Ethna MacCarthy facts for kids

Ethna MacCarthy was an Irish poet and a doctor who specialized in children's health (a paediatrician). She was born on April 2, 1903, and passed away on May 24, 1959.

Growing Up and School

Ethna MacCarthy was born in Coleraine, County Londonderry, on April 2, 1903. Her father, Brendan MacCarthy, was a doctor. Her mother was Eleanor McCarthy. Ethna's grandfather, Denis Florence MacCarthy, was also a well-known poet.

Ethna had two brothers, Denis Florence and Desmond, and one sister. When she was young, her family moved to Dublin. This was because her father got a new job at the Custom House. They lived in a place called "Desmond" in Ballsbridge.

It's thought that Ethna went to a local convent school. Her aunt, Mary Stanislaus MacCarthy, lived at the Dominican Convent nearby. Ethna first went to a secretarial college. After that, she studied at the Royal Academy of Music.

In 1922, Ethna started studying at Trinity College Dublin (TCD). She was a special "foundation scholar." She studied French and Spanish. She earned her first degree (a BA) in 1926 and a higher degree (an MA) in 1937.

Life and Work

After finishing her studies, Ethna MacCarthy became a teacher at Trinity College Dublin. She taught French and Provençal, which is an old language from France. People who knew her remembered her as being very smart and charming. She was also seen as a strong supporter of women's rights, even before the word "feminist" was commonly used.

Many people admired Ethna because she was so outgoing. This included famous writers like Denis Johnston and Samuel Beckett. Beckett even wrote about her in his book Dream of fair to middling women, where she appears as "the Alba." Some say she also inspired a character in his play Krapp's last tape. Ethna is believed to have been Beckett's first love. Denis Johnston also wrote a poem for her called To Ethna. Ethna later married Con Leventhal in 1956.

In the mid-1930s, Ethna decided to study medicine at Trinity College Dublin. She became a doctor in 1941. She then earned a higher medical degree (an MD) in 1946. She became very interested in children's health. She worked as a doctor for children at the Royal City of Dublin Hospital.

Ethna left this job in 1954. She had planned to join the World Health Organization, which helps people's health around the world. However, she couldn't join because she didn't pass the required health check. She also wrote a few articles for the Irish Journal of Medical Science about public health issues.

Her Poetry

Like her grandfather and aunt, Ethna MacCarthy was a talented poet. Some of her poems, such as The invitation, Lullaby, and Clinic, were published in The Dublin Magazine. She also translated poems from German and Spanish.

In 1937, her short story called Flight was published in a magazine called Ireland Today. She also wrote a short play, The uninvited, which appeared in The Dublin Magazine in 1951. People thought she was a "good minor poet." Her work was included in several poetry collections, like the 1948 book New Irish poets.

Later Life and Legacy

Ethna MacCarthy passed away on May 24, 1959. She died at the East Ham Memorial Hospital in London. She had been battling throat cancer for about a year.

During her last year, Samuel Beckett wrote to her often. He even sent her violets from his home in Ussy. He included a heartfelt note with the flowers. Beckett's letters to Ethna are now kept at the University of Texas at Austin. Some of her own letters are also part of the Denis Johnston collection at Trinity College Dublin. A drawing of Ethna by the artist Seán O'Sullivan is owned by Professor Eoin O'Brien. More of Ethna's writings are held in the Con Leventhal collection at Trinity College Dublin.