‘The Handmaid’s Tale’: Margaret Atwood Explains Where the Marthas Got Their Name

The Marthas are much more important in The Handmaid’s Tale than they initially seem. While these women do all the housework for high-ranking Commanders, they also have a system for sharing information. Author Margaret Atwood explained that she got the name for these women from a story in the Bible.

Marthas share information throughout Gilead

In The Handmaid’s Tale, Marthas are essentially domestic workers for Commanders and their Wives. Members of this social class in The Handmaid’s Tale are infertile and spend their time cooking, cleaning, and helping raise the Wives’ children. The Marthas also have their network to communicate and spread gossip, with some being active members of the resistance.

“They actually have a pivotal role in this whole scenario because it is the Marthas that pass news from Martha to Martha,” Margaret Atwood said during an interview with CBS Sunday Morning. “And since none of these people were allowed to have telephones, this is very useful.”

Margaret Atwood explains where the Marthas in ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ got their name

Fans of The Handmaid’s Tale may wonder where the Marthas get their name. According to Margaret Atwood, the name comes from a story in the Bible where Jesus visited two sisters named Martha and Mary.

Martha busies herself with housework and preparing food for Jesus while Mary listens to Him speak. When Martha complains that Mary isn’t helping her serve, Jesus chides her for being more concerned with housework than learning about God.

“They were called Marthas after the Martha and Mary episode in the Bible in which Mary is listening adoringly and sitting on the floor, and Martha is getting the dinner ready,” Atwood told CBS Sunday Morning. “And Martha rebukes Mary for not helping with the housework and gets a ticking off from Jesus, rather unfairly, I’ve always thought.”

The Marthas use a secret code to communicate

Later seasons of The Handmaid’s Tale further explore the Marthas secret communication network and work for the resistance. Rita and the Marthas are responsible for getting Nichole safely out of Gilead at the end of season 2.

After June is posted at Commander Lawrence’s house, she realizes that he allows the Marthas who work with Mayday to operate with the resistance unbothered. June also learns that these women have their own code of communication.

Lawrence’s wife Eleanor dealt with mental health problems, and it seems that he used the Marthas to get illegal medication for her. In one scene, June finds one of Lawrence’s Martha, named Beth, in the kitchen surrounded by baskets of scones. “Scones mean no,” she tells June.

This is the Marthas way of telling Lawrence they have been unable to get any medication for Eleanor. Later, June asks Beth to spread the word, asking if any Marthas would help get children out of Gilead. “Muffins mean yes,” she tells June as she stares at a kitchen full of baskets of muffins.

All episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale are currently streaming on Hulu.