Juno and The Paycock
COMMUNICATIONS ESSAY
JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK
Juno and the Paycock, is a famous Irish play by Sean O’Casey. The play is set in the Dublin working class tenements during the Irish Civil War. It is the second in a trilogy of plays set in 1922 Dublin. The play’s main’ focus is Juno Boyle and her family. Her husband Jack or rather Captain Jack as he is referred to in the play, their children Mary and Johnny and the conflicts which are portrayed within the family group. Right from the start of act one the audience can see the conflict between Juno and her husband, “Oh he’ll come in when he likes, struttin about the town like a paycock with Joxer I suppose” (O’Casey S, 1980, page 6). From this dialogue the audience gets the feeling of annoyance towards Jack and the beginnings of the long –term conflict within their relationship. The reason for their conflict comes from Jacks lack of a job and the fact that he doesn’t want to look for one. Even when real job opportunities arise, he would rather fake an ailment than actually work, “Shovel, ah then, me boyo, you’d do far more work with a knife and fork that ever you’ll do with a shovel. If there was e’er a genuine job goin you’d be dh’other way about- not able to lift your arms with the pains in your legs (O’Casey S, 1980, page 13). O’Casey shows Jacks complete disregard for accepting the responsibility of providing for his struggling family by giving Juno the roles of wife, mother and the provider for the whole family. This essay will cover jack and Juno’s conflict right through all three acts of the play.
From the beginning of act one, O’Casey shows the audience the hostility Juno has towards Jack. The audience quickly picks up on the fact that Juno’s conflict with her husband has been an on-going reality for some time. At the beginning of the play, Juno is preparing breakfast while getting ready for work. She is waiting for Jack to arrive home from a nights drinking knowing that he would prefer her to
JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK
Juno and the Paycock, is a famous Irish play by Sean O’Casey. The play is set in the Dublin working class tenements during the Irish Civil War. It is the second in a trilogy of plays set in 1922 Dublin. The play’s main’ focus is Juno Boyle and her family. Her husband Jack or rather Captain Jack as he is referred to in the play, their children Mary and Johnny and the conflicts which are portrayed within the family group. Right from the start of act one the audience can see the conflict between Juno and her husband, “Oh he’ll come in when he likes, struttin about the town like a paycock with Joxer I suppose” (O’Casey S, 1980, page 6). From this dialogue the audience gets the feeling of annoyance towards Jack and the beginnings of the long –term conflict within their relationship. The reason for their conflict comes from Jacks lack of a job and the fact that he doesn’t want to look for one. Even when real job opportunities arise, he would rather fake an ailment than actually work, “Shovel, ah then, me boyo, you’d do far more work with a knife and fork that ever you’ll do with a shovel. If there was e’er a genuine job goin you’d be dh’other way about- not able to lift your arms with the pains in your legs (O’Casey S, 1980, page 13). O’Casey shows Jacks complete disregard for accepting the responsibility of providing for his struggling family by giving Juno the roles of wife, mother and the provider for the whole family. This essay will cover jack and Juno’s conflict right through all three acts of the play.
From the beginning of act one, O’Casey shows the audience the hostility Juno has towards Jack. The audience quickly picks up on the fact that Juno’s conflict with her husband has been an on-going reality for some time. At the beginning of the play, Juno is preparing breakfast while getting ready for work. She is waiting for Jack to arrive home from a nights drinking knowing that he would prefer her to