Irony In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

The Lottery Analysis In Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery, took place in a small town where villagers were gathered around the town center. The townspeople were waiting for the lottery which took place every year. The heads from each families had to draw a paper from the black box which determine life or death. After the first round no one got the marked paper, so they began a second round between a family who complained there was cheating. When 4 of the 5 members opened up their paper and noticed they weren’t the marked ones, they realized the wife had chosen the marked paper. Quickly, the town gathered around the wife and began stoning her. Shirley Jackson in the short story emphasizes the use of irony with the setting, how the characters are described, and the title The Lottery to make a point to the reader. In the beginning of the The

For example, when Mrs. Hutchinson arrived late to the town square, she begins to make jokes with the townspeople “Wouldn’t have me leave m’dishes in the sink, now would you Joe?,” (306). The townspeople is now focused on her due to her late arrival and is now laughing at her joke. Mrs. Hutchinson then complains about the drawing not being fair and brings in her children into the drawing. “Soullessness of Tessie Hutchinson even denies the myth of family love” (Coulthard 227). Then an unexpected turn happens and her children “...both beamed and laughed” (309) when they didn’t get the marked paper, instead Mrs. Hutchinson gets the marked paper and is the one to be stoned. Another character that shows irony is when Old man Warner states “Next thing you know, they’ll be wanting to go back to living in caves” (308). Old man Warner basically says that if they stop the lottery, then they will suddenly go back in caves and wait for the harvest. He believes the lottery is a good thing for the town however, the irony here is that the lottery is not a good thing for the