After writing a response to Martha Clifford’s earlier letter, Bloom stops to reflect on it and concludes that his response is “Too poetical that about the sad.” (11.904) This is presumably in reference to line 894, “P.P.S. La la la ree. I feel so sad today. La ree. So lonely. Dee.” As the music in the background intrudes upon Bloom’s thoughts, he finds himself spontaneously confiding in Martha, who he had so hastily dismissed in Episode V. While the influence of music on the mind obviously ties in to the episode’s theme, it also brings us back to episode III, wherein Stephen experiences a spontaneous creative burst under the influence of thoughts of the past.

Moreover, Bloom’s solitary, secretive creative act of letter-writing stands in stark contrast to the boisterous, masculine creative displays in the main room. The music continuously intrudes on Bloom’s thoughts and produces a certain longing within him. Thus, the self-censoring “too poetical” remark he makes to himself may indicate a certain inadequacy brought on by his proximity to, but alienation from, the singing in the other room. There is no way for him to join in, a point hammered home in episode XII.