‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Attwood is a futuristic novel about life after a nuclear war and the repercussions this war has had on the people and their lifestyle. It is written in the first person narrative, from ‘Offred’s’ viewpoint as she struggles to come to terms with living in the dystopia-like world of Gilead, which has both positive and negative aspects considering the reader’s understanding of the novel. By using this method it may help the reader to understand the character of Offred but it can also affect the reader’s understanding of the novel. As ‘The handmaid’s Tale’ is written in first person it means the reader may have a limited knowledge and understanding of all characters apart from the narrator and it also may make the reader doubt the authenticity of the story as there appears to be no supporting evidence.
One benefit of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ being written in first person narrative is that it allows the reader to feel closer to Offred, therefore understanding her personal experience more deeply. The reader gets a close insight into the life and feelings of a handmaid, such as when Offred says, “ I want her back, I want everything back, the way it was. But there is no point to it…this wanting.” Here Offred is talking about her daughter and it is personal emotions like these that make the reader understand and appreciate ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’. This understanding between Offred and the reader may not have been possible if the novel were written in third person as a distance would have been created between first hand emotions and the reader. This method creates a bond between the reader and Offred, which makes the reader sympathise and emphasise with her and understand her emotions. However, as the novel is written as an account from Offred, like her memories, she flits between tenses and situations which can become confusing, especially at the beginning when the whole concept of the novel is new to the reader. This constant changing of tenses can make it difficult for the reader to place events within the time span of the novel, which may lead to a misunderstanding of the account. Although Attwood’s choice to use this perspective may at times confuse the reader, it can also add a sense of “realness” to the narrative through showing Offred’s natural thinking processes rather than a straightforward account of events. This also effectively ‘mirrors’ Offred’s own personal struggles in understanding the experiences she has been put through as it seems as if she cannot quite work out why, how or when events took place (again adding verisimilitude to the novel).
Although the first person narrative can in some ways make the novel come alive it can also affect the way in which the reader may understand the story and debate the authenticity of Offred’s account. As the reader is only open to Offred’s view on situations it cannot be certain whether she is telling a truthful, realistic account or letting her imagination run wild. Often Offred tells the reader of certain major events, such as the declination of the compu-card, but only indicates that it happened to all the other woman in Gilead. Offred never really confirms that the events were widespread, although the reader can make assumptions that they were, which shows she may have been unsure about other goings on around her. However this adds to the idea that as an oppressed member of society Offred has been deprived of face to face contact with other handmaids and the media would have also been controlled by the regime, meaning she had no contact with the world outside of her officer’s house. The historical notes at the end of the novel discuss ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ in a quizzical manner, attempting to match Offred’s characters with people found to exist at that time in Gilead. However even the professors are unsure about their findings as they conclude their speech by saying, “ …Or was she discovered in her attic hiding place, arrested, sent to the Colonies or to Jezebel’s, or even executed? Our document, though in its own way eloquent, is on these subjects mute.”. The fact that not even these added notes can decipher her account as to find evidence to support it also adds to the effect of the novel being written in first person narrative. These notes add to the debate that the story may not be authentic, as even though they attempt to identify some characters there is still no actual confirmation to Offred’s story.
Another way in which the first person narrative may affect the reader’s understanding of the novel is that the reader only experiences Offred’s feelings and no one else’s. The reader has limited knowledge and therefore understanding of all the other character’s emotions, which may have a great effect on the overall understanding of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’. The only way in which the reader can gain knowledge on other character’s feelings is either through their own speech or Offred’s interpretation of how the character may have felt, which could easily be inaccurate. An example of this is during one of Offred’s meetings with Nick where she says, “Neither of us says the word love, not once, it would be tempting fate; it would be romance, bad luck.” As Nick never actually says he loves her it is not reliable for the reader to rely solely on Offred’s instincts that he did in fact share her passionate emotions.
Overall the use of first person narrative in ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ has both advantages and disadvantages considering the reader’s understanding of the novel. I think the main advantages are that the first person technique allows the reader to feel closer to the narrator and therefore understand her thoughts and emotions, which leads to a better understanding of the novel. This can also make the novel seem more life-like as the reader can relate to how Offred is feeling and some of the trials she encounters (for example losing her loved ones). The disadvantages of the first person narrative in my opinion are that as the reader we only experience the narrator’s feelings first hand and we either have to make assumptions on how the other characters are feeling or go by what Offred tells us. I think this may affect our understanding of the novel as it also makes the story seem less reliable in areas as we have no one else’s word to back up the narrator. The use of first person narrative had a positive effect on my understanding of the novel as I saw everything through Offred’s eyes which made me feel close to the narrator as a person which therefore made me understand her story. Overall I feel that the use of first person narrative is a positive contribution to the story but it also affects our understanding of the novel as a whole as it encourages questions about the story’s authenticity.
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