Long Day's Journey into Night
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The play "Long Day's Journey into Night" takes place in the summer
residence of the Tyrone family during August 1912. The activity commences in
the morning, immediately following the meal consumed in the morning. It is
revealed in the beginning of the story that Mary has recently returned to her
family after undergoing treatment in a sanatorium for her addiction to
morphine. Meanwhile, Edmund has just started experiencing severe bouts of
coughing. Later in the play, it is shown that, as Tyrone and Jamie suspect, he
has tuberculosis. Over the course of the play, it becomes evident that Mary's
family members are deeply disappointed to discover that she is still dependent
on morphine.
The majority of the play's plot revolves
around the gradual disclosure of these two medical catastrophes. Amidst these
revelations, the family frequently rehashes previous conflicts and reopens
longstanding emotional injuries that the family members are unable to ever
forget. Tyrone is consistently held accountable for his own reluctance to spend
money, which potentially contributed to Mary's dependence on morphine when he
declined to cover the expenses of a competent physician to alleviate the pain
resulting from childbirth. In contrast, Mary consistently fails to release her
grip on the past or acknowledge the distressing reality of the present, namely
her addiction to morphine and her youngest son's illness. Their failure to
achieve success, as their father had always hoped, is a subject of argument
among all of them regarding Jamie and Edmund. Throughout the day, the guys
consume ever larger quantities of alcohol, reaching a point where they are
almost unconscious by Act IV.
The majority of the play's storyline is
characterized by repetition, mirroring the cyclical nature of an alcoholic's
behavior. The aforementioned arguments are recurrent throughout the four acts
and five scenes. All acts take place in the living room, and all scenes save
the final one occur either immediately before or immediately after a dinner.
Act II, Scene i takes place prior to the midday meal, whereas scene ii occurs
after the midday meal. Act III, on the other hand, occurs before the evening
meal. Each act centers on the interaction between two particular characters:
Act I showcases the interactions between Mary and Tyrone. Act II presents the
dynamics between Tyrone and Jamie, as well as Edmund and Mary. Act III focuses
on the relationship between Mary and Jamie. Act IV highlights the interactions
between Tyrone and Edmund, as well as Edmund and Jamie.
The repetitive storyline further reinforces
the idea that this day lacks any notable characteristics. Instead, it is just
another day in a series of similar days for the Tyrones, characterized by
bitterness, conflict, and a deep-seated love.
It is undeniable that Long Day's Journey
into Night is a tragedy; it provides the viewer with a sense of catharsis,
which can be defined as the process of experiencing emotional rebirth via the
seeing of significant events, and it represents the decline of something that
was once of tremendous accomplishment. The Tyrone family is the subject of the
play. This once-close family has become more distant over the course of the
years for a variety of reasons, including Mary's addiction to drugs, Tyrone
Jamie, and Edmund's drunkenness, Tyrone's stinginess, the boys' casual attitude
toward work and money, and a number of other causes. As the play progresses,
the parents are becoming older, and although they have always had the hope that
their boys would realize their full potential, that hope is gradually being
replaced by a sense of resignation and hopelessness.
There are many characteristics of the play
that are similar to O'Neill's life, and the piece is primarily
autobiographical. The drama features O'Neill himself, playing the role of
Edmund, the younger son who, like O'Neill, suffers from consumption. Edmund is
also a character in the play. Indeed, there are a number of startling
similarities between this drama and O'Neill's life that may be highlighted.
Similar to Tyrone, O'Neill's father was an alcoholic, Irish Catholic, and
Broadway actor. Tyrone was also an alcoholic. As was the case with Mary,
O'Neill's mother was addicted to morphine, and she developed this addiction
about the time that O'Neill was born. O'Neill's older brother, like Jamie, did
not take life seriously and instead chose to live a life filled with whores,
drink, and the fast-paced, wild life of Broadway. O'Neill, on the other hand,
had an elder brother named Edmund who passed away when he was still a child. In
this play, Edmund also had an older brother named Eugene who passed away when he
was still a child.
The play, which was ultimately published
after O'Neill's death, is considered to be his final remarks to the literary
world. The play is not intended to be damning in any way; no one character is
intended to be perceived as being substantially worse than any other character.
This is a key point to keep in mind. The play is fair and unbiased, and it
demonstrates that many character defects can be considered as benefits when
examined in a different way. This is one of the play's main characteristics; it
is fair and unbiased. The politics of language are therefore given a
significant amount of attention in Long Day's Journey into Night. In this
world, there is a significant amount of emphasis placed on the flaw of
"stinginess" as opposed to the virtue of "prudence."
Additionally, the drama presents a society
in which communication has become completely dysfunctional. The characters'
inexplicable inability to communicate with one another, despite the fact that
they are constantly arguing, is one of the most significant conflicts in the
play. As an illustration, the guys frequently argue with one another about
Mary's addiction, but none is ready to face her in a straightforward manner.
Instead, they give her permission to deceive herself about her own addiction as
well as the illness that Edmund is suffering from. It is not until the last act
that Jamie finally admits his own feelings of envy against his brother and his
wish to see him fail that they are able to interact more effectively with one
another. Similarly, Tyrone is only able to criticize his sons, but due to his
obstinate attitude, he is unable to accept criticism or criticism from others.
Every single one of the characters has something to criticize, but they
struggle to go about doing so in a constructive manner.
The majority of the bones that need to be
picked are found in the past, which is a part of the Tyrones' history that is
remarkably alive. Not only is Mary unable to forget the past, but she also
cannot forget all of the ambitions she once had of becoming a nun or a pianist.
Similarly, Tyrone has always had high hopes for Jamie, but he has consistently
failed to live up to those expectations. Each and every one of the
disagreements and issues that occurred in the past cannot be forgotten, and in
fact, it appears that they are destined to be relived on a daily basis. Long
Day's voyage into Night is not just a voyage ahead in time, but it is also a
journey back into the past lives of all of the characters, who repeatedly dip
back into their old lifestyles. This is a key point to keep in mind. As an
audience, we are left with the realization that the family is not making any
progress toward improvement; rather, they are experiencing a continuous descent
into misery because they continue to be chained to a past that they are unable
to forget or forgive each other for.
In fact, the future for the Tyrones can
only be perceived as one unending cycle of a repeating past that is locked in
by alcohol and opiates. This is one of the reasons why the play is so terrible;
it provides little hope for the future. After its initial publication, this
play was honored with the Pulitzer Prize, and it has continued to be regarded
as one of the most admired plays of the 20th century over the years. It has
attained commercial success due to the fact that almost every family may
recognize themselves in at least some of the play's situations. This is perhaps
the most essential reason for its success. There is a lot of common ground
between the Tyrone family and other families, and it is simple to empathize
with a lot of the struggles and individuals. The popularity of the play and the
continuing acclaim it has received can be attributed to the fact that it has a
special appeal not only to the individual audience member but also to academics
who study American drama.
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