In the first paragraphs, the readers may interpret the village as an extremely tranquil place, perhaps even boring as it seems that nothing ever happened there except for some minute changes. Undeniably, people living in the village may appear as old-fashioned, spiritual and moral, therefore the plot twist occurring at the end leaves us extremely consternated.
Shirley Jackson carefully describes the setting without omitting the smallest details such as the temperature, the town square, the crowd standing between the post office and the bank. She gives the exact number of people living in the town, the date, the time, the neighboring villages. This enumeration of details, names and rules dictated by Mr. Summers divert the readers’ attention
Shirley Jackson carefully describes the setting without omitting the smallest details such as the temperature, the town square, the crowd standing between the post office and the bank. She gives the exact number of people living in the town, the date, the time, the neighboring villages. This enumeration of details, names and rules dictated by Mr. Summers divert the readers’ attention