Thesis: Shirley Jackson and Nathaniel Hawthorne convey the themes of “The Lottery” and “Young Goodman Brown” through the use of symbolism.
I. Jackson and Hawthorne use objects to illustrate evil throughout the story.
A. The black box is used to convey the evil of a tradition “The Lottery”
B. The staff turning into a serpent is a symbol of Satan
C. Faith’s pink ribbons represent purity.
D.
II. Jackson and Hawthorne both use names to illustrate evil throughout the story.
A. Mr. Graves is the leader of the town in “The Lottery”
B. Faith is a faithful Christian woman
C. “Young Goodman Brown” creates a feeling of religions evil.
Shirley Jackson and Nathaniel Hawthorne convey the themes of “The Lottery” and …show more content…
Jackson says, “The black box resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born” (71), this statement indicates that the tradition had been going on for some time now. The white slips of paper indicate that no one is excluded from the drawing. Unfortunately, the individual who has the white slip with the black spot will endure the stoning. Again the color black is used. The box is only put to use for this particular gathering. It had become such a tradition that everyone in town completely ignored the senseless act murder. Even the children are accepting of the event; as mentioned in the beginning that the children began making a pile of stones.
In “Young Goodman Brown”, Hawthorne begins this short story with frequent reference to Faith’s pink ribbons. This is a representation of innocence and purity. As reading of the short story begins, it’s made clear that Faith’s demeanor is very much so of her name. Even as he departed from Faith, he still looks back and sees her ribbons blowing in the wind. Towards the end of his trip he will see the ribbons