Essay about The Life and Literary Works of Shirley Jackson

“The less there is to justify a traditional custom, the harder it is to get rid of it” (Twain). The Lottery begins during the summer. A small, seemingly normal, town is gathering to throw the annual “Lottery”. In the end, the townspeople—children included—gather around and stone the winner to death, simply because it was tradition. The story reveals how traditions can become outdated and ineffective. “I suppose, I hoped, by setting a particularly brutal ancient rite in the present and in my own village to shock the story's readers with a graphic dramatization of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives” (Jackson). As humans develop as a race, their practices should develop with them. Shirley Jackson develops the

Benjamin Franklin once said, “ It is the first responsibility of every citizen to question authority”. “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, features a superstitious town subjected to a brutal and needless yearly tradition. A lottery is held to choose a single townsperson, who then is surrounded by every man, woman and child and stoned to death publicly. They believe that this gruesome act will somehow ensure prosperity for the town and an abundant harvest. This story illustrates how hesitant people can be to reject outdated ideas and a cautionary tale of the dangers of cultural conformity. ”

We will try to dig first on the connection of Shirley Jackson to her writing “The Lottery”. Shirley Jackson was born in 1916 in San Francisco, California. One of her masterpieces was "The Lottery," the most argumentative piece and well known story about a village that occurs in once year death practice. The New Yorker published the short story of Jackson at the year 1948, "The Lottery."

Mary Jackson was born April 9, 1921, Hampton, Virginia, U.S.A. She was a math genius and an aerospace engineer. most importantly she was the first African American female engineer to work and be the first flight engineers for NASA.

Shirley Jackson was born on December 14, 1916 in San Francisco, California. She was the daughter of Leslie Hardie (President of Stecher-Traung Lithograph,Inc.) and Geraldine Bugbee Jackson.

After reading Shirley Jackson’s short story “The Lottery” several times over the many years, this story has many meanings beyond simply the words on the pages. These are left up to the speculation of the reader for the most part, which lets each individual come up with his or her own opinions to fuel an argument. I feel that much of the symbolism revolves around religion, in particular Christianity. To take the story at face value would nearly be an exercise in futility, for then the reader would be missing the deeper meanings found in the delicate symbolism that Jackson places throughout the tale. Indeed, the symbolic meanings of many of the people and things placed throughout the narrative depict certain

Shirley Jackson’s famous short story, “The Lottery,” was published in 1948 and remains to this day one of the most enduring and affecting American works in the literary canon. “The Lottery” tells the story of a farming community that holds a ritualistic lottery among its citizens each year. Although the text initially presents audiences with a close-knit community participating in a social event together on a special day, the shocking twist at the work’s end—with the death of the lottery’s “winner” by public stoning—has led to its widespread popularity, public outcry and discussion, and continued examination in modern times (Jackson). One potential critical theory that can be applied to Jackson’s “The Lottery” is the reader-response

In all stories there is someone who changes after something happens and it turns them into someone they aren't. An example is a person turn into someone you never expected them to be because they are hiding themselves. Its also important to think before everything you do because the aftermath can be unreal. The characters in the“ Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson and the short story,” Lamb to the Slaughter” by Roald Dahl could have learned their lessons. In the story, “ Possibility of Evil” Miss.Strangeworth takes her hate out to an family by writing letters to them. In “Lamb to the Slaughter” Mary makes a bad decision after finding out her husband is leaving her. These stories tell the reader that people around you have a side they don't show, but sooner or later it will come out of them.

Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson is a theoretical physicist and an African American inventor, she has made many advances in science. Jackson first became interested in science and math during her childhood and conducted experiments such as the eating habits of honeybees. She went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where she got her bachelor, and doctoral degree, all being in physics. She became the first African-American woman to receive a Ph.D. from MIT. Dr. Jackson conducted important scientific research that helped others to invent the portable fax, touch tone telephone, solar cells, fiber optic cables, and the technology behind caller ID and call waiting. Jackson is currently the president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, this is

Shirley Ann Jackson was born in Washington D.C. on August 5th, 1946. As a child, she excelled in both math and sciences and was encouraged by her parents. Her father in particular involved her in science through many class projects. One particular experience that has helped shape Jackson’s life was going to a segregated school in the 1950’s. After the ruling on Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 Jackson transitioned to the local elementary school.

Shirley Temple was a child tap film star of the 1930s who encouraged tap dancing to children around the world. Shirley Jane Temple was born in Santa Monica California. Her mother’s name was Gertrude (1893-1977) and was a high school graduate. Her father’s name was George (1888-1980) and was a banker. When Shirley was three years old she was enrolled at the Ethel Meglin Dance studio where she remained for numerous years.

In our society we have many traditions. These traditions all have certain meanings behind them; however, many of those meanings tend to be lost or forgotten. The holiday of Thanksgiving was originally a celebration to commemorate the arrival of the pilgrims in the new world and their first interactions with the Native Americans. So then why is it still celebrated today? There is no actual purpose in today’s society to observe this custom.  It has just continued to be observed because of past traditions.  There is no logical reason to continue this fête, as it holds little or no value.  With the passage of time the actual reasons have been lost or distorted, such as in the case of Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery.”

Modern criticism of Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery has focused almost exclusively on the issues of feminism and gender roles yet some recent reviews tend to classify the writing as feminist literature. They claim the story highlights the negative aspects of patriarchal societies through the telling of the lottery ritual. However many overlook the roles that the women play throughout this story. The purpose of this paper is to examine how Shirley Jackson uses feminism throughout her story and also to show the feminist attitude the women have towards the male-dominated society.

Shirley Jackson?s insights and observations about society are reflected in her shocking and disturbing short story The Lottery. Jackson reveals two general attitudes in this story: first is the shocking tendency for societies to select a scapegoat and second is the idea that communities are victims of social tradition and rituals.

Shirley Jackson 's ‘The Lottery’ is a classic American short story known for its shocking twist ending and its insightful commentary on cultural traditions. It was originally printed in The New Yorker magazine in 1948.The tale begins with all the villagers gathering in the town square for the annual lottery as if it were just another day. Children are playing with stones while the adults swap stories of farming and gossip. It 's not until the lottery begins, over halfway through the story that we start to suspect that all is not as it seems. Literature continues to be a means to expose the darkness of that inequality (Gioia, 2013). Writers carry the burden of exposing the darkness that lies at the heels of ignorance as Jackson so