The Danger of Tradition Imagine doing something over and over again, but there does not appear to be a true purpose behind it. A person does something just because his ancestors did it before him, but the reason why has been lost. In “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson and “Mending Wall” by Robert Frost, they reveal the idea of following a certain tradition, but the characters do not really need the tradition anymore. In “The Lottery,” Jackson writes about a town coming together right before the harvest, and they have a lottery. The people draw out of a box and whoever draws the slip of paper with the black dot gets stoned to death for a sacrifice. Similarly, Frost writes about two neighbors who come together to fix a wall that has been broken
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In “The Lottery,” the reason the town does the lottery is because they believe that the lottery will bring a good harvest, and their ancestors did it before them. Old Man Warner explains, “‘Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon”’ (pp. 293). The people of the town believe the lottery will ensure a good harvest by having a sacrifice. Also, the lottery does not serve a true purpose, and another reason why they have one is because their ancestors did it before them. Also, in “The Mending Wall,” the reason behind the neighbors always coming together to fix the wall is because their fathers did it before them. The speaker states, “He will not go behind his father’s saying” (Line 42). The father of the neighbor first started the tradition of the wall. The neighbor will not go against what his father did before him. The speaker also explains, “My apple trees will never get across/And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him” (25-26). They do not have a purpose for fixing this wall every year because they have nothing that would get over on the other neighbor’s field. The wall keeps them separate from each other, and they always have to fix it. Even though Frost and Jackson both have the same theme, they use different elements to reveal this …show more content…
Old Man Warner symbolizes the idea of the old tradition when he exclaims, ‘“There’s always been a lottery,”’ and he also states, “‘Seventy-seventh time”’ (293). He explains that the town would be nothing without a lottery, and they would go back to living in caves if they get rid of the lottery. Old Man Warner reveals that he has done the lottery seventy seven times, and it also shows that he is the oldest man in the town. He represents the tradition by doing everything in his power to convince the man he speaks to that without the lottery there would be no town. Old Man Warner reveals that he has done the lottery seventy seven times, and it also shows that he is the oldest man in the town.Also, Jackson writes, “The black box grew shabbier each year; by now it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color, and in some places faded or stained” (291). The age of the black box shows how long the lottery has been going on. The box has lost much of its color, and the box appears to be breaking apart. Jackson writes, “It had a black spot on it, the black spot Mr. Summers had made the night before with the heavy pencil in the coal company office” (295). The black dot on the paper represents death showing that the true danger of this tradition is every year someone must be killed by stoning to make people believe that there will be a good
In “The Lottery,” the reason the town does the lottery is because they believe that the lottery will bring a good harvest, and their ancestors did it before them. Old Man Warner explains, “‘Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon”’ (pp. 293). The people of the town believe the lottery will ensure a good harvest by having a sacrifice. Also, the lottery does not serve a true purpose, and another reason why they have one is because their ancestors did it before them. Also, in “The Mending Wall,” the reason behind the neighbors always coming together to fix the wall is because their fathers did it before them. The speaker states, “He will not go behind his father’s saying” (Line 42). The father of the neighbor first started the tradition of the wall. The neighbor will not go against what his father did before him. The speaker also explains, “My apple trees will never get across/And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him” (25-26). They do not have a purpose for fixing this wall every year because they have nothing that would get over on the other neighbor’s field. The wall keeps them separate from each other, and they always have to fix it. Even though Frost and Jackson both have the same theme, they use different elements to reveal this …show more content…
Old Man Warner symbolizes the idea of the old tradition when he exclaims, ‘“There’s always been a lottery,”’ and he also states, “‘Seventy-seventh time”’ (293). He explains that the town would be nothing without a lottery, and they would go back to living in caves if they get rid of the lottery. Old Man Warner reveals that he has done the lottery seventy seven times, and it also shows that he is the oldest man in the town. He represents the tradition by doing everything in his power to convince the man he speaks to that without the lottery there would be no town. Old Man Warner reveals that he has done the lottery seventy seven times, and it also shows that he is the oldest man in the town.Also, Jackson writes, “The black box grew shabbier each year; by now it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color, and in some places faded or stained” (291). The age of the black box shows how long the lottery has been going on. The box has lost much of its color, and the box appears to be breaking apart. Jackson writes, “It had a black spot on it, the black spot Mr. Summers had made the night before with the heavy pencil in the coal company office” (295). The black dot on the paper represents death showing that the true danger of this tradition is every year someone must be killed by stoning to make people believe that there will be a good