I've regarded this novel highly since it came out. As far as prophetic dystopian fiction goes, it belongs next to Orwell's book.  They are both pretty dismal. This production is timely, given the sense of fracturing current in our republic, with some states leaning hard in a theocratic direction.  The premise that women's fertility is something women are not qualified to manage on their own, but rather is a proper locus of social determination, (and, arguably, patriarchal domination) is  particularly apt. 

Given the intensity of the vision Atwood offers, I suspect it is not hard to discount.  Most conservative social theorists  can surely say that this is not at all what they have in mind. Nonetheless, a sceptic may note the common agenda of removing reproductive choice from women, and mark that once that decision has been made, there is no natural limit to the constraints that may be placed upon women, to ensure that that essential self-determination is denied.