The Lottery, By Shirley Jackson And A Rose For Emily By William Faulkner

Figurative language is a strategy that authors have used over the years to give the reader different perspectives on the piece that they are reading about. In her short Story, “The Lottery”, Shirley Jackson writes about a small town that has a tradition known as the lottery. The way that the lottery works, is that there is black box with pieces of paper in it. The pieces of paper have the family names of every family in town. The last name standing then has to go into an elimination round with the people within the family. Each family member draws out of the black box, and the family member that pulls the slip of paper with the black dot gets stoned to death. In her short story, Jackson utilizes symbolism in the form of Old Man Warren, the black box and the pile of stones to demonstrate how tradition can be blinding without even knowing it.

Shirley Jackson also utilizes literary devices to good effect in “The Lottery,” especially that of symbolism. By keeping the setting devoid of any identifying details, Jackson frees the reader to imagine that it could be any place. The only constraints that the author places on her readers’ creativity are that the town is decidedly rural, perhaps narrowing the critique to the cultural scene most frequently associated with small town America. Other symbols include the box from which the lottery slips are drawn (an old and black object which heralds death), stoning as a method of execution (a particularly old and excruciating way to kill someone), and ritual itself (a series of often ill contemplated actions for which one needs no particular reason to follow). All of these, with their marked reference to age, clearly refer to tradition.

Within the first few lines of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" we are faced with such adjectives as clear, sunny, fresh and warmth. She goes on to paint a picture of small children just out of school for the summer, as the townspeople gather for the annual Lottery. This leads us to believe that the rest of the story is as cheery as the summer day initially described. We as the readers are virtually unaware of the horrible senseless events that lie ahead. Through the use of symbolism Shirley Jackson reveals the underlying decay of ethics that results from an empty ritual followed by narrow-minded people.

In Shirley Jackson’s short story the Lottery and Flannery O’Conner’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, there are a few aspects of a similar nature that attempt to tackle the nature essence of the human condition. Both short stories respectively portray two similar types of foreshadowing where one is random the other is premeditated, which leads these stories to their very surprising dramatic climax that is held until the end of each story. I believe that these important variables of both stories have a strong influence on the reader’s objectification regarding the way each story presents the idea of the human condition.

In her story “The Lottery”, Shirley Jackson manages to catch the readers’ attention and ultimately shock them with an unexpected ending; all of which help her emphasize her critique toward the dark side of human nature and the evil that resides, sometimes, in those who we less expect it from. Jackson uses symbolism throughout the story that helps her set the mood and also makes the readers wonder and analyze the senseless violence and cruelty in their own lives.

“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson has many subliminal symbolic meanings to its text. The author uses the title, the date of the lottery, the location, the box, the three-legged stool, and even character’s names to make the reader dig into the story to understand the full meaning. The title “The Lottery” is significant because the one who is chosen for “the lottery” doesn’t win a prize, but has to sacrifice their life for their community’s tradition. Which immediately begins the subliminal symbolic meanings because the title is the complete opposite of what happens within the story this is subliminally expressing a double theme. Which the title meaning one thing and what the plot of the story is completely opposite and is showing us the doubleness of the human spirit. The date, June twenty-seventh, is playing a role in the

Nebeker, Helen E. “The Lottery’: Symbolic Touch De Force” Short Story Criticism, edited by Jenny Cromie, vol. 39, Gale Group, 2000, 75 vols, pp. 187-90. Originally published in American Literature, vol. 46, no. 1, March, 1974, pp. 100-07.

"The Lottery," a short story written by Shirley Jackson, is a tale about an inhumane

Shirley Jackson wrote the story “The Lottery” back in 1948 to show us how ridiculous it could be to blindly follow certain traditions. In this story the author uses symbolisms to warn and prepare the reader about the gruesome ending of the lottery. There are a lot of symbols in the story and the main are the items, the lottery and the character names.

Throughout the world there have been bazaar rituals or traditions that don’t usually happen in the United States. To us it may seem wrong and cruel but to those countries seems to be the right thing to do because that is what they believe in. Some countries do their rituals or traditions like every single year. Most of them are somewhat similar or different but still have the same aspect. There are many people who still follow these traditions or try to escape to another place so they can be free to do whatever they want. There are a lot of comparisons between The Lottery by Shirley Jackson to the short story A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner.

Shirley Jackson tells use about a small town in June that is having their yearly lottery drawing. Shirley Jackson uses a lot of symbolism and characterization to tell about their tradition. Jackson also uses symbolism to tell the reader how long the tradition has went on by describing how old things are and some of the people. In her book,“The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson emphasizes the danger of accepting tradition through her portrayal of setting, characterization, and symbolism. Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities by giving things symbolic meaning.

In the short stories The Cask of Amontillado and The Lottery, both the authors have skillfully used symbolism to create intriguing stories that capture the reader’s attention. The use of symbolism makes a reader see objects as more than what they actually are. Edgar Alan Poe and Shirley Jackson have both used symbolism to create suspense in their stories and leave the readers shocked with an unexpected ending. These symbols are portrayed within the attire of the characters, the names of the characters, and the time and setting of the story. The symbols also provide a foreshadowing to the events that are to unfold in each of the stories.

In William Faulkner’s short story, “A Rose For Emily”, there are a few themes and symbols that are the most significant. The main character, Emily Grierson, is used to display the struggle against change while trying to keep old traditions alive. Emily’s house is a perfect symbol of old traditions. The theme of death is also displayed, as death seems to just follow Emily throughout her life. At the end of the short story, something as simple as a piece of long, gray hair becomes a huge symbol of the story, answering many questions for the community and, of course, the readers.

Symbolism in the real world can be evidently shown in mediocre objects, but in the short story “The Lottery,” deeper thinking is required in order to detect it. In “The Lottery,” symbolism is displayed quite frequently in order for the reader to better understand the story. It is not always perceptible, so context clues, evidence, and thinking outside the box must be put to use. Shirley Jackson uses the figurative language of symbolism in “The Lottery” to reveal the background of certain characters, objects, and events.

The literary world contains a vast collection of works, each employing diverse techniques in writing. One technique commonly found in literature is the use of images and symbols. Symbols are sometimes complex and contain both literal and figurative significance. Symbolism in literature is commonly used to bind the attributes of an object with various segments of a story to provide the reader with a deeper understanding and sometimes hidden meaning. In the short story, “A Rose for Emily” William Faulkner utilizes a vast collection of symbols, as a means to enhance the reader’s visual perceptions but also prompts consideration into theories of motive surrounding the murder of Homer Barron.