Loss of Family Values in Long Day’s Journey into Night

Abstract

O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey into Nightis the portrayal of the fallen family of Tyrone. Allthe family members in the play are frustrated, fragmented and alienated from the rest. Everyone in the play seems unhappy and puts the blame on others. The play depictsthe fall of the family due to lack of co-operation, co-ordination and mutual responsibility. The Tyrone family which was once close, has deteriorated over the years with numerous problems like Mary’s morphine addiction, Tyrone’s, Jamie’s and Edmund’salcoholism, Tyrone’s stinginess and stubborn nature, the boys’ recklessness and indifference attitude towards work and money, and many other factors. No one bears responsibility for these problems, instead they accuse one-another and fight among themselves. They create many conflicts and counter-conflicts that ultimately lead them towards the family failure, disintegration and loss of values.