The Handmaid's Tale is a bleak novel by Margaret Atwood, published in 1985. It is set in the Republic of Gilead, a authoritarian society where women lost all their rights. In this society, women are divided into castes based on their reproductive capabilities, with Handmaids bound to reproductive servitude. The novel centers on Offred, a Handmaid assigned to a Commander and his wife, Serena Joy, a former activist who helped create the Gileadean regime. The Handmaid's Tale became a successful TV series in 2017, winning several awards, such as Emmys and Golden Globes.