Sociocultural Studies III
Margaret Atwood Biography
Poet, Author, Literary Critic, Journalist
Margaret Atwood is a Canadian award-winning writer best known for her poetry, short-stories and novels such as The Circle Game, The Handmaid’s Tale, Snowbird and The Tent.
Synopsis
Margaret Atwood is a Canadian writer born on November 18, 1939 in Ottawa, Canada. The internationally-known author has written award-winning poetry, short-stories and novels, including The Circle Game (1966), The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), Snowbird (1981), The Blind Assassin (2000), The Tent (2006) and more. Her works have been translated into 30 different languages.
Career Highlights
Novelist, short-story writer, poet, and critic. Born on in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Margaret Atwood is one of today's leading fiction writers. She studied at the University of Toronto and Radcliffe College, becoming a lecturer in English literature. Her first published work was a collection of poems entitled The Circle Game (1966), which won the Governor-General's Award.
Since then Margaret Atwood has published many volumes of poetry and short stories, but is best known as a novelist. Her controversial The Edible Woman (1969) is one of several novels focusing on women's issues. Her futuristic novel, The Handmaid's Tale (1985) — which was later turned into a film by Harold Pinter—was short-listed for the Booker Prize, as was Cat's Eye in 1989. She finally won the award for The Blind Assassin (2000). Other critically acclaimed works by Margaret Atwood include The Robber Bride (1994), Alias Grace (1996), and Oryx and Crake (2003). Her Survival (1972) is widely considered to be the best book on Canadian literature.
In 2006, Margaret Atwood had several new publications: The Tent, a volume of tales and poems; Bashful Bob and Doleful Dorinda, a children's book; and Moral Disorder, a collection of short stories. She continues to be a popular author worldwide; her works have been translated into more than 30 different languages.
Margaret Atwood speaks about religión.
This is a plot summary of The Handmaid´s Tale.
The Handmaid's Tale is a dystopian novel, a work of science fiction or speculative fiction,written by Canadian author Margaret Atwood and first published by McClelland and Stewart in 1985. Set in the near future, in a totalitarian Christian theocracy which has overthrown the United States government, The Handmaid's Tale explores themes of women in subjugation and the various means by which they gain agency. The novel's title was inspired by Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, which is a series of connected stories ("The Merchant's Tale", "The Parson's Tale", etc.)
The Handmaid's Tale won the 1985 Governor General's Award and the first Arthur C. Clarke Award in 1987; it was also nominated for the 1986 Nebula Award, the 1986 Booker Prize, and the 1987 Prometheus Award. It has been adapted for the cinema, radio, opera, and stage.