a fictional location, it is a manifestation of far-right ideologies. Gilead is an alternate future for the United States, a country where climate change has drastically reduced fertility levels and a group called the “Sons of Jacob” has come together to take over the country.

The Sons of Jacob lead a coup and install a new regime based on strict fundamentalist Christian doctrines and emphasizing women’s reproductive rights. In this universe, women are divided into four different categories according to their age, their status and their fertility. In this fictional timeline, women are divided into four categories: wives, marthes, aunts and servants. Each category serves a purpose, and in this case, the Handmaids are young and fertile women.

Handmaids are forced substitutes for commanders, whose wives are often infertile. Phrases such as “Blessed be the fruit” are exchanged by different characters, emphasizing the importance of fertility in this disappearing world. Despite the dark introduction to Gilead, one might wonder to what extent this universe is a possibility for ours. We are currently going through a period of turbulence in society, of Roe v. Wade leaning towards the rise of platforms which present sexism as a “manly” thing to a younger male audience. It is frightening that the political commentator and pundit Nick Fuentes recently joked with the phrase “your body, my choice.” Alongside his own jokes, others joined in, celebrating his “audacity” in attacking women. This is the aim of The Handmaid’s Talein essence, it’s about controlling women’s bodies and autonomy.