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Recommended Reading: 600 Classics Reviewed

Three Plays

by Sean O'Casey

1924-1927

Drama

Tragicomedy

This volume collects Seán O'Casey's greatest plays: two Dublin plays treat local war with Realism; The Silver Tassie provides an expressionist anti-war play addressing the syndrome of imperial wars.

Juno and the Paycock (1924) recounts the story of Juno O'Boyle, a mother, who works to support her family while her husband, Jack, exercises his elbow in a bar with his lay-about buddy, Joxer. Daughter Mary, on strike, languishes at home while her brother Johnny, an invalid who lost an arm in WWI, fears an indiscretion. Lawyer Bentham informs the family of a cousin's death; they will inherit. Parading his luck, Jack purchases a new suit, a furniture suite, and a gramophone, on credit.

Bentham impregnates Mary, botches the execution of the will, and flees England. Jack's purchases are repossessed. Mary, disowned by her father, is shipped to a relative. Johnny, murdered by the IRA for being an informant, receives a notable lament from Juno who leaves Jack. Unaware of developments, Jack, drunk with Joxer, arrives home; he manages to drop his last coin before passing out. Joxer cops the coin, and departs.

The Plough and the Stars (1926) limns chaos amid the 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion. Nora and Jack Clitheroe vegetate at home when Captain Brennan of the Irish Citizen Army delivers orders to “Commandant Jack,” informing him his battalion must attend a meeting with James Connolly. In a local bar, amid patriotic speeches, women bicker; Bessie—a Protestant street vendor—literally fights with Mrs. Gogan. Jack Clitheroe and Captain Brennan arrive Sunday evening flaunting the flag of revolution—the plough and the stars—vowing to die for Irish independence. On Monday morning, Bessie relishes news: the rebels appear defeated. Nora fruitlessly sends messages to Jack to cease fighting, and then goes into labor which ends with a stillbirth. Brennan arrives, announcing Jack's death. Nora in delirium remembers a day she and Jack strolled through the woods. Soldiers arrive to arrest Brennan. Nora rushes to a window, calling Jack. Bessie pulls her back; she is shot in the back, supposedly mistaken for a sniper.

The Silver Tassie (1927) portrays athlete Harry in the prime of life. At the battlefront he finds that cynicism reigns among fellow soldiers. Seriously wounded, Harry lies in a hospital with other disillusioned veterans. Disabled and repatriated, Harry plunges into deep alienation: obtuse civilians don't understand war or its consequences.

Portraying strong women, O'Casey was the first effective anti-war playwright, and, arguably, the best English-language playwright since Shakespeare in portraying authentic characters.

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
O'Casey, Sean. "Three Plays." Recommended Reading: 600 Classics Reviewed, edited by Editors of Salem Press, Salem Press, 2015. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=6CR_0544.
APA 7th
O'Casey, S. (2015). Three Plays. In E. Salem Press (Ed.), Recommended Reading: 600 Classics Reviewed. Salem Press. online.salempress.com.
CMOS 17th
O'Casey, Sean. "Three Plays." Edited by Editors of Salem Press. Recommended Reading: 600 Classics Reviewed. Hackensack: Salem Press, 2015. Accessed September 15, 2025. online.salempress.com.