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.…
Thousands of stories are written and published every year but only few become ingrained into millions of readers minds. What makes a story so memorable? For most good books and short stories, there is always a universal message or theme that draws interest and captivates an audience. Jackson’s “The Lottery” is no exception. “The Lottery” is celebrated as one of the most controversial and brilliant short stories of the 20th century.…
The Lottery is a short story that emphasizes the dangers of rituals. It shows a yearly planned ritual in which they draw pieces of paper, only to leave one person with a black dot. This person is stoned to death by their fellow villagers. This ritual started because they once believed according to old man Warner “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon” (Jackson). This story shows how old beliefs can rick havoc in newer times.…
´ Nothing but trouble in that,´ Old Man Warner said stoutly” (Jackson 31). Old Man Warner hears of other towns stopping the lottery and he does not want anything to do with that. He undoubtedly believes that the town should always have the lottery and cares undoubtedly deeply about tradition. However, Mrs. Hutchinson does not show acceptance towards the lottery. "…
In The Lottery, a short story written by Shirley Jackson, they have a drawing every year, which they call, hence the name of the story, the lottery. The drawing only takes about two hours in their small town, but in the ones around them it can take up to two days. Everyone gathers for this, to watch the men walk up, take a slip of paper from the old wooden black box that sits on the stage, then silently wait. When their leader, of sorts, tells them to, they open up their slips. All of them but one will be blank.…
Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Old Man Warner: The Custodian of Tradition Character: Old Man Warner Plot: The Lottery follows a community detached from its humanity that allows cruelty and its blind faith in tradition to drive it into making inhumane decisions. Setting: The early hours of June 27th in a monotonous town with a population of about three hundred people.…
In the short story “The Lottery”, the author Shirley Jackson writes of a small town presumably somewhere in the United States where an annual ceremony is held. In the lead up to the ceremony Jackson depicts the atmosphere in the town as the people prepare for this ritual that is known as the lottery. Jackson doesn’t mention throughout the exposition of the short story what the lottery exactly is but we find that there is an uncertain atmosphere surrounding the ceremony. In the preparation she mentions the names of various citizens that live in the small town and delves slightly into the dialogue that the village folk have surrounding this ritual.…
“The Lottery” is a short story written by Shirley Jackson. It is about a lottery that takes place once a year in a small village. Many are wondering why they do a lottery so this paragraph is going to show you crucial evidence on why the event takes place. The reason why the villagers "have" to have a lottery is simply because the lottery had become a tradition that had been followed since the time of the villagers' ancestors. As a result, the villagers had become so used to repeating this practice over and over that they would not even find anything right, nor wrong, with it.…
Irony is the use of words in a way to convey a meaning that is opposite from the literal meaning. There are a few types of irony. Situational irony is when something happens that is the opposite of what is expected. Another type of irony is verbal irony is a contrast between the intended meaning of what is spoken and waht the apparent meaning is to the hearer. Lastly, dramatic irony is when the audience knows something a character does not.…
The continuing of the tradition and the people of the town who are partaking in the lottery are to blame on tragedy that the lottery represents. This is because they are the ones who blindly follow and accept the ghastly tradition. With it being a tradition no one seems to want to object or withdraw from the lottery. The people of the town do not eradicate the tradition of the lottery since sacrificing one has been passed down from their ancestors. The lottery box “had been constructed when the first people settled down to make a village [there]”.…
The story symbolizes tradition, unquestioned traditions that exist not just in the society of the Lottery. The Lottery suggests collective mentality, despite Mr. and Mrs. Hutchinson being married he participates in the stoning of his wife, as do her children and friends. When a group is set in a tradition, people lose their individuality and may succumb to peer pressure. The fact that Mr. Hutchinson and her friends in the town can go from being neighbors and casual with each other one moment, to stoning her the next, show how quickly people can have a change of heart. The heavy emphasis on religious traditions and symbols make Shirley Jacksons the Lottery a dark and mysterious short story that leaves a lasting impression on the…
The village square is the average gathering ‘center’ for the lottery. Although typical town squares are usually bustling with business affairs and playing children, the town square within “The Lottery” is not only a playground for children, but for death as well. This is demonstrated by the grotesque ending of “The Lottery”. Mrs. Hutchinson’s apron not only demonstrates that the lottery occurred while she was working, but it also sets the opinion that the lottery is nothing but a burden for the town. The lottery takes people out of their normal routine within the day, which must irritate some of the townspeople.…
“The Lottery” Analysis Following traditions that have been in effect for even the longest times are not always the right thing to do as society evolves, and can even be quite dangerous especially due to the inherent evil of human nature. This way of thinking is very clear in the short story, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson. Humans are extremely capable of committing violent acts when they are accepted by society and practiced by tradition. Being this story was written in the post-World War II era, this event was still fresh in Shirley Jacksons mind in the composition of this story.…
First and foremost, the use of the color black plays an important role in this story. Black is culturally used to portray darkness, evil, and death. With the removal of light, darkness prevails. The black box that people draw the slip of paper for the lottery is one of the objects that Shirley Jackson uses to foreshadow the end of the story. The black box represents the tradition of the lottery in that village.…
Jackson’s Tradition During a summer day bright with sunlight, a town celebrates an ancient tradition that concludes with the sacrifice of the winning leader of the household. Mr. Hutchinson picks the winning black-smudged slip of paper from the infamous black box, but his wife objects, resulting in her immediate five family members having to draw from the box. She gives her husband a second chance at life, but unfortunately, the second drawing results in Mrs. Hutchinson’s unjustifiable death (293-95). In order to exhibit how immensely against cultural ignorance she feels, Jackson utilizes tone, symbolism and motif, and irony to emphasize her theme, the idea that one should not follow tradition for the sake of following tradition because supporting a custom with unknown origins results in long term cultural defamation.…