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Analysis of Shirley Jackson the Lottery
Shirley jackson the lottery conclusion
Shirley jackson the lottery conclusion
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Blindly following a person, tradition, or an ideology is illogical and prevents progression of individuals and their surrounding society. In Shirley Jackson’s 1948 short story, “The Lottery”, all the members of a small town gather together per annum to randomly choose a human sacrifice in hopes of a plentiful harvest. After the drawings are completed, it is determined that Tessie Hutchinson drew the paper with a black spot. The townspeople grabbed rocks from a pile that was gathered by the children earlier and stoned her to death. Jackson uses symbolism, imagery, and patriarchal leadership to bring the reader to a sunny, but dark world where a community murders a member of their society without hesitation to satisfy a deep-rooted tradition. …show more content…
Imagery is used throughout the story to describe a beautiful day as children mechanically gather stones to be used at the climax of the event.
In “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, she suggests the dated tradition by describing the aging of the box and the suggestion for a new box, “Every year, after the lottery, Mr. Summers began talking again about a new box, but every year the subject was allowed to fade off without anything's being done. The black box grew shabbier each year: by now it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color, and in some places faded or stained.” (Jackson 305) The setting is described as “clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green.” (Jackson 304). The children are the first to assemble and “Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example” (304). Only the male children have the responsibility of gathering rocks while the female children talk among each
other. This community is traditionally run by males and even when Mrs. Dunbar volunteers for the simple role of drawing a ballot for her absent husband, she is questioned and shamed. Mr. Summers asks, “Don’t you have a grown boy to do it for you, Janey?” (Jackson 307) Mrs. Dunbar regretfully explains that her son is not yet sixteen years old and that she guesses that she must fill in for her husband. In "'The Lottery' As Misogynist Parable", Gayle Whittier explains, “The ritual of the lottery itself, like the society it seems to preserve, is patriarchal. Men – Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves – conduct it” (Whittier 3) The male dominance is further asserted as Old Man Warner, who boasts that it his seventy-seventh year in the lottery, firmly shuts down any talk of stopping the lottery. Mrs. Adams states, “Some places have already quit lotteries” (Jackson 308) and Old Man Warner stoutly says, “Nothing but trouble in that, Pack of young fools.” (308) Tessie Hutchinson speaks out against this yearly tradition throughout the piece, and the final plea from her is drowned out by Old Man Warner again pushing the crowd to begin throwing rocks at her, showcasing how this society defaults to the men in the community and disregarding the women’s voices. Additionally, Jackson uses symbolic names to foreshadow the ominous events about to take place. In Jay Yarmove’s “Jackson's The Lottery”, he explains “Graves sounds a somber, forewarning note of what will happen to Tessie, and the oldest man in town, Old Man Warner (the others have either died or been killed off) warns about the primordial function of the lottery, which is to ensure fertility” and “Mrs. Delacroix’s name alludes to the pseudo-crucifixion of Tessie.” (Yarmove 243) Yarmove points out, “The name “Tessie” parodies the most famous Tess in literature, Tess Durbeyfield” who “as a plaything of fate, dies ignominiously” (Yarmove 243) These examples clearly show how Jackson’s play on symbolism is well thought out and woven through the entire piece, which helps showcase the societal struggle in a time period just come out of the gruesome reality of the Holocaust. The purpose of this piece is multifaceted, although it is relatively short. Jackson successfully uses imagery to paint a picture for the reader, and takes a while to show the true nature of the yearly ritual, or Lottery. If a reader refers to the time, the piece can parallel how easily a pretty picture can turn gruesome which the world witnessed with the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi movement in Germany. While the patriarchal society in this piece is sexist, Jackson seems to parallel a sexist society with a nationalist society, again regarding the period. “The Lottery” forces the reader to evaluate society and if one should truly follow old traditions, or change and learn from the past.
Toward the finale of the short story, Shirley Jackson, the author of “The Lottery” declares, “Although the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the black box, they still remembered to use stones” (873). Many of the residents display no knowledge of the lottery and only participate because of tradition. In fact, only Old Man Warner recollects the authentic purpose of the lottery. He furnishes some insight behind the tradition of the lottery by declaring, “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon” (Jackson 871). Old Man Warner reveals the original reason for holding the lottery, but Jackson clearly demonstrates that the original purpose no longer exists. The villagers comprehend the procedure of stoning the victim but nothing else. Nick Crawford articulates in an easy about “The Lottery,” “The most disturbing thing about Tessie Hutchinson’s unexpected demise is its...
Shirley Jackson's 'The Lottery', is a story that is filled with symbolism. The author uses symbolism to help her represent human nature as tainted, no matter how pure one thinks of himself or herself, or how pure their environment may seem to be. The story is very effective in raising many questions about the pointless nature of humanity regarding tradition and violence. 'The Lottery' clearly expresses Jackson's feelings concerning mankind?s evil nature hiding behind traditions and rituals. She shows how coldness and lack of compassion in people can exhibit in situations regarding tradition and values. Jackson presents the theme of this short story with a major use of symbolism. Symbolism shows throughout the setting of 'The Lottery,' the objects, the peoples actions, and even in the time and the names of the lucky contestants.
In The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson, the people of the village are consumed by a tradition. Every year in the month of June, they conduct a lottery to determine who will be stoned. The unjustified killing of a human being is widely viewed as an iniquitous act. Although surrounding communities have ceased the tradition of the lottery, this society continues the tradition. The idea of not practicing the tradition has been brought up numerous times within the community but “the subject was allowed to fade off ” (351). The community was conscience of the tradition being unethical but because it was a part of their heritage and believed to determine the success of their harvest, no one would do anything about the lottery. Once she is picked from the lottery, Tessie Hutchinson notices that the people are not conducting the lottery fairly and decides to stand up against the tradition. It can be inferred that women were not considered equal to the males of the village. Tessie—a woman— had the courage to stand against the tradition. Tessie understood that not all traditions are good. A tradition can be so engraved into an individual that they forget its purpose. In the story...
Tradition is huge in small towns and families and allows for unity through shared values, stories, and goals from one generation to the next. Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” carries that theme of tradition. The story follows a small town that performs the tradition of holding an annual lottery in which the winner gets stoned to death. It (tradition) is valued amongst human societies around the world, but the refusal of the villagers in “The Lottery” to let go of a terrifying long-lasting tradition suggests the negative consequences of blindly following these traditions such as violence and hypocrisy.
In Shirley Jackson's short story "The Lottery" symbols are used to enhance and stress the theme of the story. A symbol is a person, object, action, place, or event that in addition to its literal meaning, suggests a more complex meaning or range of meanings. (Kirszner & Mendell 330) The theme of the story is how coldness and lack of compassion can be exhibited in people in situations regarding tradition and values. That people will do incredibly evil and cruel things just for the sake of keeping a routine. Three of the main symbols that Shirley uses in the story is the setting, black box, and the actual characters names. They all tie together to form an intriguing story that clearly shows the terrible potential if society forgets the basis of tradition. The story also shows many similarities between the culture of the village, and the culture of Nazi Germany. How blind obedience to superiors can cause considerable damage to not only a community, but the entire world. Symbolism plays a large role in "The Lottery" to set the theme of the story and make the reader question traditions.
Shirley Jackson's “The Lottery” is a short story about the annual gathering of the villagers to conduct an ancient ritual. The ritual ends in the stoning of one of the residents of this small village. This murder functions under the guise of a sacrament that, at one time, served the purpose of ensuring a bountiful harvest. This original meaning, however, is lost over the years and generations of villagers. The loss of meaning has changed the nature and overall purpose of the lottery. This ritual is no longer a humble sacrifice that serves the purpose of securing the harvest but instead is a ceremony of violence and murder only existing for the pleasure found in this violence.
“The Lottery,” written by Shirley Jackson in 1948, is a provoking piece of literature about a town that continues a tradition of stoning, despite not know why the ritual started in the first place. As Jackson sets the scene, the villagers seem ordinary; but seeing that winning the lottery is fatal, the villagers are then viewed as murders by the reader. Disagreeing with the results of the lottery, Tessie Hutchinson is exposed to an external conflict between herself and the town. Annually on June 27th, the villagers gather to participate in the lottery. Every head of household, archetypally male, draws for the fate of their family, but Tessie protests as she receives her prize of a stoning after winning the lottery. Jackson uses different symbols – symbolic characters, symbolic acts, and allegories – to develop a central theme: the
Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” is a chilling tale of a harsh ritualistic gathering conducted by people of a small village. The word lottery would typically remind someone of a drawing to win a cash prize. A better comparison to the story would be the lottery used to select troops for the Vietnam War; a lottery of death. Another would be the human sacrifices the Aztecs willingly made long ago.
Set in a small town of New England, an annual horrifying lottery takes place. It isn’t a customary lottery where the winner is rewarded with great prizes and masses of money; instead, it is a drawing of fate to mark the next victim’s death. The victim, chosen at random, is violently murdered by every member of the village. This short story, labeled as Gothic fiction, was written by Shirley Jackson in the year of 1948. Through the themes, Jackson implies the weaknesses of humankind, revealing the underlying evilness of human nature. The social events during the time period in which “The Lottery” was published influenced the content in that it created a parallel image between reality and the actual story.
box. We do not always enjoy change, even if it might prove beneficial to us.
The short story “ The Lottery ” the author Shirley Jackson uses symbolism and imagery to develop a theme the brings forth the evil and inhumane nature of tradition and the danger of when it’s carried out with ignorance.
In Shirley Jackson’s "The Lottery," what appears to be an ordinary day in a small town takes an evil turn when a woman is stoned to death after "winning" the town lottery. The lottery in this story reflects an old tradition of sacrificing a scapegoat in order to encourage the growth of crops. But this story is not about the past, for through the actions of the town, Jackson shows us many of the social ills that exist in our own lives.
Symbolism is used heavily in “The Lottery”. One of the first symbols revealed in the short story is the Black Box, used by the townspeople as the raffle box. “The black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner . . .was born. Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box” (Jackson). The Black Box stands as a symbol for the lottery itself and tradition of all types. Although it may be difficult to “upset” or change parts of traditions that have been practiced for ages, it is necessary to do so to grow as people. “Another symbol in the story is the black box. Although it is old and shabby, the villagers are unwilling or unable to replace it, just as they are unwilling to stop participating in the lottery” (Wilson). The...
“The Lottery” is a story written by Shirley Jackson. By looking at the title you may think about money prize. In this story takes the readers expectation to another level. By the two words of the title there is no way the reader did not get hook to reading this story. In “The Lottery” Shirley Jackson, uses symbolism, irony, and imagery.
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, is a short story about an annual lottery draw in a small town. The story sets place in a small town in New England. Every year a lottery is held, in which one person is to be randomly chosen to be stoned to death by the people in the village. The lottery has been practiced for over seventy years by the townspeople. By using symbolism, Jackson uses names, objects, and the setting to conceal the true meaning and intention of the lottery.