What the Hell was it I Wanted to Buy?: Long Day’s Journey In

The forth act begins with Edmund returning, to find his father alone and drunk. James Tyrone is found it what seems to be typical fashion, sitting alone, with a single light, two bottles of whiskey, and a deck of playing cards. Tyrone has turned off every other light in house, other than the one he is specifically using. He does this knowing that his sons are out, but coming back, and will need the light on upon their return. This is completely overlooked by Tyrone, fixated on the cost of power, and consuming only what small amount i

That God-damned play I bought for a song and made such a great success in – a great money success – it ruined me with its promise of an easy fortune. I didn’t want to do anything else, and by the time I woke up to the fact I’d become a slave to the damned thing and did try other plays, it was too late … I’d lost the great talent I once had though years of easy repetition, never learning a new part, never really working hard. Thirty-five to forty thousand dollars net profit a season like snapping your fingers! It was too great a temptation … I’d left a good job as a machinist to take supers’ parts because I loved the theater … I could have been a great Shakespearean actor, if I’d kept on. In 1874 when Edwin Booth came to the theater in Chicago where I was leading man … he said to out manager, “That young man is playing Othello better than I ever did!” (2068)

Tyrone finally begins to admit to himself that he extremely stingy, and not just frugal. He also begins to give his fear for the poorhouse basis from his home, growing up. Since becoming successful, Tyrone has found the need to solidify it, for fear that his whole life would fall apart. Tyrone gives his need for property basis as well, “the more property you own, the safer you think you are. That may not be logical, but it’s the way I feel. (2066)” Although it has taken a considerable amount of whiskey, Tyrone has finally realized the double standard he holds. In the course of this admission, a complement even slips the lips of Tyrone, “I know you had a fling of work with your back and hands, a bit of being homeless and penniless in a foreign land, and I respect you for it. (2066)” This does not last for long, as Tyrone reverses his stance, “What do you know of the value if a dollar? When I was ten my father deserted my mother and went back to Ireland to die. Which he did soon enough, and deserved to, and I hope he’s roasting in hell. (2067)” This gives further insight into Tyrone’s stinginess, and ironically blames his father for the lack of support provided to his family. Tyrone then further explains his family’s struggles when he was a child, noting evictions from their home, his lack and school and need to work in a machine shop at 50 cents a week, his mother’s cleaning for a rich family, and his sister’s sewing (2067). These examples build support for Tyrone and explain the roots of his ways. It also shows the reason for the contempt he holds towards his children, Jamie in particular, for their lack of labor. Wiping away tears, Tyrone continues his story, “It was in those days I learned to be a miser. A dollar was worth so much then. And once you’ve learned a lesson, it’s hard to unlearn it. You have to look for bargains. If I took this state farm sanatorium for a good bargain, you’ll have to forgive me. The doctors tell me it’s a good place. You must believe that Edmund. (2067)” Tyrone, for the first time, asks for forgiveness from Edmund for his stinginess, instead of defending it. It is a dramatic change for Tyrone that he has given up his argument for his miserly ways, instead explaining them. With the truth coming forward, Tyrone sees no reason to stop:

“That from Booth, the greatest actor of his day or any other! And it was true! And I was only twenty-seven years old! As I look back on it now, that night was the high spot in my career. I had life where I wanted it! And for a time after that I kept on upward with ambition high. Married your mother … Her love was an added incentive to ambition. But a few years later my good bad luck made me find the big money-maker. It wasn’t that in my eyes at first. It was a great romantic part I knew I could play better than anyone. It was a great box office success from the start … What the hell was it I wanted to buy? I wonder, that was worth – Well, no matter. It’s late in the day for regrets.” (2069)

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