Historical Context
There are two significant time periods related to Long Day's Journey into Night. The play was written between 1939 and 1941, but it is set in 1912, a pivotal time in the author's life that mirrors the experiences of his fictional character, Edmund Tyrone.
Public Events
Notable events from the outside world do not infiltrate the Tyrone family conversations. For instance, there is no mention of the Titanic sinking in April 1912, which claimed over fifteen hundred lives and was the greatest maritime disaster of the era. Similarly, there is no reference to Captain Robert Scott's doomed expedition to the South Pole, which culminated in March 1912 with the heroic deaths of Scott and his remaining team as they strove to reach safety and supplies.
O'Neill's unwavering focus on the Tyrone family's issues eliminates the need for references to such significant contemporary events. Their absence is striking and contributes to the play's claustrophobic atmosphere. Awareness of the outside world is reflected not through events but through the Tyrones' social consciousness. They feel marginalized, not fully accepted by the "Yanks" due to Tyrone's poor, shanty-Irish, Roman Catholic background.
For the audience, there is a hint of America's burgeoning love affair with the automobile, made possible by Henry Ford's introduction of the Model T in 1908. By 1913, Ford's company sold the model for $500, making it affordable for most middle-class families. Tyrone, stuck in the past, dislikes the second-hand car he bought for Mary and prefers the trolley and walking. Only Mary uses the car, driven by a paid chauffeur, much to Tyrone's frugal annoyance. Clearly, the world is moving past Tyrone, just as it seemed to be moving past O'Neill's father in real life.
A Battle of the Books
The Tyrone living room houses two bookcases. The first, small and unadorned, contains works by modern writers favored by Edmund and Jamie: novels by Balzac, Zola, and Stendhal; plays by Ibsen, Shaw, and Strindberg; poetry by Rossetti, Wilde, Dowson, and Kipling; and philosophical works by Nietzsche, Marx, Engels, and Schopenhauer. The second, larger, glass-fronted bookcase holds older works, including three sets of Shakespeare, romantic fiction by Dumas and Victor Hugo, fifty volumes of the world's greatest literature, major historical works, and various old plays, poetry collections, and Irish histories. This second, more distinguished-looking bookcase contains the preferred readings of James Tyrone, Sr. The only common link is Shakespeare's picture above the plainer bookcase, indicating that he holds a place of honor even in the sons' hearts.
The rift between Tyrone and his sons, deeply rooted in familial guilt and shame, has been exacerbated by their differing preferences in literature and philosophy. Throughout the play, literary references and quotations emerge as a recurring motif amid the emotionally charged cycles of accusations and counter-accusations. Edmund clearly favors realists and naturalists in fiction and drama, materialists and nihilists in philosophy, and fatalists and proponents of the art-for-art's-sake movement in poetry.
Tyrone finds Edmund's literary tastes abhorrent, viewing these writers as purveyors of nothing but gloom and despair. He dismisses them all as decadent, depressing, and godless. For Tyrone, Shakespeare stands supreme. He even theorizes that the real Shakespeare was not English but an Irish Catholic.
O'Neill's real father, much like Tyrone, belonged to the last generation of matinee idols, performing in a theater that admitted little that was new or unconventional. Typical offerings included rehashed Shakespeare and heroic melodrama, works that served as lucrative vehicles for popular actors like James O'Neill but kept the theater insulated from the real world. Eugene O'Neill, influenced by the writers found on Edmund's bookshelf, would change all...
(This entire section contains 1123 words.)
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that. By the 1920s, he would revolutionize American theater.
Substance Abuse: Morphine and Alcohol
By 1912, responsible physicians had ceased the indiscriminate use of morphine as a painkiller and treatment for depression. New laws required pharmacists to dispense it only by authorized prescription, ending its unrestricted availability. However, for many Americans like Mary Tyrone, the damage was already done. Morphine and laudanum, another opium derivative, had left thousands addicted, many of whom faced the social stigma and disgrace associated with drug addiction.
The excessive consumption of alcohol was more socially tolerated, particularly among men. By the end of the nineteenth century, the saloon had become an entrenched American institution. It functioned as a social club for working men, where they could drink, discuss the day's events, and gamble on cards and billiards. Some saloons also served as haunts for prostitutes, while others were outright bordellos; most, like their English pub counterparts, did not admit women.
Many saloon patrons, such as Jamie Tyrone, were problem drinkers and gamblers, often prone to violence, sexual promiscuity, or financial ruin. Their excesses fueled the temperance reform movement, led by a growing legion of women who sought to protect families from the dangers of "demon rum" and improve the nation's moral character and health. The movement achieved a legal victory in 1919 with the passage and ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment. However, this victory proved hollow. The prohibition of alcohol led to illegal bootlegging, homemade gin, and the rise of the infamous speakeasy, a Jazz Age replacement for the old saloon. Unlike the saloon, speakeasies were frequented by both men and the new generation of liberated "flappers," setting the stage for the bars and nightclubs that would legally operate once prohibition ended.
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, referred to as "consumption" by the Tyrones, was a feared illness in 1912, taking nearly 100,000 American lives each year. Treatments were administered in specialized hospitals known as sanatoria and were largely experimental. Although doctors understood that a germ caused the disease, they had no definitive cure. Some attempted x-ray treatments, but the majority relied on extended rest, specific diets, and plenty of fresh air to alleviate symptoms. Edmund, upon discovering he has consumption, faces a recovery period in a sanatorium, much like O'Neill did in 1912.
The Great Depression
Prohibition ended in 1933, about six years before O'Neill began writing Long Day's Journey into Night. During the 1930s, America experienced a severe economic depression that had not fully subsided by the time O'Neill started the play. Although O'Neill sympathized with the working class, he focused on "private tragedy" rather than the social-conscience dramas like Clifford Odets's Waiting for Lefty (1935) and other works from the leftist Group Theatre. Despite winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1936, O'Neill's reputation declined in the 1930s.
World War II
World War II began in 1939 with Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland. Two years later, on December 7, 1941, the United States entered the war following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. By that time, O'Neill had completed Long Day's Journey into Night. The war's impact and his deteriorating health almost halted his writing. In 1943, amidst the war, O'Neill and Carlotta destroyed the incomplete parts of his planned cycle of plays, realizing he would never finish them.
Style and Technique
Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night stands as a profound exploration of familial disintegration, weaving autobiographical elements into a dramatic narrative marked by addiction, illness, and emotional turmoil. The play's adherence to classical dramatic unities, coupled with a rich use of symbolism and allusion, crafts a haunting tableau of human frailty. O'Neill's masterful use of monologue and naturalism further deepens the psychological complexity of his characters, making the work a touchstone of modern American drama.
Dramatic Unities and Setting
O'Neill meticulously maintains the unities of time and place throughout the play's four acts. Set entirely in the living room of the Tyrone family’s summer home in New London, Connecticut, the events unfold over a single day in August 1912. This continuous timeline from morning to midnight reflects a relentless march of real-world time, underscoring the inescapable nature of the family's woes. O'Neill's choice to confine the action to one location enhances the oppressive atmosphere, mirroring the characters' inability to escape their psychological and emotional confines.
Symbolism of Fog
Symbolism permeates the play, with fog serving as a central metaphor. Initially, the lifting fog symbolizes the family's fleeting optimism, only to return by Act III, when a foghorn's mournful wail signals a return to despair. For Mary, the fog represents her drug-induced haze, a refuge from reality where she can retreat into an idyllic past. Edmund's desire to dissolve into the fog, a place where "truth is untrue and life can hide from itself," highlights his struggle with existential despair and his yearning for escape.
Autobiographical Influence
The "haunted Tyrones" draw heavily from O'Neill's own family history, with his alter ego, Edmund, capturing a pivotal moment when O'Neill himself was grappling with tuberculosis. James Tyrone’s character mirrors O'Neill's father, a successful actor who, like his fictional counterpart, faced criticism for prioritizing financial security over artistic integrity. Mary’s morphine addiction parallels the struggles of O'Neill’s mother, while Jamie’s descent into alcoholism echoes that of O'Neill’s brother, underscoring the personal stakes woven into the play’s fabric.
Literary Allusions
While public events of the period are sparsely referenced, literary allusions abound, enriching the dialogue and adding layers of meaning. The Tyrone living room, though sparsely furnished, houses bookcases filled with works by both classic and contemporary authors. O'Neill's stage directions highlight these volumes, with Shakespeare being a favorite of Tyrone, juxtaposed against Edmund’s preference for modern philosophers like Nietzsche and Baudelaire. Jamie’s familiarity with literature surfaces in his poignant recitation from Swinburne in the final act, enhancing the play’s introspective quality.
Foreshadowing and Tension
The play opens with a façade of cheerfulness that quickly unravels through subtle foreshadowing. Despite the bright morning, early signs of Mary's relapse into morphine use suggest impending tragedy. Her restlessness, disorientation, and obsessive behaviors signal her eroding self-control. These elements create a pervasive tension that builds as the narrative progresses, highlighting the inevitability of the family's downward spiral.
Monologues: Reveries and Confessions
O'Neill employs monologues as a window into his characters' inner worlds. Mary's reveries reveal her desperate longing for an unattainable past, often descending into incoherence as her drug dependence deepens. Edmund’s poetic reflections on fog serve both as confession and existential rumination. Tyrone recounts his theatrical past with a mixture of pride and regret, while Jamie’s candid monologue uncovers his jealousy of Edmund and his own destructive tendencies, providing insight into the family’s intricate dynamics.
Naturalism and Its Impact
Rooted in the tradition of naturalism, Long Day's Journey into Night offers a "slice of life" depiction that eschews resolution for a more truthful representation of human suffering. The play’s open-ended nature suggests an ongoing struggle beyond its conclusion, reflecting life's often grim realities. O'Neill strips his characters of dignity to expose their raw emotions and unearth the painful truths lying beneath the surface, inviting the audience to confront the uncomfortable depths of the human condition.
Freudian Influence: The Oedipus Complex
The play also delves into Freudian themes, particularly the Oedipus complex, which is evident in Jamie's behavior. His search for maternal affection in prostitutes and envy of Edmund’s bond with Mary highlight his unresolved Oedipal tensions. This psychological undercurrent adds a layer of complexity to the familial relationships, revealing the deep-seated rivalries and affections that shape the characters’ interactions.
Through its rich tapestry of style and technique, Long Day’s Journey into Night remains a compelling exploration of human vulnerability, skillfully merging personal history with universal themes of despair and redemption.
Compare and Contrast
1910s: World War I begins in the summer of 1914, with the United States joining the Allies against Germany in 1917.
1940s and 50s: O'Neill completes Long Day's Journey into Night before the United States enters World War II on December 7, 1941. The Cold War with the Soviet bloc erupts into open conflict in Korea, a "police action" that concludes with an armistice agreement on July 27, 1953, just four months before O'Neill's death. In 1956, the Soviet Union suppresses dissent in Poland and Hungary; that same year, Long Day's Journey into Night earns O'Neill a posthumous Pulitzer Prize.
Today: The 1990s see the end of the Cold War and the diminishing threat of a nuclear holocaust.
1910s: The airplane, automobile, and motion pictures, all in their early stages, begin to radically transform daily American life.
1940s and 50s: Films, which have included sound since 1928, become the most popular form of entertainment; commercial airlines increasingly replace trains for long-distance travel; and American homes start featuring double garages. By the 1950s, television becomes both popular and more affordable; jet engines become standard on commercial planes; and large, finned cars with powerful engines speed through America on an expanding network of highways and parkways.
Today: Houses without at least two televisions are increasingly rare; railroads continue to struggle to survive; and cars, while legally traveling faster on interstate highways, become smaller, more fuel-efficient, and more expensive.
1910s: America begins to reflect an awareness of foreign movements in art and literature, such as the French naturalists like Zola and Balzac, and the realistic drama of Ibsen, Strindberg, and Chekhov; O'Neill shows this foreign influence in his earliest plays.
1940s and 50s: American readers continue to be captivated by the fiction of William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, and F. Scott Fitzgerald; the plays of Clifford Odets, Maxwell Anderson, Lillian Hellman, and Robert Sherwood also have loyal audiences, but O'Neill's reputation remains static. By the 1950s, a new generation of postwar novelists and poets emerges, challenging Faulkner, Hemingway, Frost, and Eliot for space on bookstore shelves; the realistic problem play reaches its peak in the works of Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, William Inge, and O'Neill, while avant-garde movements begin to stir in Off- and Off-Off-Broadway theaters.
Today: The field of fiction is highly competitive; in theater, August Wilson, Sam Shepard, and David Mamet continue to leave a lasting impact.
1910s: Through stricter federal laws regulating drug use and the militant efforts of the Anti-Saloon League and the Women's Christian Temperance Union, America aims to end drug addiction and alcohol abuse; achieving Prohibition with the ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment in 1919.
1940s and 50s: Following the repeal of prohibition in 1933, America resumed alcohol consumption, leading to a new post-World War II issue: drunk driving. Morphine remained a prevalent painkiller. The Beat Generation introduced "mind-expanding" drugs like marijuana to a broader audience, while middle-class Americans turned to tranquilizers to manage depression. Hard drugs began to afflict inner cities, and synthetic drugs such as methadone started to replace morphine in certain medical contexts.
Today: Drug abuse continues to be a significant problem. Crack cocaine and heroin severely impact inner cities, and marijuana use is widespread across America, particularly among the youth. Organizations like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) have been influential in increasing penalties for driving under the influence, with some states now treating repeat offenses as felonies.
Setting
In Eugene O’Neill’s autobiographical play, the setting plays a crucial role in shaping the narrative’s mood and enhancing its themes. The play unfolds across various locations that echo the personal struggles and social issues faced by the Tyrone family. From the dimly lit, fog-enshrouded family home in New London to the bustling, yet disreputable, streets of Broadway, each place embodies aspects of the characters’ lives and inner turmoil.
New London
New London, a Connecticut town, serves as the backdrop for much of the drama, reflecting O’Neill’s own experiences. The Tyrone family's summer home, although belonging to a once-successful actor, is modestly furnished and dimly lit due to Mr. Tyrone’s frugality. This dimness is not just a physical characteristic but also a metaphor for the family's gloomy reality. Upstairs, a spare room takes on a spectral quality as it becomes Mary Tyrone’s refuge, where she indulges in her morphine addiction, creating a haunting presence throughout the home.
Adding to the home's eerie atmosphere is the dense fog from Long Island Sound, which blankets New London and symbolically isolates the Tyrones from the rest of society. They stand apart from the town’s more esteemed families, not only due to Mr. Tyrone’s profession, acting, which was looked down upon at the time, but also because of the family's struggles with addiction. This social marginalization, mirrored by their fog-enshrouded home, underscores the themes of isolation and disconnection running through the play.
Broadway
The allure and reputation of Broadway contrast sharply with New London’s somber setting. This famous New York City theater district represents both opportunity and moral decay. It is where Mr. Tyrone made his fortune, yet it is also seen as a place of frivolity and indulgence. For Jamie Tyrone, his father’s disapproval stems from Broadway being the site of his wasted potential — a place where he squanders his time in alcohol and hedonistic pursuits. The mention of Broadway throughout the play serves as a reminder of the family’s internal conflicts and personal failings.
Hilltown Sanatorium
In the last act, the narrative introduces Hilltown Sanatorium, a destination that highlights the family’s dire situation. Edmund Tyrone’s upcoming stay at this facility reveals the extent of his father’s financial fears, as he opts for a state-run sanatorium instead of a more costly but better-equipped private one. Although Hilltown is fictitious, it draws from O’Neill’s own experiences with a similarly inadequate Connecticut facility, reflecting the grim realities of tuberculosis treatment in the early 20th century.
Edmund’s impending confinement at Hilltown underscores the tension between Mr. Tyrone’s fear of poverty and his unwillingness to provide adequate care for his son. This choice, deemed by some as a sacrifice of Edmund’s well-being, adds a poignant layer to the family's saga of neglect and unresolved conflicts. The sanatorium’s connection to O’Neill’s personal history deepens the play’s authenticity and emotional impact.
Adaptations
Long Day's Journey into Night was initially adapted into a film by Sidney Lumet. This adaptation featured Katharine Hepburn, Sir Ralph Richardson, Jason Robards, Jr., and Dean Stockwell. This black and white film, titled Embassy (1962), is available from Republic Pictures Home Video.
In 1988, Jonathan Miller produced another adaptation of Long Day's Journey into Night as a made-for-television film. Using Sinclair Lewis's version of the play, it starred Peter Gallagher, Jack Lemmon, Bethel Leslie, and Kevin Spacey. This version is available from Lorimar Home Video/Vestron.
A third adaptation of the play was filmed at the Tom Patterson Theatre in Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Directed by David Wellington, this version starred Peter Donaldson, Martha Henry, William Hutt, and Tom McCamus. Produced by the Stratford Festival in 1996, this adaptation is not currently available.
Bibliography
Further Reading
Hayes, Richard, "A Requiem for Mortality," Commonweal, Vol. 64, February 1, 1957, pp. 467-68. This review, although delayed, commends the Broadway production of Long Day's Journey into Night for its cast and its ability to achieve "tragic nobility" within a realistic setting.
McDonnell, Thomas P., "O'Neill's Drama of the Psyche," Catholic World, Vol. 197, April 1963, pp. 120-25. McDonnell posits that Long Day's Journey into Night represents O'Neill's pinnacle in his exploration of a tragedy rooted in his own troubled psyche.
Manheim, Michael, Eugene O'Neill's New Language of Kinship, Syracuse University Press, 1982. The introduction, the chapter on Long Day's Journey into Night, and the appendix on the play's motifs provide valuable insights for interpreting the work.
Pfister, Joel, "The Cultural Web in O'Neill's Journey," in Staging Depth: Eugene O'Neill and the Politics of Psychological Discourse, University of North Carolina Press, 1995, pp. 203-15. Pfister draws parallels between Mary in Long Day's Journey into Night, Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet, and Annie Keeney in O'Neill's earlier play, Ile.
Raleigh, John Henry, "O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night and New England Irish-Catholicism," Partisan Review, Vol. 26, no. 4, Fall 1959, pp. 573-92. This background study connects the play's "dualism of religion-blasphemy" to Catholicism and Irish mythology.
Sources
Atkinson, Brooks, Review of Long Day's Journey into Night, New York Times, Vol. 47, November 8, 1956, p. 2.
Bogard, Travis, Contour in Time: The Plays of Eugene O'Neill, revised edition, Oxford University Press, 1988.
Clurman, Harold, "The O'Neills," Nation, Vol. 182, March 3, 1956, pp. 182-83.
Falk, Dons V., Eugene O'Neill and the Tragic Tension: An Interpretive Study of the Plays, Rutgers University Press, 1958.
Gibbs, Wolcott, "Doom," New Yorker, Vol. 32, November 24, 1956, pp. 120-21.
Hewes, Henry, "O'Neill: 100 Proof—Not a Blend," Saturday Review, Vol. 39, November 2, 1961, pp. 30-31.
Hewes, Henry, "O'Neill and Faulkner via the Abroad Way," Saturday Review, Vol. 39, October 20, 1956, p. 58.
Kerr, Walter, Review of Long Day's Journey into Night, in New York Herald-Tribune, November 8, 1956.
Raleigh, John Henry, The Plays of Eugene O'Neill, Southern Illinois University Press, 1965.
Rolo, Charles J., "The Trouble of One House," Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 97, March 1956, pp. 84-85.
Seldes, Gilbert, "Long Day's Journey into Night," Saturday Review, Vol. 39, February 25, 1956, pp. 15-16.
Whicher, Stephen, "O'Neill's Long Journey," Commonweal, Vol. 63, March 16, 1956, pp. 614-15.
