The Handmaid’s Tale An Introduction

This document outlines a 12-lesson plan for analyzing The Handmaid's Tale. The lessons cover analyzing first impressions and chapter structure, timelines and text structure, characterization, themes, symbols, the role of language, dystopian and speculative fiction, settings, narrative issues and palimpsests, and historical notes. It also covers analyzing the film version and comparing it to the novel. Students are asked to rank the top 10 described features of the novel and provide textual evidence to support their top 3 choices.