The plot of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" centers around a small village's annual tradition of holding a lottery to determine which member of the community will be sacrificed in order to ensure a good harvest for the year. The story follows the preparations for the lottery and the eventual selection of the victim, ultimately revealing the disturbing nature of the tradition and the willingness of the community to blindly follow it.
The story begins with the village's residents gathering in the town square on a warm summer morning for the annual lottery. The villagers, including the protagonist, Mr. Summers, are excited and eager to participate in the event, despite the fact that it involves the selection of one person to be stoned to death. As the lottery progresses, each member of the community draws a slip of paper from a black box, and the person whose slip has a black dot on it is declared the winner of the lottery.
As the slips of paper are drawn, tensions begin to rise among the villagers. Some become nervous and anxious, while others seem indifferent to the outcome. Eventually, Mrs. Tess Hutchinson is chosen as the winner of the lottery, and she is understandably shocked and upset by the news. Despite her protests and pleas for mercy, the villagers turn on her and begin to stone her to death, following the tradition that has been in place for generations.
Throughout the story, Jackson uses symbolism and foreshadowing to build suspense and convey the disturbing nature of the tradition. For example, the black box that holds the slips of paper is described as being "black as a hearse," suggesting that the lottery is associated with death. Additionally, the villagers' casual attitude towards the selection of the victim and the violence that follows highlights the disturbing willingness of the community to blindly follow tradition, even when it involves the sacrifice of one of their own.
In the end, "The Lottery" serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of blindly following tradition and the consequences of mob mentality. It is a thought-provoking and disturbing story that challenges readers to consider the consequences of their actions and the ways in which they choose to participate in their communities.
Analysis of 'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson
The lottery is led by a Mr Summers, who has an old black box. Each head of household opens the paper they have drawn. The lottery only becomes "unfair" to her when she is the victim, although, of course, the ritual is not "right" to a civilized reader. As the lottery begins and each head of family comes forward to draw a slip of paper from the box, there is some talk about how quickly the event arrived, how it seems like there isn't any time between lotteries, and how some places are "giving up" the lottery. He put the black, old lottery box on the stool which was in the centre of the square and which was brought by Mr.
“The Lottery,” by Shirley Jackson Questions & Answers
The men join the children, chatting casually and making quiet jokes, and the women follow, exchanging gossip. The barbaric act by the villagers and the need for everyone to participate in the tradition translates to no one taking responsibility for the murder of the unlucky participant. Jackson died unexpectedly of heart failure on August 8, 1965; she was forty-eight years old. The year is not stated. The villagers do not want a new box because they are reluctant to change anything about the ritual, so the old box is stored all year until it is needed for the annual lottery.
Symbolism In The Lottery: Symbols & Imagery [1121 words]
The authority over the ceremony is not with the people, but they must follow the tradition Franklin 34. Graves , the postmaster. Just as the drawing is about to begin, Mrs. The village postmaster, Mr. It's not until the lottery begins, over halfway through the story, that we start to suspect that all is not as it seems. Yet when Tessie Hutchinson cries, "It wasn't fair! Adams points out that some towns have already stopped lotteries.
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson Plot Summary
Faced with the possibility of death, she perverts the normal instincts of motherhood. Summers, however, has been able to persuade the villagers to allow him one small change to the tradition. This makes it to lose its meaning and importance. Soon the other family members began to gather. Though she was a prolific short story writer, her most well-known short story is ''The Lottery''. People seem wary of the box, even though it is what the "winning" ticket will be drawn from. And someone gave little Davy Hutchinson a few pebbles.
The Lottery By Shirley Jackson: Analysis Of Meaning Behind “The Lottery”: Free Essay Example, 1460 words
He then says there are no other households; the family includes only his wife and their three youngest kids, Bill Jr. The postmaster swears in Mr. Despite acknowledging its presence, no one inclines to approach it. The story also concerns itself with the human capacity for violence. Is the lottery a collective act of murder? Given this, the second drawing, in which all the heads of households in the Hutchinson family would have drawn a slip, will be skipped.
