Explore the way the writer of your chosen text crafts the narrative in order to make the text relatable to the reader

sample essay --> NOT MY WORK!

In The Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood crafts the narrative in a certain way in order to make the text relatable to the reader. There is constant use of time shifts in the form of flashbacks in order to make aspects of the regime recognisable to the reader and therefore they can sympathise with the character of Offred. The voice is also presented by Atwood as an internal monologue allowing the reader to understand in great depth the emotions of the Handmaid which may echo feelings that they have experienced themselves. Atwood also uses metafiction in a way that, although at first may seem to make the novel appear unreliable, instead provides many different perspectives or outcomes. This not only explores how the regime of Gilead holds many secrets and that because of this, it is corrupt, but also opens up the narration to many different interpretations. Ultimately, it can be said that Atwood uses these innovative methods to ensure the novel is recognisable to all readers and her purpose is to ensure that the novel is not limited to a small audience because of its specific nature. The Handmaid’s Tale is undoubtedly a reminder to all to be free to fight for individuality.

The first way that Atwood uses narrative to make the novel relatable to the reader is through the use of time-shifts to take the reader back to the ‘time-before’, a very recognisable society to a contemporary reader and uses this to compare and contrast to the regime of Gilead.  In chapter 7, the difference in Gilead compared to ‘the time before’ is highlighted when Offred thinks back to her college days, when Moira would sit on “the edge of [her] bed, legs crossed, ankle on knee, in her purple overalls…the gold fingernail she wore to be eccentric…Let’s go for a beer”. This may remind readers, who have been to college, of the many happy memories they had when they could express themselves through clothes and were free to entertain and go out and allows them to put themselves in Offred’s position. It is essential that Atwood uses these flashbacks interwoven with the rest of the story because it highlights the difference in the Gilead years where “it must be hell”. The use of time shifts is effective when one considers that it has come about from the guessed order of tapes found by historians that the story was recorded on, which the reader finds out in the additional historical notes at the end of the novel. So whilst the narrative can make us feel closer to Offred, by not being in chronological order it affects the reader’s interpretation and they may feel more distant from her, as we understand that this may not be the order she wished her story to be told in and this is not wholly her voice. Even though, it allows the reader to appreciate how, in such a mundane and uneventful existence, memories start to surface and this could be relatable to how this can either give hope, which Offred has when thinking of Luke, or ruin the human spirit. Both occur to Offred, “Of all the dreams this is the worst”. By exploring such a relatable reality in many different ways, Atwood ensured the novel is recognisable to all readers and that they can relate with the multi-faceted character of Offred, no matter what their background.

A further means in which Atwood has used the narrative to make the novel relatable to the reader is how she has crafted the text to be a sort of dramatic monologue – aided by the use of first person narration. Through this, Offred tells us her deepest feelings, such as during the ceremony, “I wish it were true; then I could get better and this would go away”. The use of personal pronouns guides us to sympathise with Offred especially when paired with metafiction throughout the novel. Metafiction is used by Atwood to make the reader consider about the reliability of the narrator by using the power of storytelling. Metafictive novels allow the reader to experience a far more intimate perspective of the events in the book such as inviting the reader to develop their explorations surrounding how Offred feels towards the regime as she wishes “It’s a story I’m telling, then I have control over the ending…I’ll pretend you can hear me. But it’s no good, because I know you can’t”. This allows us to infer that Offred wants people to know of her story but is unsure if that will ever happen. It echoes similarities of Anne Frank, who wrote a diary in Amsterdam when she was hiding from the Nazis. She told the whole truth because she never thought anyone would read it. It was her way of rebelling against an oppressive regime, as it is Offred and her tapes – giving a deeper sense of seeing personal qualities in these women. Atwood uses the metafictive, dramatic monologue voice to ensure the novel is recognisable to all readers. Especially when considering it similar to Anne Frank’s diary, we can understand The Handmaid’s Tale is undoubtedly a reminder to all to be free to fight for individuality.

In addition to the structure of the novel, throughout the novel we are given, by Atwood, scenarios in which Offred tells of more than one outcome. Sometimes it is because she doesn’t know, “The things I believe can’t all be true, though one of them must be” – giving the impression of oppression brought about by Gilead’s use of withholding information from the people from the country under its control. Although it may be because she cannot fully be truthful in order to protect herself, “It didn’t happen that way either…All I can hope for is a reconstruction”. The theme of hope is repeated throughout the novel helping the reader relate to Offred as they’re reminded of it constantly and hope for her sake that the regime will to cease to continue. We are reminded that characters who lose hope, like Moira, are overcome and defeated through anecdotes supplied by Offred’s knowledge throughout the narrative. By giving many different accounts of the events it means that readers can form their own opinions on which one is the most truthful and which one they relate to the most. Atwood has chosen to craft her narrative in this way to ensure that the novel reaches a wide audience and most likely welcomes the different interpretations of her novel that follow.

Throughout The Handmaid’s Tale, it is evident that Offred is a very well developed character. She is flawed, has mood swings and struggles though what seems to be an unbearable existence with great dignity. This is all thanks to the carefully crafted narrative which presents flecks of life whether it be emotions/events/buildings that modern readers recognised and relate to. Atwood only includes things that have already happened in the real world in her novel and by doing this she forces readers to realise problems within their own societies. The different interpretations within the book for readers are also evident because the novel has been restricted in many countries. This censoring of literature not only depicts how this complex text can be interpreted drastically differently across the globe but also seems to remind the reader that a life like Gilead is possible – a theme of threat which is presented across generic dystopia. The narrative is relatable to readers and whether it be a character or event that instils this, The Handmaid’s Tale is undoubtedly a reminder to be free to fight for individuality.