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In The Walking Dead episode S04E12, Daryl and Beth came across a country club while looking for alcohol for Beth to drink. During this time Beth notices Daryl is taking what looks like a purse and filling it with cash and some kind of jewelry (gold, silverware, etc). Beth asks him, "Why are you taking that stuff?".

That is exactly my question as well. At first, I thought maybe he was going to use the cash as tinder, but that turned out not to be the case. He did use a stack of cash at the end to burn the house down, but that wasn't his original intention.

So why does he "steal" from the country club? He even goes as far as trying to open the cash register at the bar.

Based on his behavior while at the country club I think he was doing it in spite of the snobbish nature associated with people who are members of such establishments, given his poor upbringing. It looked as if he had a personal issue which was made clear when he was throwing darts at the pictures of members.

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I saw it as a re-telling of his upbringing. It was a gut reaction to being around a stack of cash and jewels. However, given the amount of time they've been living in the Walking Dead universe, I found it odd that he would suddenly exhibit such behavior. The darts thing made sense, but Daryl is a survivor and should have been more practical at that point than to lug a pocketbook around with him full of trinkets he knows are useless in his world.

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  • +1 for your second sentence and the following refute. I had thought the exact same thing. It doesn't make sense why he would exhibit such behavior after being in that world for so long.
    – DustinDavis
    Mar 5, 2014 at 18:24
  • Burning down the place was obviously representative of Daryl overcoming his past. I think that using the cash as a torch to light the place up was a component of that. As though he was saying - Silly Daryl, that's the old you...
    – Jacob G
    Mar 6, 2014 at 18:24
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    +1: It's a weird and unpractical reaction, yet I wasn't remotely surprised to see it. It really did seem like a snap decision.
    – Andrew Martin
    Mar 7, 2014 at 19:22
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    +1 for your first and second sentences and -1 for your third sentence and the following refute. ;-)
    – Napoleon Wilson ♦
    Nov 1, 2014 at 23:34
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I also think one have to take into account the various aspects of the situation they are in. Daryl clearly shows that he has lost his footing when roaming the woods with Beth. He is angry, irritated, bitter and even more gloom then before. Almost like a feral animal. On top of this he is traveling around with a girl that is an emotional wreck and show need for reckless rebellious escapades. Pushing his buttons by trying to get some response.

He also show his level of frustration and anger when, instead of terminating one of the walkers at the country club, beats it senseless first. Then later uses another as target practice. It all accumulates in the breakdown and short glimpse into his thoughts. First by the angry shouts of them all being dead. They are never going to see any of them again, and then his guilt comes to light by;

The Governor rolled right up to our gates. Maybe if I wouldn't have stopped looking. Maybe 'cause I gave up. That's on me.

And your dad. Maybe – maybe I could have done something.

He has also lost a place where he, perhaps for the first time in his life, had a role where people looked up to him. At the start of season four he is at a very good place. From there until the final stab with the fall of the prison it is nothing but a long beating tearing everything down.

The episode also starts out with them both taking refuge in the trunk of a car. Intensely on watch throughout the night with sights on the aim of the crossbow. Inside the clubhouse one also see that the people in there has "opted out". (Or it can also have been some lynch mob going bananas?) Throughout the series we clearly get that that is something he really despise.

In many aspects he sees himself back to scratch. Back to were he was before it all started. Drifting around. Nobody. Nothing. In his own words; a red-neck a*hole.

Now. With that as the stage I do not find it strange he behaves erratic and out of place, even so long after it all started. In many ways it is revenge on the situation he finds himself in. It is a melt down. A blow out.

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    Exactly. That whole episode was so concerned about Daryl overcoming his bad past that this fitted very well. Sure, he could easily supress it all the past seasons, but this was when he still had friends, a job to do, and a reason to live on and concentrate. This easily beats the accepted answer by leagues.
    – Napoleon Wilson ♦
    Nov 1, 2014 at 23:33
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We still don't know what he did. Maybe he worked at the country club and moved peoples cars and they fired him and they treated him like shit only give him small tips. And the shed was his house and didn't want to tell beth.

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  • Actually we do. He said he didn't do anything, he just followed his brother and did whatever it was Merle said they were going to do that day. He told Beth right before they burned the house down. Plus you could have simply guessed that from his character and personality.
    – DustinDavis
    Mar 5, 2014 at 22:00
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The cash and jewels are light and easily carried.

I assumed he was taking them just in case they could be used as a bribe or something at some point.

It might well be unlikely but that does not mean the chance should be ignored.

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    Seriously? In a post-apocalyptic World with no government or centralized banking system, what good is money? Daryl's been around long enough to know that the currency in his world are the abilities to hunt food and kill Walkers. Maybe the jewelry can come in handy if he meets a pretty lady who likes shiny stuff, but the cash is utterly useless.
    – Johnny Bones
    Mar 6, 2014 at 14:53
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    Money has whatever value people think it has. People in a large community might still use traditional currency, someone who might not altogether be in their right mind might well simply accept it out of habit etc. The shinies are slightly more likely to be useful but having money is rarely worse than not having money and being as it is so easy to carry and conveniently to hand he may as well take it on the off chance.
    – Stefan
    Mar 6, 2014 at 15:33

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