“Moon for the stepsons of fate” O’Neill in brief
Events take us to Connecticut, the farmer’s house, Phil Hohen. The action takes place in early September 1923 and at the dawn of the next day.
The three sons of Hogan fled from the house in turn, very disagreeable in the father’s way, and the hand is not easier. Only twenty-eight-year-old daughter of Josie gets along with him, she’s a match for her father – big, strong and at work “plows” for two. My father can not approach her, and I can give him up. Reputation of Josie is not the best: they say that many of the local men can boast that they used it successfully. Her younger brother Mike, leaving his father’s house, advises her sister to surround someone, it’s time for her to calm down. Jim Tyrone is the best – he is a drunk though a good family, and when he gets an inheritance, he will have a lot of money. Mike noticed that Josie glances at Jim more tenderly than the rest. He advises to lasso him when he is drunk.
Phil
The conversation between father and daughter is interrupted by Jim Tyrone himself. He is, strangely enough, sober, but suffers from a hangover and asks Hohen for a glass of whiskey. Sipping liquor, says that they are going to visit today himself Harder, in whose pond, located next to the farm, the pigs of Hogenov began to walk. Harder suggests that neighbors regularly break down the hedge dividing their lands to water their pigs nearby.
Harder complained to Hogen’s farm, and Tyrone hiding in the house choked on laughing, listening to the performance, which is largely satisfied with his father and daughter. Without giving the visitor
Stunned Harder does not know how to get his feet off, and Jim and the Hogens laugh at him after a long time. Cheerful Jim promises Josie not to sit out tonight in the tavern, but to come to her and spend the night, admiring the moon and the night sky. Such as she is, there is no more girl in the world.
A few hours later. It’s almost twelve, and Jim’s not there anymore. A drunken song is heard – it’s the father coming home. He brings down the already unhappy Josie unpleasant news: it turns out Jim Tyrone agreed to the proposal of Harder. He, wishing to quickly get rid of unpleasant neighbors, promised to pay Tyrone for the farm already ten thousand dollars. Tyrone agreed, although earlier he promised to give her to Hogen for two.
Jim’s betrayal hurts Josie into the heart, and she accepts the plan of her father – to drag the man to bed so that Hogen with the witnesses will catch them early in the morning. Then you can get Tyrone to marry or at least pay off.
It’s already midnight. Jim finally appears on the farm. To Josie’s surprise, he is not at all drunk, and the girl has to make an effort to pump it properly. And then the drunk Jim with a laugh says that the insulted Harder is ready to shell out for their farm ten thousand dollars. He pretended to agree, but tomorrow he will tighten his nose to this narcissist and, of course, refuse. But it’s tomorrow. And today they are waiting for a special night: they will sit like this on the porch, and Jim, if Josie permits, puts his head on her chest and falls asleep. He does know: she is touchy – she only spreads rumors about her supposedly free behavior. This Josie and the road to him – cleanliness, naturalness, unselfishness.
Josie realizes that his father deceived her. It’s good that she knew the truth in time, it’s terrible to think what she could do. Jim would despise her. Jim the other day gets an inheritance – that’s what my father, the old sinner, aimed for. So Jim will soon leave here, live on Broadway and she will not see him again.
This night, Jim, as ever, is frank with Josie. He has long felt himself a “stepchild of fate,” his father – a prude and a sparse – he always hated, that one and broke it, and the death of his beloved mother completed the matter. He is now dead. Josie’s heart is bursting with love and pity for Jim: the girl realized that what he said to her is true: Tyrone is really a living dead man. Neither she nor anyone else can help him. All that she can do for him is to give an innocent night of love – to sit till morning on the porch, pressing his head to him, to make him feel like a child again.
At dawn, Hogen returns – alone, without witnesses. She sees a couple sitting on the steps, and looks at Josie’s face for a long time, fearing that he will get hard for the lies. Josie does not like scandal, only sadly says that he understands his calculation. Now she will leave the farm – she will leave him, as the brothers did before. She does not understand anything, Haugen objectively complains, he just wanted them to be happy, because on the part they can see that they love each other.
Tyrone wakes up, he is very embarrassed that he did not let the girl sleep. Nothing, he comforts his Josie, he did not want this night to be like all the other nights he spent with women. Now it’s time for him to leave, and in general they need to say goodbye – he leaves and it is unlikely they will ever meet again.
Left alone, Josie covers her face with her hands and cries. From the top step of the staircase Hagen looks after Tyrone, his face is full of bitterness. Josie raises his father’s eyes: that’s the old rogue, he decided to play Cupid. Okay, do not worry, she will not go anywhere and never leave him. No one is to blame for anything, just a damn life is so formed. And Tyrone, well, God forbid that he reconciled himself and found peace.
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