Fact or fiction?

Environmental disaster, antibiotic-resistant diseases, and fears of Islamic extremism have transformed liberal America. In a violent coup, a right-wing Christian regime has taken control of the country, now named the Republic of Gilead. The constitution has been "suspended".

Welcome to the world of The Handmaid's Tale, a dystopian novel written by Margaret Atwood.

When it was first published in 1985, the book became an instant modern classic. Now it is back. In February it overtook George Orwell's 1984 on the Amazon bestseller list. And yesterday, the first three episodes of a new TV adaptation were released on the online streaming service Hulu.

Gilead is an extreme patriarchal society, where women have become second-class citizens. Thanks to a low birth rate, fertile women - including the main character, OffredThe character "belongs" to a government official named Fred Waterford. Her name literally means "of Fred", just as the surname "Williamson" once meant the "son of William". - are forced to live with rich men and their barren wives, providing the couple with children.

These "handmaidsThis arrangement is based on a story from Genesis in the Bible: Rachel, who is having trouble conceiving a child, tells her husband Jacob to impregnate her maid Bilhah, so "that I may also have children by her"." are forced to wear red uniforms, and are banned from reading or owning money. Abortion has been outlawed. Any infertile unmarried women are sent to clean up nuclear wastelands, or to indoctrinate the handmaids into their new lives.

The new TV show takes the time to explore and expand on Atwood's nightmarish vision, in all its intricacies. It has also been updated for 2017; "The Plague of Infertility" is blamed on God's hatred of dating apps, for example.

Many reviewers have noted the show's "timely" release. This is not due to its references to Tinder, but because of the recent political events in the USA. Atwood herself has noted "the return to patriarchy" under President Trump.

The day after his inauguration in January, hundreds of thousands of women took to the streets to protestAround 500,000 people attended the Women's March on Washington on January 21st. Similar marches took place in cities around the world; it is thought that around 5m people took part. at his stance on women's rights. They held up handmade signs with slogans like "Make Margaret Atwood fiction again"; "The Handmaid's Tale is not an instruction manual"; and "No the Republic of Gilead".

This is a clear overreaction, say some. Trump's America is nothing like Gilead. For one thing, the president is not particularly religious; he has been through two divorces and likes to spend his Sundays on the golf course. And the fact that so many people are reading and watching Atwood's story is proof that such a world would be met with strong resistance. There is no need to panic.

Don't be so sure, warn others. Atwood did not include anything in her book that has not happened to women at some point throughout history. And although Trump may not be religious, many of his supporters are from the Christian rightAround 81% of white evangelical Christians voted for Trump in 2016.. The Handmaid's Tale may not be a prophecy - but it is certainly a reminder of how easily years of progress can be reversed.