Before Elisabeth Moss donned the red robes of the fiercely tenacious Offred in the award-winning SBS drama The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood wrote the dystopian world of Gilead into existence.
Fans of this unsettling novel, the 1990 film adaptation and the 2017 television series will be well acquainted with the parable it tells of a society that has rejected human rights and is dominated by a group of classist, religious fanatics. While The Handmaid’s Tale was originally written over two decades ago, many will also be aware of how Atwood anchored this disturbing society in reality – perhaps doing a little prophesying – drawing from the problems seen in our own political and social context.
The acclaimed Canadian author discussed the connections between fiction and modern society in Sydney earlier this year. Now, she's returning to discuss her new novel, The Testaments, which is a Handmaid's Tale sequel, set 15 years after the events of the first novel (and some years after the events of the show). The novel has become a world-wide smash hit, breaking numerous records in its first week of release, and you can get more insight into this story and her other works at the two Sydney talks.
Her impressive body of work is indeed a testament to the ideas she’ll present, so you’ll probably want to read-up and binge-watch before the talk. When you catch up on The Handmaid’s Tale, your recommended reading/viewing list includes: historical murder mystery Alias Grace (which has become another acclaimed television series), The Edible Woman, which challenges gender stereotypes and explores psychology, and futuristic adventure romance Oryx and Crake.
Pre-sale tickets to the talk go on sale on November 25 at noon, with general public tickets on sale on November 29. To encourage younger readers, 25 free tickets will be given away free to people under 25. These tickets will be released on the day of the show.
Blessed be the fruit.