# Ata — The Moon and Sixpence character guide

> Ata in The Moon and Sixpence by W. Somerset Maugham.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Ata

**First appearance:** 0041-xlii

## Snapshot

A young Tahitian woman who takes Strickland as her man without asking for love, and keeps her promise to him to the last ember.

## Who they are

Ata comes to Strickland in the islands the way the islands themselves do — without argument, without expectation, offering a hut, a garden, and a child. She asks nothing of him that he cannot give, and he gives her nothing but his presence, which is apparently enough. Her fidelity, and the terrible promise she keeps when he is dying, place her at the moral center of the book's final movement, where Strickland's contempt for the world meets a love that does not need to be returned.

## Relationships

### [Dr. Coutras](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/dr_coutras)

_professional_

Dr. Coutras treats Ata and her children, and later witnesses her devoted care for the dying Strickland.

### [Charles Strickland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/charles_strickland)

_romantic_

Ata becomes Strickland's devoted Tahitian wife, providing him with unconditional love and care while he paints his masterpieces.

### [Dr. Coutras](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/dr_coutras)

_professional_

Dr. Coutras treats Ata and her children, and later witnesses her devoted care for the dying Strickland.

### [Dr. Coutras](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/dr_coutras)

_professional_

Dr. Coutras treats Ata and her children, and later witnesses her devoted care for the dying Strickland.

### [Charles Strickland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/charles_strickland)

_romantic_

Ata becomes Strickland's devoted Tahitian wife, providing him with unconditional love and care while he paints his masterpieces.

### [Charles Strickland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/charles_strickland)

_romantic_

Ata becomes Strickland's devoted Tahitian wife, providing him with unconditional love and care while he paints his masterpieces.

## In the story

### [LI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/chapters/li)

A young native girl, shy but willing, who marries Strickland and moves with him to her property in Taravao.

### [LII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/chapters/lii)

Cares for Strickland, manages the household, gives birth to their child, and maintains connections with her relatives.

### [LIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/chapters/liii)

Strickland's native wife, caring for their children and providing him with the solitude he needs for his art.

### [LV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/chapters/lv)

Ata remains fiercely loyal to Strickland, caring for him and their surviving child, despite the villagers' fear and hostility.

### [LVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/chapters/lvi)

Found sobbing on the floor; she had sent for the doctor and later reveals Strickland had been blind for nearly a year.

### [LVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/chapters/lvii)

Fulfills Strickland's wish by burning the house and his masterpiece after his death; later moves to the Marquesas with her child.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters/ata
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_moon_and_sixpence_se/characters