Ep. 79 - Martha

Henry dear, do not deny my request before my patience are exhausted.

Cantrell & Cochrane’s Ginger Ale (Source)

In this episode, Kelly and Dermot try to figure out who Martha, Leopold Bloom’s saucy penpal, could really be. Topics include Dermot’s interest in Islam, Bloom’s missing hour, Leah the Forsaken, jugginses and guttapercha, castration anxiety, hopscotch and marbles, senior infants, Martha’s letter, Martha’s possible true identity, why Martha is interested in Molly’s perfume, Kelly harshly debunks popular theories about Martha’s identity, possible reasons for Martha’s lack of skill as a smart lady typist, piña coladas, Lizzie Twigg, wild speculation, Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, Miss Dunne, Gerty MacDowell, Peggy Griffin, Bloom’s secret cipher that may reveal Martha’s identity, and why Ignatius Gallaher is definitely not Martha Clifford.

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On the Blog:

Kate Bateman as Leah (Source)

The Secret Life of Martha Clifford

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Further Reading:

1. Begnal, M. (1976). The Unveiling of Martha Clifford. James Joyce Quarterly, 13(4), 400-406. Retrieved October 20, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/25487287

2. Christensen, A. (2017). Ulysses’s Martha Clifford: The Foreigner Hypothesis. James Joyce Quarterly, 54(3-4), 335-352. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329030073_Ulysses%27s_Martha_Clifford_The_Foreigner_Hypothesis 

3. Ellmann, R. (1959). James Joyce. Oxford University Press.

4. Gifford, D., & Seidman, R. J. (1988). Ulysses annotated: Notes for James Joyce's Ulysses. Berkeley: University of California Press. Retrieved from https://tinyurl.com/vy6j4tk 

5. Gilbert, S. (1955). James Joyce’s Ulysses: a study. New York: Vintage Books. 

6. Gordon, J. (2002). Bloom at Woodstock: (Henry) Flower Power. James Joyce Quarterly, 39(4), 821-828. Retrieved November 5, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/25477934 

7. Herring, P. (1974). Lotuseaters. In C. Hart & D. Hayman (eds.), James Joyce’s Ulysses: Critical essays (71-90). Berkeley: University of California Press. Retrieved from https://tinyurl.com/yy2gpfhs 

8. Maddox, B. (2000). Nora: the real life of Molly Bloom. New York: Mariner Books.

9. Williamson, A. The Lotus Eaters. Modernist Commons. Retrieved from https://modernistcommons.ca/islandora/object/yale%3A454