Cover Designs of The Handmaid's Tale

The Ultimate Questions

In aspects of textual design, the blurb, images and the use of colour, what is the balance between references to fantasy elements and references to 'the real world'? How are you being sold the idea of fantasy?

The fruit has Biblical links to the Fall of Mankind, where Adam and Eve first sinned. This is a real life aspect taken to the extreme in The Handmaid's Tale as Biblical teaching becomes paramount in Gilead. However, apples were the fruit growing on the tree, not pears. It's almost as if the story has been changed, or the original design for the world has gone 'pear-shaped'. The pears could also represent fertility, as they are growing. Doves symbolise peace, but the biohazard symbol represents danger. This is oxymoronic, as these aspects of real life are being brought together. This could represent how the Government are trying to create peace with war and using unconventional methods of procreation to create a harmonious society. The doves being a symbol of peace comes from the Bibilical story of Noah's Ark, when the dove delivers an olive branch to the arc, signalling that the flood is over. Doves also represent female fertility in Mediterranean culture. The Biblical elements of the cover make the biohazard symbol seem out of place. It is unsettling how the Bible has been interpreted in the way it has in the novel. The font of the title is traditional, plain and a traditional colour. This could represent society being stripped back to its bare bones and functions. The Handmaid's uniform looks like a nun's habit, but a different colour. It also appears to made out of paper, which suggests that it is fragile. The images are almost cartoon-like, not real. The red moon could link to the red colour of blood and the effect it has on women's menstrual cycles, which is very important to the Handmaids. The lack of choice, dystopian society and oppression described in the blurb links to fantasy, but the desires found in real life still remain. The other real life elements in the blurb include: 'desire', 'hanging' 'The Republic of,' (even though Gilead is a fictional name.)

This image is like a historical painting, which links to the real life elements of the novel. The blurred face of the woman looks as if someone has washed the paint away, which could symbolise a loss of identity. The font is bold, the white making it stand out. The font is also church-like, with the A's and M's resembling church windows. The Biblical links within the novel relate to real life.

The author's name is written in a cursive script, which links to the real life element of handwriting. The picture of Offred's face is cut off above the bottom lip, which could symbolise that she has no voice or freedom of speech. The three women in blue in the background are three different Wives, as Handmaids have three possible placements, and three chances of fertility.

No group of women in real life wear all red. The women are almost stick figures - like symbols on a toilet door, only a dress distinguishes a man from a woman. One woman is lighter than all the others, she is fading away. She looks like a stay that hasn't printed properly, which links to a decline in fertility and losing her sense of purpose because of that. It could also be representative of Offred losing her sense of self and memories of the past.