How Did The Vietnam War Influence Margaret Atwood

The Vietnam Era and its Influence on Margaret Atwood Born in 1939, Margaret Atwood was surely at an age to comprehend the complexity and controversy surrounding the Vietnam War. Despite her Canadian roots, Atwood’s extensive education in the United States shows a profound impact on a major theme throughout her works: humanity must study its past errors to prevent the same mistakes in the future. Although the Vietnam War is not explicitly stated as an influence in Atwood’s works, its impact can be seen in her works’ themes and the era in which they were published. It is true that Atwood never explicitly states the Vietnam War’s impact on her works or life in her novels. A Canadian native, she was unfamiliar with the culture and controversy surrounding the Communist conflict. Despite studying at Harvard University in the 1960s, Atwood was not truly immersed in the deep roots of the Vietnam War or the Communist conflict. In

A clear example of the Vietnam War’s impact can be found in The Handmaid’s Tale, where Atwood describes the “Unbabies.” These “Unbabies” are neonates with deformities due to the chemical waste in the fictional Republic of Gilead, the setting of The Handmaid’s Tale. With Atwood’s time of writing in mind, it is evident that this draws a close parallel to the outcry surrounding the children of Vietnam veterans, victims of the chemical defoliant and later-known carcinogenic health hazard Agent Orange. Additional evidence for the Vietnam War’s impact on Atwood’s work is present in the attempts to flee the Republic of Gilead. Similar to the draft-dodger exodus during the Vietnam War, refugees from Atwood’s fictional theocracy would flee to Canada. This striking similarity between the Vietnam War and The Handmaid’s Tale clearly reinforce the presence of the Vietnam War Era’s influence on Margaret Atwood’s