The Lottery, By Shirley Jackson

On the surface, Shirley Jackson’s short story, “The Lottery,” reads as a work of horror. There is a village that holds an annual lottery where the winner is stoned to death so the village and its people could prosper. Some underlying themes include: the idea that faith and tradition are often followed blindly, and those who veer away from tradition are met with punishment, as well as the idea of a herd mentality and bystander apathy. What the author manages to do successfully is that she actually

succeed but many fail just like the main character Tessie Hutchinson in Shirley Jackson’s short story “The Lottery”. When someone hears the word “lottery”, he or she may think that someone will be rewarded with prize. But “The Lottery” By Shirley Jackson is different than what one thinks. In the story, a lottery is going to be conducted not like Mega Million or Powerball one play here. In the story, the person who wins the lottery is stoned to death instead of being rewarded with the prize.

“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson signifies the physical connection between the villagers and their unwillingness to give up their tradition. “The Lottery” is very unpredictable and quite misleading. The black box has no functionality, except every June 27th. Shirley Jackson depicts the black box as an important and traditional tool. Although the villagers in “The Lottery” are terrified of the goal of the lottery and the black box, they are unwilling to let go of the tradition. Shirley Jackson portrays

In 1948 Shirley Jackson composed the controversial short story “The Lottery.” Generally speaking, a title such as “The Lottery” is usually affiliated with an optimistic outlook. However, Jackson’s approach is quite unorthodox and will surely leave readers contemplating the intent of her content. The story exposes a crude, senseless lottery system in which random villagers are murdered amongst their peers. Essentially, the lottery system counteracts as a form of population control, but negatives easily

In Shirley Jackson’s, “The Lottery,” the author demonstrates the loss of the original significance of a tradition that results from people blindly following it. For example, the author makes it blatantly clear in the beginning of the story that The Lottery, the village’s annual ritual, which involves a human sacrifice is beginning to have lesser and lesser symbolic value to the villagers as opposed to when it began due to a lack of understanding in regard to the tradition’s significance. Secondly

4 May, 2015 Every Man for Himself “It isn’t fair, it isn’t right!” screamed Tessie Hutchinson before she was stoned to death (Jackson). “The Lottery,” by Shirley Jackson, is a short story about a village that has an annual lottery; however, in this lottery, one does not win the typical million dollar prize. They win death. Mr. Summers, the man who organizes the lottery, calls each family, up to a box to draw papers. All the papers are blank, but there is one paper with a single, black dot on it

filled with excitement and eeriness, leaving the reader speechless. The Lottery , a short story written by famous writer Shirley Jackson, created an uproar on June 26, 1948, when it was published in the magazine The New Yorker (Ball). The gothic thriller, set in an unknown time and place, shares the tradition of a small town, a little larger than three hundred people, in which a drawing is held once a year. In this “Lottery,” each family’s husband draws a slip of paper from a black box. The husband

“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, is a short story about an annual lottery draw in a small New England town. The town’s people have performed the lottery for more than seventy years. Shirley Jackson gives “The Lottery” a whole different meaning . The lottery is used for a public stoning, opposing to the very first thing that approaches to a reader 's mind when they think of the lottery; a big amount of money . The reader sees both literal and metaphorical meaning of the Shirley Jackson’s short story

Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” illustrates several aspects of the darker side of human nature. The townspeople in Jackson’s “The Lottery” unquestioningly adhere to a tradition which seems to have lost its relevance in their lives. The ritual that is the lottery shows how easily and willingly people will give up their free will and suspend their consciences to conform to tradition and people in authority. The same mindless complacency and obedience shown by the villagers in Jackson’s story are seen

Could you imagine having your name pulled out of the lottery? It is everyone’s dream to hit that jackpot, and obtain any prize that is in store for them. What if the prize wasn’t cash or your dream boat? What if it entailed a city wide gathering in your name with the intentions of you getting stoned? That doesn’t seem like a dream come true. That is exactly what happens in the short story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson. This horrific tale is about a mass city wide gathering where everyone participates