- Publication date
- August 1985
- epigraph
- In the desert there is no sign that says, Thou shalt not eat stones., And when Rachel saw what she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb ? And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her, and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her, But as to myself, having been wearied out for many years with offering vain, idle, visionary thoughts, and at length utterly despairing of success, I fortunately fell upon this proposal...
- form of creative work
- novel
- last line
- Are there any questions?
- title
- The Handmaid's Tale, La Servante écarlate, Разказът на прислужницата, Příběh služebnice, Der Report der Magd, El cuento de la criada, Sluškinjina priča, A szolgálólány meséje, Il racconto dell'Ancella, O conto da aia, Galaad 2195, Аповед служанкі