欧宝娱乐

It's time for people to re-read this futuristic novel about a U.S. governed by a theocracy. It was concerning to read it in the 1980s when it was originally published, but it is even more concerning, even scary, to read it now. The positions taken by the current field of Republican presidential candidates brought the book immediately to mind.
With a great deal of prescience Atwood's central character, Offred (read as of-Fred, since Handmaids are known only by the males to whom they are assigned), describes the life of a Handmaid living in the fictional country of Gilead (a renamed U.S.) engaged in a religious civil war. This is a country in which women can own nothing, can not work, and must adhere to the roles assigned to them within a very limiting society.
The story is presented as a series of vignettes describing the life of Offred within the household, as well as her memories "from the time before". The contrasts are striking. The memories are also Offred's only entertainment, since reading is forbidden and the written word has been obliterated from public display (including signs for shops).
It's a depressing reminder of what may really be in our future.