Yet, applying feminist discourse to the final episode, commonly dubbed Molly's soliloquy, reveals a conflict between the ostensible modern ideas of the novel and the underlying ideology they actually reinforce. Why then does Ulysses, end with Molly, the twentieth century Penelope? Is Joyce making a statement about women in this male-dominated novel? Although Ulysses resembles The Odyssey both structurally and thematically, Joyce addresses contemporary issues (i.e., twentieth century), more fully develops the complexities of his protagonists, and overall portrays the human situation in very real and often unflattering detail. Like Odysseus, Bloom overcomes adversity, ultimately reclaims his patriarchal roles, both as father and husband, and returns home. Centuries later, James Joyce gives us a modernist interpretation of Homer's epic, Ulysses, which follows Leopold Bloom, the everyday hero, on his one-day "journey" through Dublin. The Odyssey, a classical text written centuries ago, largely supports dominant patriarchal norms as evidenced by the contradicting male and female roles, gender stereotypes, and most notably Penelope's submissiveness.
Similar plot structure (a hero's journey) as well as a common major theme (search for paternity), invite feminist critics to examine both Homer's Odyssey and Joyce's Ulysses to determine the effects of the prevailing male psychology on the incidental or marginal female characters.