If you think there was a lot of plotting and scheming going on in Hedda Gabler, it’s nothing compared to this play, written by Connecticut’s own (sort of) Eugene O’Neill. The heroine of this play, set in 1923 on a Connecticut farm, is Josie Hogan, “so oversize for a woman that she’s almost a freak”. Josie is a fierce, independent woman who lives life according to her own rules. The love of her life is Jim Tyrone, a Broadway actor who from time to time visits the family home (the family that owns the land the Hogans rent). Jim claims he loves Josie, but unfortunately, he is a raging, self-loathing alcoholic, who had countless lovers. (Josie, apparently, also has many lovers in her 28 years.)
Is it possible for these two wounded souls to find each other, under the harvest moonlight. Phil Hogan, Josie’s father, would like to see that, but is he concerned about his daughter's happiness, or just trying to get his hands on Tyrone’s money?
(Oh, and when you come where Jim is telling Josie about the “girl on the train” , the scene is a lot like the Lovborg telling Hedda about his “nights on the town”. Josie’s reaction, though, and Hedda’s, though are miles apart.)
53 comments:
When I began this book, I thought that it would be a fast and easy read, but with each page I turned the plot deepened. I found it was a book that when read slowly and carefully, was actually very well thought out. The more time I took to understand the characters, the more their actions made sense. My advice to any one either reading this book currently, or about to begin, is to take your time. Don't rush a good plot!
One aspect of this book that really amused me was how the physical attributes of these characters clearly represented the way they wished to be seen, but not how they really are deep inside. The prime example of this is Josie. Josie is such a large, fierce looking women. She portrays herself as a fighter by threatening to beat up everyone who comes to visit. However, deep inside of her is a lonely little girl. All she really wants is to feel true love, but her need to be fierce does not allow her to truly experience real love.
As I read most books, there is a part of me that feels that the author should have done something different in some aspect of the book. However, with "A Moon For The Misbegotten", I am not sure that the author should have done anything different at all. Did anyone else find any critique for the book?
While reading A Moon for the Misbegotten I found that it pleasantly surprised me. When I had gotten to the point where the Hogan's schemes were getting very tiresome, the author made the plot deeper.
The beginning is very misleading because the main characters seem to have no substance or morals. Josie portrays herself as a smart-mouthed tramp that does not have respect for herself or others. Her self-created facade is used as her ultimate defense mechanism. I personally believe that she was self-conscious about her size, so she tried to use it to her advantage. By the end of the play she realizes she is in fact beautiful and she does not have to keep believing otherwise.
I know the plot sounds ultimately cliche but it really surprised me the way it ended. I will not spoil it for those of you have not finished the book yet. Like Brianna, I really could not find anything that the author could have done differently.
I guess I should just get this out of the way now, since it's bound to come up in the review sooner or later. "A Moon for the Misbegotten" is one of the best pieces of literature I have ever read. There, I said it. Now...
As far a plays go, it's really high up there. Although I had never heard of it before the assignment, I feel like it belongs with such greats as "A Streetcar Named Desire" and even some Shakespeare. I feel like it's just that good. O'Neill has breathed life into these characters, through their dialogs and mannerisms. The characters, Josie and Tyrone in particular, feel like real people instead of characters, and their problems and emotions seem to almost spill out of the pages. The themes of redemption and acceptance resonate as well, and I feel like I can connect with this play more than I could with "Hedda Gabler".
Ahh, "Hedda Gabler". I can honestly say that O'Neill's surpasses Ibsen's by leaps and bounds. While I can appreciate the character study in the cold-hearted Hedda Tesman, that's just the problem; she's cold -hearted, and highly unlikeable. Josie, however, is filled with so much warmth and friendliness that you actually feel good reading her lines. While I felt grays and beiges while reading "Hedda Gabler", I felt navy blues and silvery whites while reading "A Moon for the Misbegotten". It's a bizzare way to compare the two, but I think it fits.
As far as critiquing the book goes, I feel like I really can't identify any problems without nitpicking it. Everything in the play seems to fall into place, and every scene seems to be necessary for the movement of the story; even the minor characters, such as Harder, work out well. I can't imagine O'Neill writing it any other way.
Probably the best out of the three book selections this summer. I haven't read "In the Time of the Butterfiles" yet, but it'd have to be pretty good to beat this.
In the beginning, I wasn't looking forward to reading this book at all. I'm not really a big fan of plays and the plot seemed sort of weird at first. I can honestly say that I judged it too quickly. This play was actually very good and I enjoyed reading it. It was a nice, short read but still contained a strong message.
I really liked the character Josie and thought that she was somewhat entertaining. As Brianna was saying, I liked how her outside appearance contrasted with her inner beauty.
I think that O'Neill did an excellent job of setting the scene and making sure that each character portrayed their personality throughout the story so that you could get to know them better. I agree with Brianna once again with the fact that if you read it more slowly you will understand it much better. There are little hints in the characters' dialogue that you could easily miss if you read over them too fast.
As I started to read this book, I was unsure of what to expect. The first act was humourous, and I really enjoyed the incredibly sarcastic tone of the act. The relationship between Josie and her father displayed was rather interesting and unique. They showed their love through insults, and respected each other in that they could hold their own in a dispute.
At first the characters seemed one-dimensional, but as acts continued, the characters of Josie, Tyrone, and even Hogan showed great depth and emotion. Josie at first appears as a larger than life, "in your face" type of woman, with an unsatisfiable need for men. Tyrone is represented as a middle-aged drunk, living off the wealth of his father, with little ambition. It is not until later I learned that both characters are much, much more than their appearance.
Josie is very self-conscience, and therefore projects this image in order to compensante for her appearnce. Tyrone is found to be an incredibly guilt-ridden man, who uses alcohol and sex to kill all thoughts about how he failed his mother. As the play continues, Tyrone and Josie discover through each other that they possess within themselves the means for achieving acceptance.
With some of the best dialogue I have read, act three is amazingly well written. Josie has to accept that her desired relationship between her and Tyrone will never be what she wanted. Only after he has revealed his great grief and guilt regarding his mother does Josie come to understand that Tyrone does not need her as a woman to love, but more as a mother figure, and needs her to gain repentance. She realizes that the love he needs from her is even more difficult to give, because it demands she subordinate her own personal desire for him. With a heart-wrenching plot like that, it is difficult not to empathize with these characters. I found that I really enjoyed this play.
I thought that A Moon for the Misbegotten was a well-written play, but not one that particularly interested me. I liked how the dialog was written to match the character's personality and emotions at any given time. For example, Josie spoke harshly and fiercely to her father in order to deal with his drinking and schemes, but when she spoke to him about her love for Jim, her dialog became much more soft. I did respect Josie as a character. She probably could have convinced Jim to marry her, but she knew that the best thing was to let him go. Like I said, this wasn't my favorite play, but it was easy to get absorbed in the plot.
When I picked up my copy of A Moon for the Misbegotten I was looking forward to what was in store for me. The book itself, with its attatched pretty green ribbon bookmark, was so pretty that I thought I was in store for a great love story. Imagine my surprise when I was greeted by (as Ashley said) "a smart-mouthed tramp that does not have respect for herself or others." I looked up from the book and told my mom, " I can't read this, the main character is a vicious trollop (Gilmore Girls joke)!" But as I continued the story, I found myself amazed by how well O'Neill describes his characters. But beyond his physical renderings of the characters, he shows (instead of telling the reader) the inner workings of their minds. For example, Josie never states that she is self concious of her weight but when she talks to Jim about the "pretty little Broadway tarts" you can sense that she feels a little insecure about herself in comparison to the other women in Jim's company.
Eventually I found myself relating to Josie a little. She talks tough to mask her weaknesses. She's in love with a guy that she thinks could never love her. There's a lot more to her than what you see on the outside.
The ending was beautiful, when Josie's father's true intentions are revealed, O'Neill illustrates the gentle, caring side of the grumpy miser. It was also disappointing to see that Josie let Jim go in the end. I'm a fan of happy endings and none of the books we read gave me one.
When I first began to read A Moon for the Misbegotten, I thought I was in for another long, tedious summer reading book. The only part that I was looking forward to was the Connecticut setting, something I thought that I could very well relate to.
My mother had also read this book among her high school reading requirements, and thought it was great, for the fact it took place over a less than 24 hour period. I have to say that was one of the best aspects of the play. O'Neill did an excellent job of conveying the passage of time, even of just a few minutes. By having the duration of the play occur over such a short time, I never found myself wondering how the characters got to where they were, or what I missed.
Throughout the book I was waiting and waiting for the other brothers to make at least a minor appearance. Almost half of the first scene dealt with the brother, Mike, running away and included constant comparisions of his other brothers. I believe that had I had a slightly more detailed back story it would have enhanced both Josie's and her father's character traits.
The many different decietful plots going on in the book made it a challenge for me to keep track of each character's real emotions. Jim Tyrone was such a lush, that I was never sure which story to believe about him, especially when it came to selling the property. And Janie lied for so long about being promiscuous that when her story suddenly changed, I read the whole act thinking it was just another lie to capture Tyrone's money.
All in all, I found the play well written and an entertaining read. I finished in two days and often found myself being drawn back, even when I tried to put it down. O'Neill's constant use of exciting events made it impossible to find a good place to stop, so I just kept reading.
After reading all three of the summer books, I'm going to have to stand by my decision and say that "A Moon for the Misbegotten" was my favorite out of the three. It was very, very close, but I really enjoyed O'Neill's work more. It isn't "one of the best pieces of literature I've ever read", that's kind of stretching the truth. Listening to Michael Giacchino while finishing the last act probably affected by judgement a tiny bit.
Even still, it's an excellent play, and I do believe that it's as relevant as any Tennessee Williams or even Shakespeare. I have a certain affinity for plays, anyway, so that's another reason why I liked this one the best.
Of the two I have read so far this one is by far my favorite. I was intrigued by the plot enough to continue reading, dare I call it a page turner. I was always wanting to know how the play would end up and what was going to happen next.I enjoyed the scheming and deception throughout as it kept me wanting to know more.
I feel that Eugene O'Neill has created a well written play. As some have said I really enjoyed how much was packed into the short time period of the book. I also believe that he did an excellent job creating his characters and bringing them to life. By the end of the play I felt like I knew the characters. I feel that I had a good sense of each person from the play and that they all seemed realistic and relatable.
I am still unsure as to the ending of the book. I do not know whether the father ultimately had his own interests in mind or that of his daughters. I think that it may have been a combination of both, and that he was not a completely horrible person. I do not think I have yet come to a conclusion of my opinion of Hogan. Tyrone on the other had was also an interesting character who did not really know what he wanted out of life. I feel that he really did love Josie but it could never work out.
As Brianna said, I do not know if anything would need to be critiqued. I did not need to see more into the characters, although it would have been interesting. I think that this was overall a very good play and I enjoyed it throughout.
I haven’t finished reading Moon for the Misbegotten yet, I’m only about halfway through, but I wanted to write about what I thought so far before I leave for vacation. Much to my surprise, I am actually really enjoying it. I like the sarcastic dialogue that goes on between Josie and her father, and I think it definitely holds my attention. I also appreciate the fact that it is a short play which also helps make it easier for me to read. I think that it is an amusing play and I look forward to reading the rest.
Since I read this book in the beginning of the summer, I decided to read it again to refresh it in my mind. When I read it the first time, I did not really realize how much the scene with Josie and Mike showed Josie's true personality. She was trying to be gruff towards her brother, deep down she was preparing him for the journey. It will be interesting to read the rest of the book with the hindsight of what happens in the end.
I finished this book for the second time and know instead of it being clearer in my mind, I have a question. Was Josie lying in the beginning about being "tramp", or was she lying at the end when she told Tyrone that she really was a virgin??
I put off reading this book mostly because I don't like to read plays and the description wasn't very interesting to me either. After reading, I found that I actually enjoyed this book.
Like most people have said already, the best part of the play A Moon for the Misbegotten was definitely the characters. Each character has their own features that are also reflected in their dialog, actions and also in their physical description. Josie in particular is described as "over-sized" and almost "freak-like". These first descriptions of Josie made me think she was tough an masculine but the description continues to say that there is no manly qualities about her. The physical explanation of Josie is almost hard to understand because it is very contradicting. I didn't fully understand what kind of person she was until Tyrone was introduced. It seems like as strong and tough as Josie is, Tyrone always brings out her inner beauty. The dialogue (majorly in Act three) shows a great relationship between the two as they bring out the best in each other. Tyrone’s love for Josie makes her less “tough” and more womanly. In the act He describes her as “real and healthy and clean and fine and warm and strong and kind-“. This love for Josie also shows Tyrone to be a character I didn’t think he was. During the first act Tyrone seemed to be successful, confident and a drunk. As the story progresses and we learn more about the relationship between him and Josie, Tyrone shows himself as being loving yet lonely just like Josie. Although the two have had previous relationships with others, they both are not satisfied unless they have each other.
Basically, I definitely agree with what Meredith said- how all the characters first appear one-dimensional but as they interact with others, they become more complex and interesting.
One thing I didn’t like much about the play is the duration of time it continued over. Even though I couldn’t imagine with that much dialog in a longer time span, I felt like I had been reading hours and in the play only a few minutes had gone by. But I guess that’s just my personal opinion and yet another reason I don’t really like plays.
Even though I do not usually enjoy plays, I did like this one. I found this play to have a very interesting plot and I found that the plot was enjoyable to advance through as each new twist was revealed.
I really enjoyed how the author slowly revealed the schemes of Josie and her father and the ways in which they intertwined and were averted.
I found that the characters were fun and easy to like. Each character had a clearly defined role in the play that was used to deepen the scheming involved in the plot.
A Moon for the Misbegotten was my favorite out of the three books
A Moon for the Misbegotten was one of the best plays I have ever read. I really liked how in the beginning of the book the characters seem to have no morals whatsoever, but as I kept reading I realized that they were very complex and loving characters even if their appearances didn’t show this. In the beginning of the play Josie is portrayed as a giant woman who has had sexual relations with many of the men in town. And her father is portrayed as very mean and harsh and as the reason why all of his sons have run away from him and working on his farm. This play has many schemes in it like when Josie’s father, Hogan, tries to get Josie to seduce Jim Tyrone, the owner of the farm they rent, so that Hogan can catch Jim with Josie and force him to allow the Hogans to keep their farm. The plots that Hogan and Josie make throughout the play make them seem like very cold and deceitful people but in actuality they are not. Hogan knows that Josie and Jim love each other and his elaborate plot was a way to get them alone together. While Jim and Josie both love each other their relationship is doomed from the start. Jim is an alcoholic who can’t stand himself and Josie is actually just a confused girl who admits to Jim that she lied about her countless lovers. Josie and Jim both want someone to love, but they are both to ashamed of themselves to ever be able to make their love last. This play was very interesting and its title sums the entire play up. As Jim and Josie only spent one night together underneath the moon and while they both loved each other they knew that their love was misbegotten as it would never work between them.
I started reading this book first to warm me up for the rest of the summer reading this year. I found that it was actually a very good read. The complexity of each character made the story so much more engaging. Each character had a personality that was hidden behind a contrasting exterior. While Josie portrayed herself to be someone with almost no morals, she turned out to be someone who was actually looking for love. Her father, Hogan, constantly plotted seemingly for his own benefit, but always looked out for Josie. One of his plots was to try and get Josie and Jim together. I thought that the ways the plot thickened throughout the book were very well thought out.
I agree with Sima in that I liked how each character's personality and emotions were reflected in the way the character spoke. I felt that the author described the characters physically in the play but that he used the dialogue to describe the characters personalities. I really liked this in the play because I often feel that it is hard to make a connection with a character in a play because all you read is speech and not feelings and thoughts as you would read in a novel. However, in this play the dialogue was able to provide a connection with the characters.
When i first picked up the summer reading list and read the small preview for the book A Moon for the Misbegotten, I can definitely say that I was not looking forward to reading the book. I though it would be some sort of sappy love story during the 20's with characters I couldn't relate to and a plot that bored me half to death. After reading it, however, I can honestly say I was very surprised.
Probably my favorite aspect of the play was the interactions between the characters. Each had their own comedic and unparalleled personality that made the plot thrive. I think if the characters had not worked so well together I would have been bored out of my mind.
I loved Josie and Hogan together. They knew how to deal with one another so well and had the wittiest comebacks to one another's jeering tounges. Though I do admit, Josie could have thought of something better than "yu bad-tempered old tick" or "old goat" haha. Regardless, the two of them made the book. Tyrone? Eh, he bored me.
In response to briana's question of: Was Josie lying in the beginning about being "tramp", or was she lying at the end when she told Tyrone that she really was a virgin??
I was wondering the same thing once i finished the book! But I believe that she really had slept with the men beforehand, but either she just wanted to have Tyrone think she was a virgin so he saw her different than those other "Broadway tarts".
IDK, anyone else want to take a stab at it?
The way I took it, both Josie and Tyrone were being open and honest with each other during that last moonlit scene. Josie didn't have anyone around to prove or scam, so I took it as the whole "tramp" act was just a farce to make up a tough image.
I've pretty much made up my mind that Josie was a virgin the entire time, despite what she claimed to others.
Lindsey Rice
Like Brianna,when I first started this book I thought it was going to be a quick and easy read. The play proved to be more than a few acts.
Like everyone else I think the characters make the book. Josie was my favorite. She was so surprising and is a perfect example of the old saying "Don't judge a book by its cover". In the beginning she comes across as kind of a "sarcastic oaf". There is so much more to her than that. Even though she portrays herself on the outside as very tough, inside she is rather soft. She has a need for love but like Briana said her need to seem so strong prevents her from letting others in.
Tyrone also puts up a front like Josie. He uses sex and alcohol to ignore his guilt. I hated his character in the beginning but as the play went on I found myself pitying him. I loved how even though Josie and Tyrone were both disfunctional, they found a way to function together. I liked how they were truely themselves when together.
O'Neill did an amazing job with each character. Like others have said its best to read this slowly. I found myself rushing in the beginning but the plot becomes deeper which slowed me down. This was an excellent play with a surprising plot and characters.
I was never bored when reading this play. It got started with some humor to catch my interest, and then the characters began to develop, and it became entertaining in a very different way.
I also agree with many of your statements about Josie's two distinct personalities. She starts out as a very strong and imposing figure, brought on by her figure and her harsh dialogue to keep her father in line, but she also has a tender, gentle and caring side when talking to Tyrone. To me, it seems that the tender version of Josie is much more accurate. It seemed to me that she needed to be tough to deal with her father, and that she would much rather be the gentle giant that she was when she was with Tyrone.
I found it amazing that Josie could continue to have that tender side with her father continually acting vulgar and rude. O'Neill hid this side of Josie's personality, and he expertly brought it out to make her a much more complex character than I thought she was when I began reading.
Overall, a decent read. More entertaining than Hedda Gabler, but I would have liked it more if it had a little more action, like In the Time of the Butterflies.
This may have been the most tragic of all the books. The relationship between Josie and Tyrone almost broke my heart to watch develop. Josie learned she would never be able to save him even though he loved her. As each member of the community told and knew Josie was a whore Tyrone looked passed her ways with men and her appearance. As described in the beginning of the book Josie appeared to be a tough and worn woman.
As the story progressed into Acts 3 and 4 you saw the depth of the characters blossom. Tyrone was a cynical and slightly self absorbed man who came out of his shell to share his true feeling of life past, present, and future. Tyrone used Josie as his rock and shoulder to cry on, interestingly enough opposite of what society perceived. (A man should support a women, NOT THE CASE AT ALL!) The book did end with a sour note but I think everyone knew that Josie’s last chance with Tyrone was that night. Only O'Neill will ever know the final outcome of Tyrone but I think we can conclude Josie stayed at the farm to work and care fro her father until her death.
As I became more immersed in the play I kept reading. I actually for once got told to stop reading, that is a shock since its not my favorite activity. I did end up going back and finishing it within the day. A Moon for the Misbegotten sure was a really good piece of literature but of all the books we had to read In the Time of Butterflies was my favorite.
After reading all three of the summer reading books, I have decided that A Moon for the Misbegotten was definitely my favorite one. I think I liked it more than the other two books mostly because O'Neill's diction was easy for me to comprehend; it wasn't written in a way that made it hard to interpret for me which was a nice break from the others.
I really liked how there was such a detailed description of each character, and their personality developed throughout the play. In the beginning of the play, Josie's brother Mike compared her to her father and I could easily see why. Like Meredith, I really enjoyed the sarcastic conversations that the two of them had and found it really humorous and enjoyable to read. As Brianna said, I liked how Josie was portrayed to be a tough girl, but as the play progresses, we see that she is much different then that. It would be very easy to misjudge Josie, but I think once the audience got to know her more, we could understand and really sympathize with her.
A Moon for the Misbegotten was definitely my favorite of the three summer reading books. I really enjoyed the way the dialogue was written and the amount of sarcasm that was included. This book was the most enjoyable for me to read out of the three. All the different schemes that were going on at the same time combined to form a great plot and to keep this book interesting throughout.
In response to Brianna's question, I don't think that Josie was a tramp. I think that it was easier for her to have that reputation than admit that men weren't interested in her as a person because of her looks. I think that the lie was a cover for her true emotions, and she was able to tell Tyrone what she was truly like because she trusted him.
It seems like I had the same question as Brianna had on whether or not Josie was a "tramp" as she called herself in the beginning of the play, or a virgin as she told Tyrone at the end. After reading what everyone else's response was to the question I seem to agree with them. As Sima said, she and Tyrone seemed to be open and honest with each other in the end which means that she was still a virgin and was only secure enough to admit this when she was with him that night.
This play has now become my most favorite play of all time. It had so much meaning. Brianna mentions how the plot continues to deepen and she's absolutely right. By the way, Josie, I don't think was ever a tramp. She was just too insecure about herself and the way she looked to admit to anyone that she was a virgin. The only thing that saddens me is how Tyrone and Josie don't really live happily ever after. It wasn't the point of the story so I guess it couldn't have happened. The idea that Josie had helped Tyrone heal from some of the wounds from his past, such as his mother dying and being with that blonde woman is interesting, because now you wonder whether or not Tyrone will live a better simpler life or if he'll go on the way he is.
Tyrone definately helped Josie learn to love herself and helped her realize what a wonderful person she really is. Both had something to offer one another and that was what made this love story worth it.
To think it was Hogan who set that all up. I couldn't believe it when I read it. It shows that he's a father who cares after all. He loved his daughter Josie very much and wanted her to be happy. Just like his sons who he knew would leave eventually and just let it happen since he knew that they were better off. The way this family interacted and showed their love for eachother is not the way society today would consider family love. Yet, it was funny how each character could say a crude comment and mean "I love you" underneath it all. And when you read it either you could tell or you didn't know whether they were kidding or not. In all, this was my favorite book this summer and the best play I've ever read. Eugene O'Neil, never heard of him before and now I'll never forget the name. He did wonderfully.
As Rebecca said, this defiantly is the most tragic of all of the plays. It is actually quite depressing to know that in the ending, Josie is no better off then she was in the beginning. She still has not found true love, and her father is still a drunk.
In response to Brianna's question, I would have to say that she was lying in the beginning because I think for the first time ever she was willing to be honest because she was tired of keeping up the pretense. Her act of being tough and a tramp was to keep her from thinking about her insecurities. Think about it, most people will act differently around people they don't know if they can trust, but when they see the people they know won't judge them they act like themselves. It just happened that she decided to trust Tyrone and show him who she really is because it was finally safe for her to do so.
After reading the summary for "A Moon for the Misbegotten" I thought that this play would just be another story of having loved and lost like almost every other piece of writing; but it was a lot more than that.
Josie was a complex character that I found quite interesting. She was very strong-willed and could handle almost anything that was put her way. Her reputation as the town slut did not discourage her, in fact; it seemed to make her proud. Whenever anyone would say anything negative towards her, she easily answered back without fear. This was first proven when she argued with Hogan after he was livid about the escape of Mike. This was not the first time she helped people escape from the cruel work on the farm. Every time, she was able to easily handle what Hogan dished out. She always told the escaper not to worry about her, and then she even gave them money stolen from Hogan himself.
It was also proven that she was tough when she talked back to Harder. She consistently insulted Harder, which was a surprising act coming from a woman during that time period. She not only did this with Harder but almost anyone who insulted her, her family, or her reputation.
The first few pages of this play made me think the story would go in a different direction than it actually did. The beginning escape was not mentioned after its occurence and it did not affect the inner plot of Josie's love life with Tyrone. That scene did introduce Josie's personality, and the escape did show how Josie can scheme, which is proven later on when she came up with the plan to expose Tyrone, but other than that; in my opinion it was not a vital part to understand the rest of the play.
I do have a question though...
The people that Josie helped to escape, like Mike, are they slaves or just brothers that are forced to work and are treated unfairly?
I also don't really understand why at the end Tyrone had to leave to go to NY and leave his love Josie. Why couldn't he just stay with her or have her move to NY with him?
In response to Kayla's question, I would say that that Josie's brothers weren't tough enough to handle the emotional and physical abuse that their father put them through. They always wanted to escape just to get away from their father. I would also say that, unlike Josie, they were too lazy to do the hard work that their father demanded of them or that they felt too good to be working in a field all day.
I think that Tyrone had personal issues that had nothing to do with Josie or his love for her. He had to deal with his own problems by himself rather than drag Josie down with him. I think that he knew that they would never get to be truly happy together, and he didn't want her to suffer.
As far as plays go, A Moon for the Misbegotten was pretty good. Definately better than Hedda Gabler. The beginning parts were better, because of the humor and sarcasm in what Josie and her father were saying. However I found the last act or so quite boring. I think the ending, where Josie and Tyrone are sitting together, could have been written in about 10 pages instead of 100.
Despite this, overall I found the play and the characters more interesting than most. The plot of the story I also found was more involved or interesting than the others, and compared to other plays this is probably one of my favorites.
I thought A Moon for the Misbegotten was an interesting and entertaining read. The characters were deep to say the least. Before I started I had no idea what to expect. It was funny how the characters showed their affection for one another. The way they argued and lied to each other seemed cruel at first but as it turns out, it was their way of communicating. Each knew the other could be lying or cheating them so they did the same back.
Hogan, I felt, was the most clever. He acted like he was being cheated by Tyrone; in return, he cheated his daughter. At first his motives seemed cruel but as it turns out they benefited his daughter and Tyrone. No matter how tough he seemed, deep down he was a good guy.
Like Sima said, Jim and Josie couldn’t have been truly happy living with one another due to Jim’s past, and both realized this. For that one night, however, they both seemed happy.
I agree with Ed about the last scene and its length. O’Neill definitely stretched it out a lot longer than necessary. However I can forgive this because he does have an awesome last name.
First and foremost, great play and great read.
It's not that I am usually a low reader, more that when I do read I break a book up so much that it takes me forever to get through. In the case of A Moon for the Misbegotten that was completely different. I finished the book in only a few short hours and it was simply because i just needed to figure out what happened next and what crazy scheme her father would come up with. The great scheme he had to never go along with Josie's scheme was one I would have never thought of. Thus proving, just as many others have pointed out that this is a book with very deep the story and characters get. Tyrone even got in the action, rather symbol in this play, as he had Hogan believing he was going to sell the farm to the Standard Oil man. I was convinced that Hogan has lost his farm and was sure that Tyrone was a business man and the $10,000 with $5,000 in advance to help with his dreams was too appealing to pass up for the $2000 that Hogan was promising. The fact that he kept his loyalty amazed me, as I did not see him as that kind of man, until he did in fact stay loyal to Hogan.
Overall, a quick, but very good read, and made better by the fact that it was written by a Connecicut Native.
I have to say that this wasn't my favorite summer reading book. I just felt like it dragged on and on. At first I thought it was really weird how Josie was able to continually act kindly to her father when her father acted very rude towards her. As I kept reading though I began to see how Josie and her father really did get along just in a unique way. They were able to get along while being mean and insulting towards each other.
The one thing I really did like about the book was how a lot of the characters had two personalities, one hidden behind the other. Like Josie for example. She was described as a oversized girl who worked on the farm, but in reality underneath it all she wanted love. Tyrone was also another charter that surprised me in the end. He seemed like a rich guy that liked skinny, beautiful girls, but in reality he was in love with Josie all along.
All in all, it wasn’t my favorite out of the summer reading books, but it wasn’t as bad as some of the ones we have had to read in the past.
i will start by saying that this book was well thought out and turned out to be a very good one. as many had said previously i thought the book dragged on at times especially the ending scene.
The characters were very interesting and to me made the book a whole lot better. I really enjoyed how the characters' exterior image was different with their inner beauty. i liked how each character was more than meets the eye.
this was an overall pretty good book. not much should have been different with this book except the fact that i felt it dragged on at times. but sometimes it gave more insight and developed the characters further.
Huh, looks like everyone went both ways when it came to whether Josie was or was not a tramp. Very interesting & good points to all. :)
I believe that Josie was not a tramp and was telling the truth when she finally admitted to Jim that she was a virgin. I also agree with the comments that the last scene was dragged out too much. I felt that a lot of the dialogue between Josie and Jim was basically rephrasing of previously stated comments. My favorite part of this play was where Josie and her father bantered back and forth with Harder and he ended up fleeing their property. I loved Hogan's line about his pigs drowning in the pond and the expense he incurred because of this.
As a countless number of my fellow classmates have stated, and I agree, the characters in this play could not be taken at face value. Tyrone seemed to the reader (me) to be the business man who would say one thing to his friends and go another way, when in reality he would say one thing to his friends and keep his word, when he let Hogan kept the farm, rather when he didn't give anyone the opportunity to take the farm from Hogan. Josie seemed like a rough and tough individual who would stand up to her father, but back him in a challenge, and made sure anyone who thought about saying a bad word her bite their tongue. I know I’m sounding like a broken record, as many other people have said the same thing, but it is true and there is only so much to be said about her hidden side. She is more than just that tough girl; she is one who wants to love and needs love and in my reading of it felt the best when she had Tyrone sleeping in her lap all night. She was devastated when he didn't show up like he said, and that is not a tough exterior that she originally showed. Hogan while at first seemed just as stubborn as Josie, if not more, also had a second side to him. He also seemed like a pretty big drinker, and that was straight forward. On the reverse side, he was actually a very loving man, that may not be the right word, but it still works. He was always looking out for Josie, whether it seemed obvious or not, that how I feel. His scheme behind the scheme was ingenious and had Josie in mind when he came up with it.
This play was full of 2 sides of people and plots, which made it all that much more interesting to read.
Sorry for the length, I just felt i needed to say it all.
Although I generally don't like plays, this one was exceptional. As many have said before, it did seem to drag at times, but it was also very funny. The best part was when Josie and Hogan talk to Harder. The boring part was the last act, and the night conversation between Tyrone and Josie. Although it showed a lot about the past lifestyles of Josie and Tyrone, it did seem to drag on forever...
I agree with many others that Josie was not a Tramp. All the characters in the book were nicely developed.
Overall, a very good book.
To start off, I'd like to say that this was my favorite of the three books. In the begin, it was laden with sarcasm, and that really helped me get going with the reading. However as the book progressed much of the sarcasm seemed to disappear, and a more somber attitude replaced it. Josie, despite her "rough and tough" appearance, was actually quite emotionally towards the end of the book. Tyrone, followed the typical suit of any drunken antagonist, however it is not until the end that we find that his love of booze and cheap women actually has a reason behind it.
All in all, this book is well written, but it tends to drag on during the middle third> That being said, it is most definately a good choice for another read.
After reading this book I have decided this to be my favorite one of them all. Out of all three I found this one to be the easiest for me to relate to. Everyone in their life has had some sort of situation like this. I read this book all at once even though the ending was predictable. I liked how it was very easy to understand and the characters were limited to only a few. I think that is why this book was my favorite there was never a question to me what was going on unlike In the Time of Butterflies where if you miss one thing once you could be lost for the rest of the book. I like an easy read.
In my opinion I don't think Josie was ever a tramp according to her personality. In the begininning she was tough and that's how she wanted people to think of her however by the end she was more sincere and that is when i belive she told the truth.
Although I usually dislike reading plays, I found this book to be quite good. The characters were all very interesting which kept me entertained while reading. Along with others, I enjoyed the beginning of the play and its sarcastic tone. I also found it interesting how many of the character's personality contrasted their appearance.
Although the ending seemed to drag on, this was definitely a good play. This was probably my second favorite book we read this summer.
I have to agree with many others and say that Josie was not a tramp, but rather a virgin. She was telling the truth when she told Jim she was a virgin and I think rumors just went around too much to make people believe she was a tramp.
I've been thinking about the question that is getting discussed about Josie's reputation. I think she makes up this story about herself to protect herself. If people think she has a rough exterior then she doesn't have to worry about being hurt.
It also seems to be a theme on here that the play dragged. I am just going to have to come out and say that I disagree with that. I don't think the play dragged on at all, in fact it was to me a page turner...not one that I couldn't put down because it was so suspenseful, but one that I can't classify as a drag.
Sorry, that's just my opinion.
I read this book last because I thought that I would like it the best. I thought that because I had seen the movie, "A Long Days Journey Into the Night", which is the prequel to this play. I thought that the movie was very well done and had a good plot. That is why I was most excited for this play. I found this play to be pretty good. Overall, I liked it the best of all our summer reading. I thought that it had very strong and in depth characters as well as a strong and in depth plot. I thought that it was very well written even though I do not normally like to read plays. I liked how the plot seemed to get better as the play went on. This was actualy pretty suspenseful, which I enjoy in books and movies. At times this play was a little slow which made it hard to follow, but other times were the complete opposite. Having seen the earlier movie I am glad that I read this book. Also I am glad that I saved for last because I liked it the best.
This was my favorite book out of the three by far. It was so interesting and intriguing to me and also, let's not forget the fact that this play took place in Connecticut. Along with such an interesting plot, the characters were just as, if not more, interesting and intriguing. Josie, by far, was such a phenomenal character in my eyes. She evoked such roughness and power, yet you could see inside her actions and notice the femininity inside of her that she hides for nearly all her life. Being a girl growing up on a working farm with brothers and a drunk of a father, she had to form tough skin and a tough way of speaking and handling herself. The character of Josie also went through such a trying and growing period in this story, from battling her strong feelings toward Jim to finally letting everything go, even the things that meant so much to her. All the events in this book conveyed so much emotion, from Josie restraining her true feelings to Josie's father displaying his love for her in rather strange yet powerful ways. I thoroughly enjoyed this plot, these characters and this book the most.
First off, I'd like to say that, for me, it's probably a tie between A Moon for the Misbegotten and In the Time of the Butterflies. They were both so good, yet so different, that I find it difficult to compare them. I enjoyed them both, and they each had their own qualities about them that made them fantastic reads.
Now, about A Moon for the Misbegotten, I am basically going to be reiterating what mostly everyone else has said. I found this play to be very intriguing from the start. The characters did seem one-dimensional in the first act, in a humorous way for the most part. I thought it was funny and unique how the relationship between Josie and her father was expressed. Through hurling insults at each other, they are somewhat showing their respect towards one another. This idea seems a little ironic, and very creative on the author's behalf.
I noticed, along with everone else, that the physical attributes of each character was what they acted upon in their personalities, through actions and speech. Josie is probably the most obvious example for this; her rough and brazen manner matches that of her appearance. That is another thing I was intrigued by: how O'Neill described her physically. I found it hard to picture her, as being an overly large woman, but not being at all manly. The description seemed to contradict itself. But as the play progressed I understood O'Neill's meaning.
As the play moved on, (not skipping any length of time, which I appreciated), the person behind the carefully sculpted facades of each character is revealed more and more. I'm not going restate what everyone else has said about who the characters were deep inside, but I will say this: I was caught completely off guard when Josie reveals to us that she really is a virgin. I so believed that she honestly had been with so many men that it was just part of who she was and that she didn't even care anymore... and the fact that her father spoke about it too, almost jokingly at times...I thought that Jim Tyrone was just being naiive by believing that she was really bluffing all along. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that he was right; it seemed to give even more merit to Josie's character.
I loved how intricately the personalities of Josie and Tyrone are detailed, as they are revealed in Act 3. I thought it was beautiful that once they were together under the moonlight, they at once completely dropped the face they both had been maintaining earlier to keep up their reputations. The simplest way to put it, is they honestly brought out the best in each other. I was mildly disappointed that they didn't end up staying together in the end; even though I know that that would not have been possible because of Tyrone's unbearable guilt, and the type of love he needs from Josie conflicting with the kind she wishes to give... still, I enjoy a happy ending.
In spite of this, overall this play was magnificently written and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was easy to get into and quick to finish; especially after reading the tediously long novel by Alverez. I would say that this play should definitely be continued through the years as an assigned piece of literature.
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