Familiar with the phrase, “calm before the storm?” In the short story titled “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, this phrase holds true. It is a story of villagers in a small town and their annual tradition of having a lottery. Throughout the story, Jackson effectively uses story elements to set the “calm” and unexpectedly shock the readers with its “stormy” ending. In addition, the characters add to the plot to thicken the surprise. Therefore, “The Lottery,” with its misleading beginning and chilling ending, shows that sometimes what people expect to happen is not what really happens.
From the beginning, Shirley Jackson introduces one of the story’s elements, the setting, with a misleading tone. Jackson opens the story in a small village on the morning of June 27th. Paragraph 1 of “The Lottery” states, “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green.” This quote describes the mood on the day of the lottery and leads readers to infer that the lottery is a joyous occasion where the lucky winner receives a grand prize. However, Jackson uses a plot twist to explain that this story’s lottery is a …show more content…
She disguises the story’s horrific ending by covering it up with a blissful beginning, pleasant villagers, and unsuspicious events that never hint a tragic storyline. Only after the shocking realization, readers begin to understand the frenzy behind the lottery, but are still aghast as they read about the stoning of Mrs. Hutchinson, the lottery’s “chosen one”. Undoubtedly, the violence and the senselessness of the kill support the story’s theme: traditions should not be blindly followed, especially if they could lead to any inequality. Thus, “The Lottery” is a mockery of what happens when people do blindly
From the beginning, Shirley Jackson introduces one of the story’s elements, the setting, with a misleading tone. Jackson opens the story in a small village on the morning of June 27th. Paragraph 1 of “The Lottery” states, “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green.” This quote describes the mood on the day of the lottery and leads readers to infer that the lottery is a joyous occasion where the lucky winner receives a grand prize. However, Jackson uses a plot twist to explain that this story’s lottery is a …show more content…
She disguises the story’s horrific ending by covering it up with a blissful beginning, pleasant villagers, and unsuspicious events that never hint a tragic storyline. Only after the shocking realization, readers begin to understand the frenzy behind the lottery, but are still aghast as they read about the stoning of Mrs. Hutchinson, the lottery’s “chosen one”. Undoubtedly, the violence and the senselessness of the kill support the story’s theme: traditions should not be blindly followed, especially if they could lead to any inequality. Thus, “The Lottery” is a mockery of what happens when people do blindly