TITLE:
Symbolism of Flowers in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale
AUTHORS:
Jiangwei Xie
KEYWORDS:
Symbolism, Flowers, Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.8 No.7,
July
22,
2021
ABSTRACT: Flowers symbolize women in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. It is believed that flowers share similarities with women in many aspects. In this paper, symbolic meanings of three kinds of fresh flowers and dried flowers are discussed. The irises, tulips, dandelions and the dried flowers that represent the people Offred associated with and the change in their relationships as they blossom and wither. The color and the shape of each kind of flower are different, which resembles distinctions among characters to the protagonist in the novel.