People who have read books her, but those who have ever heard the description of the “prophet of dystopia” attributed to her may not imagine that Margaret Atwood she is a carefree, energetic, witty woman with a great sense of humor.

This is the face of an 84-year-old multi-awarded and prolific writer. author Those who attended the packed American College in Greece had the opportunity to enjoy yesterday, where they had the opportunity to watch her talk with award-winning poet Deri and Professor of History and Politics Haris Vlavianos.

Drawing on their extensive bibliography of more than 50 novels, poems and treatises, both writers spoke about politics, democracy, as well as oligarchic regimes and the danger of sliding towards totalitarianism, observed in many countries of the world. “I cannot exclude anything,” he noted, “democracy, like tyranny, is fragile, every form of government has weaknesses and shortcomings.”

They also talked about classical and modern literature (she clearly stated that she preferred Richard III to the characters of her beloved Shakespeare, “for he clearly says that he loves no one and is ready to show us what he will do with them”), about ancient Greek literature and mythology, and her relationship with her (when , as a little girl, she read a book by Charles Kinsley in which he collected ancient Greek myths, noting that these are “stories for morally healthy children”). He even revealed that he recently played Tiresias in a play by the Theater of War, a production company that works with well-known actors and artists to create performances based on iconic works of ancient Greek tragedies.

She admitted that she liked most of the film and TV adaptations of her books, in particular “Alias ​​Grace” and “The Handmaid’s Tale”, noting that in the first case the writers remained faithful to her novel, but also that she found Sarah Gadon’s performance to be excellent. . and Elisabeth Moss, respectively. As for whether she ever thought that now the two central characters of her books were identified with the image of these two actors, she stated quite clearly that “this does not concern me, and I can’t do anything about it, I don’t can mesmerize the audience,” one of the many times she finished her answer while laughing and radiating joy to the audience. He believes, he argued, that “a great book can make a very good movie, but also a bad book can make a very good movie, and a fantastic book can make a bad movie. I think it depends on how much “they say” in the book.”

The iconic costume from The Handmaid’s Tale has been used by women around the world to protest for their rights or against the oppression they suffer. “It was first worn by women in Texas, USA, a few years ago. I think they choose it because we live in a visual age and it has become a symbol of protest. This is an image that will immediately be broadcast by the media and social networks, and the audience will immediately understand its message.

“Democracy, like tyranny, is fragile, every form of government has weaknesses and shortcomings,” said a famous author.

Is there a book she would like to be associated with? A book she would like to be remembered for? Her response was disarming: “I won’t be there,” she joked, drawing laughter from the audience. “And if I do, I’ll have more stories to tell.”

She was not shy about talking about the “censorship”, as she characterized it, of books in the US, including the reformulation of chapters, paragraphs, sentences of classic books in the context of political correctness, expressing her concern about what will happen to freedom of expression.

She did not leave unanswered the characterization of the “prophet of dystopia” attributed to her: “I never killed them all (the heroes of her books). I always leave someone at the end to tell the story. There are those who leave no one alive.”

She admitted that she doesn’t plan her novels from scratch, she thinks and writes as she goes through the writing process. “This, if you think about the novel from the very beginning,” he said, “is what a writer of crime thrillers should do, because he must know who the criminal is, otherwise he risks leaving false evidence for his readers.” Writing, says Margaret Atwood, “is an act of optimism. You are initially optimistic that you will finish your book. Then you hope it gets published. When it’s published, you hope that someone will read it, and then you hope that when they do, they’ll like it.”

He doesn’t have a ritual that he follows when he writes. “The only thing that can be considered a ritual, because I do it every time,” he admitted embarrassedly, “is my procrastination.” And he went on to say that “writing is like swimming in one of the frozen lakes we have in Canada. You fall into the icy water and keep swimming.” As to whether she is currently writing a new book, she has made her refusal to reveal it very clear: “I won’t tell you, I’m secretive. If I tell you, I will definitely write it down!”

Margaret Atwood was in Athens as a guest of the American College of Greece for the inaugural lecture “S. The Sue Horner Lecture on Gender Studies and Religion is an initiative by Deree President Dr. David Horner in memory of his 51-year-old wife C. Sue Horner.