“‘What inspired The Handmaid’s Tale. ’ I’ve often been asked “‘What inspired The Handmaid’s Tale?’ I’ve often been asked. General observation, I might have said. Poking my nose into books. Reading the newspapers. World history. One of my rules was that I couldn’t put anything into the novel that human beings hadn’t actually done.” ~Atwood Identify shocking or unpleasant aspects of life in atavistic Gilead that might be one of the things Atwood is referring to. Reference specific events, characters, and conflicts from chapter 1-7 in your response. I’ll be checking Annotations

English Vernacular Develops

The Canterbury Tales is a collection of 24 stories—over 17,000 lines—written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400 Structure: largely linear, one story after another In the General Prologue, Chaucer describes not the tales to be told, but the people who will tell them, making it clear that structure will depend on the characters rather than a general theme or moral.  Presented as a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral mostly written in verse, although some are in prose Chaucer does not pay much attention to the progress of the trip, to the time passing as the pilgrims travel, or to specific locations along the way to Canterbury. His writing of the story seems focused primarily on the stories being told, and not on the pilgrimage itself

The Title The Handmaid’s Tale is reminiscent of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales – it conjures an antiquated atmosphere. Much like the Chaucer, the novel is written in first person, as an interior monologue Her thoughts are the story; her strength lies in insight, not action. Note the double entendre on the word, “tale” – the dual meaning establishes the conflict: the protagonist versus a world that sees her as a sexual object void of sexual autonomy. http://www.librarius.com/cantales/contensm.htm

Practicing for Paper 2: Compare & Contrast Expositions Small-Group Assignment Work together with your table group to create a three-column chart where you analyze the significance of at least two pieces of quoted evidence—exploring the language, structure, technique, and style the author use—from the exposition of all three Paper 2 novels To The Lighthouse The Reader The Handmaid’s Tale Then, select two of the novels that compare and/or contrast in a significant way, and write a thesis statement responding to the following Paper 2 prompt: A writer once said that the reader should be able to return to the first page of a novel…and find resonances of the entire work. With reference to at least two works you have studied consider the style and significance of the beginning of the work. Poster Scoring Guide: Evidence Selection: 5 points Analysis of Language: 10 points Neatness, originality, and creativity: 5 points

Read chapter 7-11 in Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for MONDAY. Homework Read chapter 7-11 in Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for MONDAY.