"The Drunkard"

“The Drunkard” by Frank O’Conner is a satirical story about Mick Delaney and his son Larry.  Recently, Mick’s long time friend Mr. Dooley has passed away so Mick attends his funeral and then visits a pub with some friends.  Mick hadn’t drunk alcohol in years, so drinking a few beers awakened the monster.  O’Conner employs irony and humor to convey a message about alcoholism.

            Throughout the story O’Conner builds up events to show Mick’s future demise and alcohol problems; however, ironically he is not the one that ends up drunk.  This is called situational irony, when what we expect to happen is the opposite of what actually happens.  After years of being sober, Mick drinks a beer for pleasure, “a second to forget it, and a third to forget that he couldn’t forget.”  This shows that Mick has an issue with drinking and handling his limits.  In addition, after the funeral Mick hangs out with his friend Peter Crowley who is a “danger signal” and an alcoholic.  This implies that Mick and Peter will get into trouble drinking together.  O’Conner incorporates events that show a painful future for Mick; we expect Mick to get drunk and act like an alcoholic.  However, this is not the case and Larry actually ends up drunk.  Ironically, Mick does not get a sip of alcohol because his son drinks it all.  Larry becomes highly intoxicated, throws up, hurts himself, and yells vicariously at his neighbors, which ultimately helps Mick realize the dangers of alcohol.  Afterwards, Mick says  “never again, never again, not if I lived to be a thousand!”  Mick learned, from Larry’s embarrassment and harassment of others, not to be an alcoholic.  In the future, Mick will be more responsible now.

            Furthermore, O’Conner employs satirical humor to show how unimportant alcohol truly is.  Instead of going to work, he makes an excuse because he had a “sick head” and makes his wife go to work.  This event shows that alcohol can break down dignity and self-respect.   The societal roles have flipped; the female is working while the male whines about being hung over. In addition, after the funeral procession is almost over he exclaims, “all over now bar the last prayers.”  This shows that Mick is far more concerned with getting drunk then honoring his friend.  Instead of worrying about drinking, Mick should have done something to honor Mr. Dooley and his interests.  Mick’s alcoholism blinds him from true values of friendship. 

            As “The Drunkard” progresses, we expect Mick to get drunk and have an alcohol problem.  However ironically, young Larry is the one that gets drunk, sick, and misbehaves.  Ultimately, this teaches Mick that being an alcoholic isn’t a good role model for your child.  Mick learned his lesson and will not drink in the future.  Also, O’Conner uses satirical humor to show how alcohol has blinded Mick.  Alcohol takes away the value of friendships and manhood from Mick, as he cannot keep his mind off of the funeral and he cannot take responsibility for his actions.  Mick learned his lesson and will stop being an alcoholic.  Will Larry grow older to like the feeling of being drunk? Will Larry become an alcoholic?