Examples Of Tradition In The Lottery By Shirley Jackson

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Awareness of Following Tradition “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon,” the Old Man Warner, who experienced seventy-seventh time in the lottery, speaks up. Obviously, harvests are important to farmers and villagers. In the past, many people worshipped things to pray for good harvests, and the town in “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson also followed that tradition. The story takes place in Mid 19s century when villagers gather to open a lottery so as to find a winner. In fact, chances are chosen randomly by picking papers in the black wooden box, and the prize violently is being stoned to death. Clearly, nobody wants to win this lottery. Therefore, “The Lottery” not only gives a shocked ending about its reward, but it also condemns people who blindly follow the old and unacceptable tradition. In the story, Shirley Jackson skillfully awakes people to humanity throughout symbolizing the black box, the stones, and the lottery itself. …show more content…

The word “black” can be noticed as bad things, and the “box” is stereotyped when people are powerless to change the old custom. Therefore, the “black box” symbolizes for the villagers, who keep following nonsensical tradition even it murders one’s life. In the story, the box is old, stained, and “no longer completely black.” That means the tradition is faded and no longer as needed as it used to be. Evenly, the villagers changed to use “slips of paper” instead of “the chips of wood,” so why they do not change the aim of this lottery. When the box needs to replace,the tradition must also change positively. Following tradition is meaningful, but everyone needs to realize whether it is a good culture or not. Blindly following tradition can be as harmful as killing an innocent person like in “The

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