Long day's journey into night Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Long day's journey into night - Essay Example The writer depicts a family that is in jeopardy in all spheres and only has themselves to blame for the problems they are facing. The play, however, does not cover well the theme of gender. The writer has not used the characters effectively to cover this theme. It presents a family of three men and one woman who is the mother of the family. The play did not do well in including one woman in the play. It makes Mary oblivious of most of the things that happen in the family. When she comes home from the hospital, Tyrone receives her at the door with an embrace. Mary hears a cough from the other room, and she concludes that Edmund is having mere cold (O’Neill &King, 15). Tyrone nods in agreement with her conclusion but the actual problem is Tuberculosis. The other members of the family deny Mary access to information about the health of her son. Therefore, the writer has failed in the gender balance in the whole play. The play also fails in addressing the space for women in the characters. In act three, Mary and Cathleen come from the store, where they went to purchase morphine. They come home, and Mary is lonely because there is no company. She even stops Cathleen from going to prepare dinner because she does not want to be alone (O’Neill &King, 112). Mary also goes to get her drugs without the knowledge of the rest of the family. This is because the society views women as a group that should not find themselves in Mary’s condition. The boys on the other hand are alcoholics; they take alcohol and go home drunk just like James. This society denies the women the chance to make mistakes that happen but it is comfortable if men make the same mistakes. The issue of gender roles also is not addressed in a manner that presents the contemporary world. In the play, Cathleen prepares the meals of the family. This character eliminates the men from such roles, and this contradicts the actual