In Eugene O"Neill's "Long Days's Journey into Night," denial and addictions are two reoccurring themes that play a vital role in the play. The four main characters, James, Edmund, Mary, and Jamie Tyrone all seek solace in their drug of choice or some other action, in the story's case, morphine, alcohol, and sex. Mary's addiction is slightly different, since she was given an overdose of morphine by a cheap doctor during childbirth and has become dependent on it, but nevertheless retreats to her room on many occasions when things go wrong, so she can get her fix. As for the others, drinking heavily is a choice, as they mention on many occasions when pouring drinks that they are simply trying to forget, and that alcohol is all that they need at the time. O"Neill's characters are all weak-willed and give in to desire rather than confront their problems and prevent them from occurring again and sending their lives into a larger downward spiral.
Simply put, James Tyrone is tightwad. Rather than spend his money on his family and give them the care and amenities they deserve, he spends all that he has on worthless property, which is all mortgaged and helps the family very little. Being cheap carries over to medical care, where rather than spend his money on a qualified physician for five dollars or so, he chooses those that are somewhere near one dollar and no very little about what they are talking about. His lifestyle is known all too well by his family, especially by his ill son, Edmund, who he has provided little medical care for and plans on sending to a cheap, state-run sanatorium. Edmund calls his father out on his lack of family spending, blaming him for many of the medical problems they have, such as his mother's addiction and his current illness, which he knows little about since they have such a awful physician. After a heated verbal battle, ending with Edmund pointing out the choice of sanatorium, James stares at his son and simply says, "You look weak, lad.