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Cammay Thomas

Professor McGriff

American Literature 2

April 5, 2018

Fertility Issues in The Handmaid’s Tale

The Handmaid’s Tale, written by Margaret Atwood, is about a dystopia in which females

were thought to be only useful for being impregnated. This story takes place in a community

called “Gilead”, where women are stripped of their power in this hierarchal land. The story is

being told by a handmaid by the name of Offred. Once a month, Offred is set to have sex with

her commander while the commander’s wife is in the room. The ceremonial sex act is not about

pleasure, but specifically to procreate with intentions of the baby being given to the host family.

The handmaids were thought to be fertile women, which is the only reason that they are ripped

away from civil society. There were some women in Gilead that were thought to be barren, and

in return they were rewarded with a handmaid to conceive a child for their family. My question

is; does fertility issues only happen in women?

Infertility is the inability to conceive children. Atwood focuses on the problem of women

being seen as fertility objects. The citizens of Gilead had major issues with reproduction, and its

residents gave a few reasons as to why society had been forsaken. The novel mentioned things

like birth control, pollution, and STD’s were all culprits of infertility. “There is no such thing as

a sterile man anymore, not officially” (Atwood 11). “There are only women who are fruitful and

women who are barren, that's the law” (Atwood 11). Gilead’s resolution to solving their problem

with fertility, is to divvy up the last few fertile women left, and give them to the men of power
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and their wives. For things to seem legal and of God, the residents of Gilead perform sex

ceremonies, and then recite a scripture before each act. This arrangement doesn’t seem to be

working in the book, so most of the characters are breaking laws and finding other ways to

produce children. Most of the wives in the story maintained gardens, and it is thought to be a

symbolism of fertility.

In today’s society, or what some would call real life, most humans agree that fertility

issues aren't gendered specific. “More than 7.3 million Americans are infertile” (Should You Be

Evaluated for Fertility?). The main sign of infertility is the inability for a couple to get pregnant,

and there may not be any other signs shown. Infertility may be due to a single cause involving

both parties, or it may even be a combination of factors. Studies show that it is not necessary for

a couple to see a fertility specialist until they have tried to conceive for one year. Infertility can

happen from birth, or perhaps something may have happened to the person along the way. Some

of the reasons for infertility in a male include abnormal sperm production or function, diabetes,

prior infection, trauma, extreme heat, and certain genetic diseases to name a few. The cause of

female infertility may include ovulation disorders, early menopause, problems in the opening of

the cervix, tumors, fallopian tube damage, STD’s, and medications to name a few. There are also

quite a few risk factors that will affect male and female that causes infertility. Age, tobacco use,

alcohol use, being overweight and underweight are all said to be risk factors. There is a test that

can be done to determine infertility. These procedures can be done over several months. There is

no guarantee that conception will occur after going through the process. The process for a male

to determine fertility is a semen analysis, ultra sound, biopsy, and a physical exam. The test that

can be done for females is a physical exam, ovulation testing, a blood test to measure hormone

levels, imaging test, ovarian reserve testing, laparoscopy, and genetic testing. Most people would
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not have to undergo most of these test before the issue is found. Most of these routines go on a

case by case basis.

The real world and Gilead are very different. My honest opinion is that any person that

has had fertility treatment. The pressure that Offred felt each month can be understood by every

fertility patient throughout the world. When it comes down to conceiving, prior pregnancy does

not guarantee of future conception. The handmaids had pressure daily to prove their worthiness

to society. It was so much pressure trying to conceive as a handmaid that the character named

Moira escaped and Janine tried to commit suicide. Most fertility patients have an onset of

depression that heightens after many years of trying to conceive. Contrary to popular belief,

suicide and failed marriages are not uncommon. The book doesn’t even remotely hit on the

realization of how fertility works in the real world. The humiliation in this story reached an all-

time high once the women were stripped from their families, and then they were forced to

conceive a child with a man they did not love. Surrogacy doesn’t include rape, kidnapping, and

being turned into a sex slave. Surrogacy is supposed to be done in a humane way with respect.

In conclusion, Atwood is said to be one of the most influential writers today. I have a

fond attraction to modernist literature, and Atwood held nothing back when writing this story.

This story touched on feminism, fertility issues, religion to name a few. Modernism is a style or

movement in the arts that aims to break with classical and traditional forms. This story came out

a few years after the first successful IVF treatment. Atwood didn’t mind speaking on an issue

that plagued the country, even if the issue was in a fictitious land. Atwood put a focus on

whatever the culture movement was prominent at the time.


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Works Cited

Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid's Tale. New York: Anchor Books, a division of Penguin

Random House LLC, 1998. Print.

"Should You Be Evaluated for Infertility?" www.parents.com. Meridith Corporation, n.d. Web.
18 March 2018.

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