The Garden of Eden

The Garden of Eden itself symbolized man before original sin when he was at one with nature and himself; it is an unattainable Paradise for mankind to strive for. The tragedy of Eden is that it exists in the past and man is forever moving forward and thus further away from it. Atwood suggests that the only way to attain Eden is for mankind to complete their fall and be destroyed. Then the remnants of mankind will dwell once more in Paradise.

The Waterless Flood

Floods are symbolic of death, destruction, rebirth, and a sweeping away of the old. The Waterless Flood kills most of the human population and leaves the way clear for Glenn’s Crakers and the God’s Gardeners to rebuild in a world largely given over to nature. It destroys civilization.

Toby's Rifle

The rifle becomes a symbol of...