Der Report der Magd

Roman

by
No cover

Margaret Atwood: Der Report der Magd (Paperback, German language, 1989, Fischer Taschenbuch)

Paperback, 398 pages

German language

Published Nov. 13, 1989 by Fischer Taschenbuch.

ISBN:
978-3-596-25987-8
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5 stars (3 reviews)

Gegen Ende des 20. Jahrhunderts haben fanatische religiöse Sektierer im Norden der USA die sogenannte Republik Gilead installiert, deren oberstes Ziel die Sicherung der Fortpflanzung ist, nachdem die "europiden" Rassen seit Jahren einen drastischen Geburtenrückgang zu verzeichnen hatten. Perfide Machtstrukturen sollen die größtmögliche Ausbeutung der weiblichen Gebärfähigkeit gewährleisten; dazu gehören die totale Entmündigung der Frauen und ihre Klassifizierung in Hausfrauen, Gebärmaschinen und Dienerinnen. Wer nicht funktioniert oder sich widersetzt, wird zur "Unfrau" erklärt und in die Kolonien zur Giftmüllbeseitigung abgeschoben. Eine dieser jungen, zu Reproduktionszwecken rekrutierten Frauen, der sogenannten Mägde, die den männlichen Führungskräften von Gilead als Zweitfrau zugewiesen werden, ist Desfred, die Hauptfigur und Erzählerin des Romans. (Klappentext)

46 editions

reviewed The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Captivating dystopia

4 stars

I have not watched the TV series based on the book before reading it. I prefer it in that order. I was caught up in the story from the first few pages. It describes a dystopian future regime in the former United States with very strict rules and control and abundant capital punishment for those who step a bit out of line. The story has chilling similarities to some of what I read about present-day conservative America.

reviewed La servante écarlate by Margaret Atwood (Pavillons)

Not so speculative fiction

5 stars

I was warned this book is not a fun one. Indeed it is not.

You get to see the omnipresent fear and violence of a patriarchal surveillance state. You get to see how it got there, little by little, and how it got accepted. The disturbing part is that it is very much believable...

I hadn't seen since Orwell's "1984" the effect of a totalitarian system on an individual so well described, especially at an individual level. You get to see how a single mind resists or breaks when faced with such overwhelming brutal and oppressive environment.

It is definitely worth reading, especially when you keep in mind the fact that Atwood has been censored in several US states.

reviewed Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

a classic

5 stars

I read this classic just two years ago. It felt more relevant to the present than it may have been when it was written. This book is a revolutionary milestone in speculative fiction and probably feminist literature as well, but I found equally interesting that the text is based on progressive loss of innocence. The final chapter is incredible and left me very satisfied.