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Margaret Atwood (Handmaid's Tale) on fear that her book could become "instruction manual":
Link to tweet
The Handmaid's Tale 'could be instruction manual', says Atwood
Atwood was asked by an audience member if she feared the book could be used as an instruction manual and said: "Yes, there is that problem...if Mike Pence gets his hands on the controls, just you wait."
She also praised the referendum on reforming abortion law in the Republic of Ireland, and efforts by some to "push back" against the Trump administration.
"The election of Trump has galvanised young people who might not have had voting on their to-do list, or candidature or any interest in politics in particular," she said.
"Had those people voted in the last election, the current incumbent would not have won."
Her novel was made into a film in the 1980s and has been adapted for television, with a second series recently completed.
Atwood told the audience in Hay-on-Wye that she had lost control of the TV rights for the book in 1989, but said she had been "very lucky" to have such a good team team working on the series.
Atwood was asked by an audience member if she feared the book could be used as an instruction manual and said: "Yes, there is that problem...if Mike Pence gets his hands on the controls, just you wait."
She also praised the referendum on reforming abortion law in the Republic of Ireland, and efforts by some to "push back" against the Trump administration.
"The election of Trump has galvanised young people who might not have had voting on their to-do list, or candidature or any interest in politics in particular," she said.
"Had those people voted in the last election, the current incumbent would not have won."
Her novel was made into a film in the 1980s and has been adapted for television, with a second series recently completed.
Atwood told the audience in Hay-on-Wye that she had lost control of the TV rights for the book in 1989, but said she had been "very lucky" to have such a good team team working on the series.
2 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
... however I don't believe she could have foreseen the current political situation back in 1985.
She's actually working on a sequel to The Handmaid's Tale that takes place 15 years after the end of the first story. This new novel gives her the opportunity to reflect on current developments in the US and Canada, and take the characters further, much like the TV series is doing now. I don't believe Ms. Atwood has any input in the development of the TV series, and in season 3 the story has already gone past the end of her original book.
Well done, Margaret Atwood. I look forward to reading your sequel to The Handmaid's Tale.
