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Intro
Juno and the Paycock is set in a cramped Dublin tenement during the Irish Civil War and follows the Boyle family—Jack, a boastful, idle father; Juno, his practical and overworked wife; their wounded son Johnny; and their idealistic daughter Mary. Jack spends his days drinking with his freeloading friend Joxer Daly while avoiding work and responsibility. Juno supports the household with her wages and constant effort, while Mary is on strike and romantically involved with a lawyer named Charlie Bentham. Johnny, once active in the IRA, is now physically and emotionally damaged. He is particularly concerned with the recent murder of Robbie Tancred, his former comrade.
When Bentham visits the family with surprising news—that Jack has inherited a large sum from a deceased cousin—the Boyles erupt with joy. Jack renounces alcohol and Joxer (though not for long), and the family begins spending in anticipation of the money. They buy new furniture and a gramophone on credit, host parties, and act as though their lives have changed. Mary becomes engaged to Bentham, and Jack begins spouting philosophical nonsense to impress others. However, beneath the celebration, tension lingers. Johnny is unnerved by guilt and hallucinatory visions, and IRA members begin asking questions about his involvement in Tancred’s murder.
The cracks begin to show when Mary reveals that Bentham has disappeared to England without explanation. Soon after, Juno learns that Mary is pregnant. Jack explodes with shame and blame, more concerned about gossip than his daughter’s well-being. Meanwhile, neighbors and creditors begin reclaiming their furniture and demanding repayment. It becomes clear that the inheritance was mismanaged—Bentham’s legal error left the money to be divided among many relatives, and the Boyles will receive nothing. Jack is humiliated, and his once-loyal neighbors turn against him.
Juno, who has held the family together, reaches her breaking point. As the apartment empties around them, she prepares to take Mary and leave. Johnny, already tormented by guilt and superstition, becomes increasingly unstable. When two IRA men burst in and accuse him of informing on Tancred, Johnny begs for mercy, insisting he has already suffered. However, they are unmoved and drag him away.
In the aftermath, Mary and Juno sit in silence, devastated by the loss of Johnny and the ruin of their hopes. A neighbor, Mrs. Madigan confirms that the police have found Johnny’s body, and the women prepare to leave the tenement for good. Juno bitterly rejects the notion of divine justice, blaming the senselessness of men for their suffering. She resolves to raise Mary’s child herself, away from Jack and the cycle of despair he represents.
The play ends with Jack and Joxer returning to the apartment, drunk and oblivious. With nearly all their possessions gone and their family shattered, they continue to ramble about politics, patriotism, and vague ideas of joining the IRA. Jack, still clinging to the illusion of dignity, utters a line he has repeated throughout the play as the curtain falls: “The whole worl’s in a terrible state o’ chassis!”
