By Nina Cherry
Join us this Wednesday, November 7 for a discussion on the book and HULU series The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. This dystopian novel is set in the future in an oppressive, authoritarian state in New England. With the birth rate plummeting due to environmental conditions, fertile women are forced to bear children. These women are at the bottom of the social class structure and are only valued by society for their fertility. The story focuses around one of these women – Offred, who was uprooted from her family and assigned to be a “handmaid” for “the Commander.”
Atwood’s evocative novel, which she began writing in 1984, is her own frightening forecast of the future. The book explores several relevant women’s rights issues that we look forward to discussing.
Lunch will be provided!
“Gilead is a tyranny of nostalgia, a rape culture that denounces the previous society — ours — for degrading women with pornography. It controls women by elevating them, fetishizing motherhood, praising femininity, but defining it in terms of service to men and children.” – The New York Times
What: Book Discussion: May the Book Open: Lessons from the Republic of Gilead
Join us for lunch and a discussion on the book and HULU series The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.
Who: Co-sponsored by the UMKC Women’s Center and UMKC University Libraries
When: Wednesday, November 7, 12-1 p.m.
Where: Miller Nichols Library Room 325, 800 E. 51st Street, Kansas City, MO 64110
Admission: Free!
Please RSVP by November 5th. For more information or to RSVP, call the UMKC Women’s Center at 816-235-1638 or email us at umkc-womens-center@umkc.edu.
We look forward to seeing you there!