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Summary Of The Yellow Wallpaper And The Lottery

Decent Essays

In both “The Yellow Wallpaper”, a captivity narrative by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and “The Lottery”, a short story by Shirley Jackson, tradition incites conflict. These works of fiction reflect upon the use of a tradition as a divisive force between the characters, and the societal setting. In both “The Yellow Wallpaper” and “The Lottery”, tradition is the main source of conflict in families, as well as the main characters and their societies. These stories display the devastating consequences of society’s reluctance to change. Similarly, both “The Yellow Wallpaper” and “The Lottery” portray that traditions drive a wedge between communities and the world at large, rather than unite them. One may observe the perpetuation of harmful ideologies and actions that continue throughout the stories, for the sake of maintaining tradition. Namely, Tessie’s willingness to sacrifice her family for the sake of her own well-being show how traditions such as the community lottery break familial bonds. She would rather “...Don and Eva, ...[should be made to] take their chance!" (pg. 46, “The Lottery”) rather than sacrifice herself. Another example of traditional ideas fraying familial bonds is how John and Jane’s relationship deteriorates due to his condescending attitude. To illustrate this, one may observe how he dismisses her opinion on her diagnosis as a “...false and foolish fancy. Can you not trust me as a physician when I tell you so?" (pg. 341, “The Yellow Wallpaper”). This further demonstrates that John does not care to hear what his wife has to say, because he believes that he is smarter than her, and that she should be kept under his control. As he acts upon the dichotomic belief that women are meant to be submissive housewives and that men are the dominant breadwinners, their relationship decays. In summation, both “The Lottery” and “The Yellow Wallpaper” demonstrate how even the closest of bonds can be broken, once a toxic tradition is used to justify maltreatment of others. Furthermore, traditions can be so powerfully destructive that they pit sections of society against one another. “The Lottery” and “The Yellow Wallpaper” both reflect upon the societal fractures that have been carved out by detrimental

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