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Margaret Atwood, the writer of The Handmaid’s Tale, was born November 18, 1939 in Ottawa. During her childhood, she and her family moved around Ontario and Quebec. At the age of seven, her family went to Toronto, where she went to school and later attended university. Although she started being interested in writing a lot earlier, she published her first book in 1961, which is also the year of her graduation. After that, she moved to the United States to study American Literature at Harvard University. During her time there, she learned a lot about New England and Puritanism, which is reflected in some of the works she has written since. She also witnessed the beginnings of the feminist movement in the 1960s. In 1967, she married James Polk, but their marriage ended in 1973 when she moved to Ontario with her colleague Graeme Gibson. Atwood has taught writing and literature at various universities, and she has done a lot of travelling, especially in 1970, when she took a year off to tour Italy, France and England.
Her extensive travelling, her relationship to nature and her attitude towards feminism are reflected in her writings. Her works range from poetry, short stories and novels to children's books and literary criticism. Among the themes that she focuses on in her works are gender politics, “exploitation and victimization”. In her more recent writings, she puts more and more emphasis on human rights issues. The issues she writes about are also of importance in her everyday life. She is active in women’s and human rights issues and a member of Amnesty International and various literary circles.
With her writings, Atwood has won many literary awards, and she can be seen as Canada’s most famous novelist. With The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood has written a highly topical novel in the tradition of dystopian fiction. Her success with this novel can be seen in the millions of copies that were sold of it, the many languages it was translated into and the Los Angeles Times Book Award, which Atwood won with this book
Margaret Atwood, the writer of The Handmaid’s Tale, was born November 18, 1939 in Ottawa. During her childhood, she and her family moved around Ontario and Quebec. At the age of seven, her family went to Toronto, where she went to school and later attended university. Although she started being interested in writing a lot earlier, she published her first book in 1961, which is also the year of her graduation. After that, she moved to the United States to study American Literature at Harvard University. During her time there, she learned a lot about New England and Puritanism, which is reflected in some of the works she has written since. She also witnessed the beginnings of the feminist movement in the 1960s. In 1967, she married James Polk, but their marriage ended in 1973 when she moved to Ontario with her colleague Graeme Gibson. Atwood has taught writing and literature at various universities, and she has done a lot of travelling, especially in 1970, when she took a year off to tour Italy, France and England.
Her extensive travelling, her relationship to nature and her attitude towards feminism are reflected in her writings. Her works range from poetry, short stories and novels to children's books and literary criticism. Among the themes that she focuses on in her works are gender politics, “exploitation and victimization”. In her more recent writings, she puts more and more emphasis on human rights issues. The issues she writes about are also of importance in her everyday life. She is active in women’s and human rights issues and a member of Amnesty International and various literary circles.
With her writings, Atwood has won many literary awards, and she can be seen as Canada’s most famous novelist. With The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood has written a highly topical novel in the tradition of dystopian fiction. Her success with this novel can be seen in the millions of copies that were sold of it, the many languages it was translated into and the Los Angeles Times Book Award, which Atwood won with this book.