How much longer must ignorance and pointless violence continue before we will start to change? The answer to this question may appear simple and in Shirley Jackson’s short story, “The Lottery” the satire is obvious. By using literary criticisms readers can evaluate more in depth what the story is actually trying convey. Two major literary criticisms that will discussed in detail are Psychological Theory and Historical Criticism and New Historicism. Psychological Theory basically deals with the psychological aspect or the mindset of a person. The second criticism is Historical Criticism and New Historicism, Historical Criticism deals with the time period, place, technology, historical events, and the author’s background. New Historicism on
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Hutchinson is shown as a state of protest, wanting change from the past, and lastly, Old Man Warner's static attitude stays throughout the story, an attitude to keep things the same. In response to the lottery being removed in some places he says ""Nothing but trouble in that,"..."Pack of young fools."" The use of past present and future shows some hope for the future because the present is working to break away from the bonds of the past, and slowly attempt to phase out the bad institution. However, it is up to the reader to determine to what extent it will be phased out since the ending shows the present being chastised. The differences in the story provide a greater impact because it could happen to anyone; there is no choice. The actions made by the community are irrational and demonstrate how all societies have their flaws. Jackson's message is that doing anything simply because it's "what always has been done" is not an acceptable approach to life.
Second literary criticism is Historical Criticism and New Historicism. These two criticisms combined deal with historical events and the author's background. The story is written three years after WWII and it reflects the mob mentality of the Holocaust. The Holocaust was mass genocide committed against innocent people. The Nazi Movement and bullies have affected the imbalance in the story.The power relationships reflect the WWII rise of Nazi Movement and the torture of Jewish people innocent village …show more content…
It serves a small role in words, but adds detail to enhance the feeling the reader gets when reading the story. The setting takes place in the town square, where the story starts out with "the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green" (Jackson 1). An ambience of cheerfulness and buoyancy fills the air. Also, some foreshadowing is being used because the town square is a clue that the lottery must hold some kind of importance. Another piece of foreshadowing is when "Bobby and Harry Jones and Dickie... eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square...," which hints at the impending doom of the lottery winner. The only place where setting is a factor is the beginning, because the setting stays the same, and the environment does not change in the two hours that the story took place
Hutchinson is shown as a state of protest, wanting change from the past, and lastly, Old Man Warner's static attitude stays throughout the story, an attitude to keep things the same. In response to the lottery being removed in some places he says ""Nothing but trouble in that,"..."Pack of young fools."" The use of past present and future shows some hope for the future because the present is working to break away from the bonds of the past, and slowly attempt to phase out the bad institution. However, it is up to the reader to determine to what extent it will be phased out since the ending shows the present being chastised. The differences in the story provide a greater impact because it could happen to anyone; there is no choice. The actions made by the community are irrational and demonstrate how all societies have their flaws. Jackson's message is that doing anything simply because it's "what always has been done" is not an acceptable approach to life.
Second literary criticism is Historical Criticism and New Historicism. These two criticisms combined deal with historical events and the author's background. The story is written three years after WWII and it reflects the mob mentality of the Holocaust. The Holocaust was mass genocide committed against innocent people. The Nazi Movement and bullies have affected the imbalance in the story.The power relationships reflect the WWII rise of Nazi Movement and the torture of Jewish people innocent village …show more content…
It serves a small role in words, but adds detail to enhance the feeling the reader gets when reading the story. The setting takes place in the town square, where the story starts out with "the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green" (Jackson 1). An ambience of cheerfulness and buoyancy fills the air. Also, some foreshadowing is being used because the town square is a clue that the lottery must hold some kind of importance. Another piece of foreshadowing is when "Bobby and Harry Jones and Dickie... eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square...," which hints at the impending doom of the lottery winner. The only place where setting is a factor is the beginning, because the setting stays the same, and the environment does not change in the two hours that the story took place