The Handmaids Tale Margaret Atwood Chapter Summaries

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Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summaries Table

Chapter	Summary
Chapter 1	This chapter begins with Offred, whose name is not disclosed at first, narrating the state of the old gymnasiums that they are forced to sleep in, as ... Read more
Chapter 2	The second chapter begins with a change of scene, where Offred is now living in a different room which is furnished, and decorated in a feminine style... Read more
Chapter 3	On her way to the shops, she passes through the Commander’s wife’s garden, and she begins to think about a garden she had before Gilead, and the C... Read more
Chapter 4	The chapter begins with Offred leaving the house and describes vividly everything that she experiences. Before reaching the gate, she notices Nick, a ... Read more
Chapter 5	The chapter beings with an explicit description of the town, and the changes that have happened since Offred was a child. When the Republic of Gilead ... Read more
Chapter 6	The chapter begins by Ofglen suggesting they go home via a different, longer route instead of going straight home. It is at this moment that Ofglen su... Read more
Chapter 7	Offred opens the chapter thinking that the night is hers to do whatever she wants, as long as she does not disturb anyone and as such she decides to e... Read more
Chapter 8	Offred and Olfgen return from the shops and see three new bodies, executed at the Wall. There is a priest and two other men, executed for being homose... Read more
Chapter 9	Chapter Nine begins with Offred remembering the times she used to meet Luke in hotel rooms when they first met, having an affair. She thinks about how... Read more
Chapter 10	The excerpt begins with Offred singing Amazing Grace, a song now banned due to its message of freedom. We learn that this and other songs like this ha... Read more
Chapter 11	The section starts with Offred sharing information about the monthly doctor’s appointment, an appointment to which she is escorted by a Guardian. Th... Read more
Chapter 12	The chapter is based around one of Offred’s bathing days, again something that is monitored and controlled with Cora waiting for her at the door. Th... Read more
Chapter 13	Offred is bored after dinner and tries to find something that could keep her occupied, and at that moment she remembers paintings of women in harem pa... Read more
Chapter 14	At the beginning of this chapter, a bell has summoned the members of the household, including the Commander, Serena, Offred, Nick, Cora, and Rita, for... Read more
Chapter 15	The commander arrives home and takes a bible from a locked box before sitting down on his chair, a chair always reserved for him. The Commander then b... Read more
Chapter 16	The chapter begins by the author affirming that the procreating ceremony continues, and the audience is immediately taken to the bedroom where Serena,... Read more
Chapter 17	The chapter begins when Offred arrives in her room after the ceremony, where she removes her clothes, and puts on her night gown. She looks for the pi... Read more
Chapter 18	Offred returns to the room still puzzled and trembling due to the situation which that she had just encountered. She is very disturbed and at the same... Read more
Chapter 19	The chapter captures Offred’s dreams. She has various dreams of things that would normally make her happy, but that joy is cut short with the self-r... Read more
Chapter 20	After Janine gives birth, the handmaids are provided milk and sandwiches whereas the wives are able to refresh themselves with wine and oranges during... Read more
Chapter 21	The room where Janine is expected to give birth is very crowded, and noisy. Offred feels disturbed with the situation because she is mostly subjected ... Read more
Chapter 22	The chapter begins with Offred’s return Offred from the Birthmobile. She is exhausted and too tired to do anything drags herself and lies down the b... Read more
Chapter 23	The chapter commences with Offred lying in her bed, thinking of a way to escape, just like Moira. In her mind, she is aware that she will not survive ... Read more
Chapter 24	Offred returns to her room and does not feel the same in her new clothes claiming that she cannot even think without her clothes on. She is mesmerized... Read more
Chapter 25	It is morning, and Offred is woken up by screams, and a loud crash. Offred had fallen asleep in the closet and had startled Cora so much that she drop... Read more
Chapter 26	The next conceiving ceremony is awkward for Offred, where before she simply tired to detach from the actions that were happening, now she is all to co... Read more
Chapter 27	The chapter begins with one of many between Ofglen and Offred. The two women walk and talk as they observe their setting. They note that there are sev... Read more
Chapter 28	In this chapter, Offred notes that Moira is a lesbian, and she does not like Luke, Offred’s boyfriend. Moira had accused Offred of having a relation... Read more
Chapter 29	The chapter begins with Offred once again in the Commander’s office. From her description of the scene, she is relaxed and at ease, along with the C... Read more
Chapter 30	In this chapter Offred sees Nick, outside in the dark as she is about to close the window, and a sudden rush of sexual desire and chemistry is exchang... Read more
Chapter 31	We see Offred pointing out that she has always wished that one day she would wake up and find herself in her own house and things back to normal. She ... Read more
Chapter 32	The chapter commences with Offred asking for a matchstick from Rita, who is merely concerned with what she will do with it. Rita eventually gives her ... Read more
Chapter 33	The chapter begins with the description of a cloudy afternoon in which Ofglen and Offred decide to attend a “Prayavaganza.” The event is attended ... Read more
Chapter 34	The events of the chapter remain in the courtyard which is now packed to capacity. A Commander comes in and informs the crowd that it is Thanksgiving,... Read more
Chapter 35	Offred continues to think how she tried to escape over the Canadian border with her daughter and Luke. When they reached the border, they handed over ... Read more
Chapter 36	Offred walks into the Commanders room and is startled to find him drunk. She engages in a conversation with him during which she tries to estimate jus... Read more
Chapter 37	Offred and the Commander walk into a hotel which Offred quickly recognizes as the same one Luke and she had used during the early days of their relati... Read more
Chapter 38	Offred goes to the washrooms and is ushered by an Aunt. She does not immediately find Moira and is unsure whether it is a good idea to ask about her. ... Read more
Chapter 39	The chapter begins with the Commander bringing Offred to a hotel room at Jezebel’s (Atwood, 2004). As she uses the bathroom, she remembers a conve... Read more
Chapter 40	Later during the night, it gets hot, and muggy, and Offred puts on her Handmaid’s clothes as she lays waiting in her room. She had planned with Sere... Read more
Chapter 41	Offred apologizes to the reader for the way she is telling her story, feeling that it is painful, and disjointed. She wishes that it made her seem lik... Read more
Chapter 42	The chapter begins with a bell ringing, Offred is in a line, walking in pairs on their way to a ‘Salvaging’. They walk past the Angels and enter i... Read more
Chapter 43	Almost as soon as the execution ends, Aunt Lydia gathers all of the handmaids in a circle as the other women watch (Atwood, 2004). She explains to the... Read more
Chapter 44	After Offred had taken a reasonable lunch, she leaves the house, passes by Nick, and then pauses at the corner to wait for Ofglen (Atwood, 2004). Howe... Read more
Chapter 45	For the most part Offred is relieved that Ofglen took her own life rather than being tortured, meaning her secrets were also safe (Atwood, 2004). Howe... Read more
Chapter 46	Offred waits in her room as night falls, unsure of what her punishment will be (Atwood, 2004). She starts imagining how she could set the whole house ... Read more

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