While the similarities between “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas” and “The Lottery” are evident, the differences are pronounced. While both stories have the obvious scapegoat archetype, they are presented in very different ways. Both stories have a unique spin on the scapegoats punishment, the reward the village or city receives from sacrificing said scapegoat, and finally whether the sacrifice of the scapegoat is seen as moral.
First, the rewards in both stories are very different, especially when looking in terms of magnitude. “The Lottery” portrays a culture that believes to have a successful and bountiful harvest they must sacrifice one randomly selected villager, who is to be stoned to death. This is done yearly, and is replicated in each individual village. In contrast, “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas” only uses a single scapegoat, seemingly for numerous years until the child dies. It is not mentioned how long the child lives for, but they do keep their lives. It may be argued that death is more merciful than the fate of the child in “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas”, which is that of endless suffering. The child cannot be allowed a single kindness, else the town risks their deal being broken. …show more content…
Those in “The Lottery” believe they gain better harvests, but absolutely nothing else in return. The key difference here is the Village in “The Lottery” justify the reward because it is all they have ever known. They don't understand the significance of their actions, or how very wrong they are. This allows them to more easily justify sacrificing a scapegoat yearly, simply for better harvests. This is in sharp contrast to “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas”, who fully recognize the horror of their actions. They have made the choice to sacrifice the life of the one child for the happiness of the entire
First, the rewards in both stories are very different, especially when looking in terms of magnitude. “The Lottery” portrays a culture that believes to have a successful and bountiful harvest they must sacrifice one randomly selected villager, who is to be stoned to death. This is done yearly, and is replicated in each individual village. In contrast, “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas” only uses a single scapegoat, seemingly for numerous years until the child dies. It is not mentioned how long the child lives for, but they do keep their lives. It may be argued that death is more merciful than the fate of the child in “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas”, which is that of endless suffering. The child cannot be allowed a single kindness, else the town risks their deal being broken. …show more content…
Those in “The Lottery” believe they gain better harvests, but absolutely nothing else in return. The key difference here is the Village in “The Lottery” justify the reward because it is all they have ever known. They don't understand the significance of their actions, or how very wrong they are. This allows them to more easily justify sacrificing a scapegoat yearly, simply for better harvests. This is in sharp contrast to “The Ones Who Walk Away From The Omelas”, who fully recognize the horror of their actions. They have made the choice to sacrifice the life of the one child for the happiness of the entire