Coping with Guilt

Eugene O’Neill, author of the play Long Day’s Journey Into Night, sought to use the play as a background upon which he could explore and understand his own family’s dysfunction. One of the major themes of the play is dealing with trauma, a theme used to explore several different events that took place in the family life of the Tyrones. One major event that the entire family had to deal with was the birth and subsequent health issues of Edmund Tyrone, the youngest son. These two events affected each family member in different ways. Also, each family member had their own personal trauma to deal with. Mary, Tyrone, and Jamie each had their own issues to absolve; instead of dealing with them head-on, they used drugs and an endless blame game to make themselves feel better about their situations, regardless of the fact that it was not a permanent fix.

The birth of Edmund caused many changes that would have lasting effects on the Tyrone family. His effect on his mother was perhaps the most pronounced. It was the pain of his birth that first introduced Mary to morphine. Mary’s morphine addiction continued for the rest of her life, tearing her already-fragile family apart. Mary blamed Tyrone for hiring a cheap doctor for the birth, instead of a real doctor who would have helped her manage her pain in another way. Tyrone on the other hand refused to believe that it was the doctor’s fault, implying he thought Mary should have been stronger in overcoming her addiction, calling her a “bundle of nerves” (34). Mary also had trouble adjusting to the fact that she had to raise her family on the road. She grew up in a stable household, and after marrying Tyrone she had to abandon that lifestyle. It was difficult for her to raise her children on...

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...to a sanatorium. Without Edmund there to mediate, the family may have fallen apart.

Edmund’s illness, along with others, was one of the main traumas that the family had to face in this play. Each family member had their own idea of what was best for Edmund, and each had their own way of coping with the possibly-deadly illness. As mentioned before, Mary relapsed into morphine use. Tyrone was a little more accepting of Edmund’s fate, and used alcohol as a way to bond with his son. Although disagreements cropped up as to which sanatorium Edmund would attend, Tyrone’s reaction to the news was understandable and normal. Jamie tried his hardest to ensure that his younger brother would be taken care of. Although none of the Tyrone’s really knew how to cope with all of the trauma in their lives, the common bond of familial love kept them from completely falling apart.