Reflection On The Lottery By Shirley Jackson

Kristine Chin

Navarro

English II Pre-AP, Period 7

29 April 2016

Winning the Lottery

Traditions commonly exist in societies to bind citizens together as one community. Following these customs unquestioningly, however, can be potentially dangerous. In Shirley Jackson’s short story, “The Lottery,” Tessie Hutchinson is the victim of a long-held ritual in her village. After Tessie is randomly selected from the black box, all citizens, including her husband and children, must stone her to death. In the past, this tradition was held to cope with the harsh conditions of the village; however, the reason for the unnecessary continuation of the lottery remains unknown. Through “The Lottery,” Jackson portrays the conflicting inequality between men and

women in a patriarchal society, and also conveys humans’ innate tendency to blame others for their sins, and but most strongly displays the dangers of blindly following barbaric tradition.
Throughout the story, Jackson employs condescending diction and a harsh tone to portray the unjust, inferior status of women in a patriarchal society.

For instance, a sympathetic tone towards Mr. Summers is conveyed as “...people were sorry for him because he had no children and his wife was a scold” (Jackson 1). This sympathy causes the villagers to give Mr. Summers the high position of being the conductor of the lottery. In contrast, this is juxtaposed with the condescending diction utilized to describe his wife, who is seen as a lowly “scold” for being barren. The inequality shines through as Mrs. Summers receives no sympathy and is instead blamed for the pitiful predicament of Mr. Summers. In another case, betrayal of husband against wife is revealed when “Bill went over to his wife and forced the slip of paper out of her hand” (Jackson 5). Although she clearly drew the marked paper, indicating she will be the village’s sacrifice, Bill displays no compassion for her, regarding the tradition of the lottery as more important than his wife’s life. He dictates his authority over her, giving her no chance to say a few last words, commanding her to “‘Shut up’” when she complains of the obvious unfairness of the drawing (Jackson 4). In his criticism, Fritz Oehlschlaeger notes that “At the beginning of the story, the girls...[watch] the boys gather the stones, but as those girls become women, the involvement in marriage and childbearing...pits them against one another, binding

them to the fact that all power in their community is male” (2). Society’s influence on females as they grow older is evident through the growing participation of women in the stoning of the lottery victim, turning against each other instead of against men, symbolizing the male's success in having complete dominance in society. Women continue to “play their game,” however, in fear of their own lives, stoning each other and killing their resistance towards this illogical tradition, ultimately affirming male dominance. Through this ironic situation, Jackson explores the theme of sexism in which women tolerate and even encourage the inequality of a patriarchal society. Females are forced to follow the male-dominated tradition of the lottery without questioning the reason for such a brutal ritual, which also reveals the violent nature of humans.
Additionally, Jackson utilizes a merciless tone and cruel details to expose humans’ malignant nature in victimizing unjustly. For example, in preparation of stoning the determined victim, Mrs. Delacroix “...selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands...” (Jackson 1) to throw at Tessie, her fellow neighbor and friend whom she was gossiping with just a couple hours ago. Her instinctive inclination to find the largest stone illustrates her cruel nature, eager to sacrifice a friend for the “good of the community.” Also, the village’s savage behavior is emphasized through the fact that “...the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the original black box, [but] they still remembered to use stones” (Jackson 5). This cruel detail highlights that even though the villagers have forgotten the original purpose of the lottery, they refuse to let go of the violence of the ritual, revealing the innate brutality of humans. In her criticism, Lainhoff compares “The Lottery” to another novel, The Golden Bough, and relates that “The scapegoat rite had a double purpose: to exorcise the evils of the old year by transferring them to some inanimate or animate objects, and...to appease forces of the new year, to insure fertility” (153). Similarly, the victim of the lottery symbolizes payment for presumably a tumultuous past, and as a measure to prevent the past from replaying itself in the future. The village’s fear of history repeating itself promotes the continuation of this barbaric ritual, arousingcausing the reader to the question of whether their past was actually worse than this present inhumane society, or if the village’s attempt on bettering society has ironically made it worse. Lainhoff concludes that “...beneath our civilized surface, patterns of savage behavior are at work...However, Miss Jackson is optimistic: some villages have abandoned the lottery; and the children, unlike their elders, preserve an uncontaminated affection for one another” (154). Though the village seems to be “blossoming profusely,” in reality, it has become evil and barbaric (Jackson 1). This maliciousness is symbolized through the tradition of the lottery, in which people have become blind to the true purpose. Hope for the future, however, is foreshadowed through the discontinuation of the tradition in some regions, revealing promise for a more humane society to come. Fear of the past returning binds the villagers together, and as a result, they select a scapegoat to sacrifice, confirming humans’ flawed nature of victimizing others for their own sins, but also exposing another: following tradition unquestioningly.
Furthermore, Jackson presents imagery and symbolism to portray the detriments of blindly following tradition.

For example, when told that some areas are getting rid of the lottery tradition, Old Man Warner denounces them as a “Pack of crazy fools...Next thing you know, they’ll be wanting to go back to living in caves, nobody work any more, live that way for a while” (Jackson 3). Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, symbolizes the old ways and traditions. His condescending diction of calling them “fools” attests to his belief that the young generation will only bring about change and change will only bring about trouble exemplifying the whole village’s fear of change. But as Jennifer Hicks deduces in her criticism, “...barbaric rituals once used to sustain the community in a harsh environment were often continued to enact a sense of unity and history within the community, even if they were no longer necessary” (146). The people are bound together by fear, and as a result, continue the unnecessary murdering of victims, which ironically makes them feel safer. In reality, however, the lottery is more harmful than beneficial. Another symbolic example is the citizens’ refusal to give up the black box, even though it “...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 1). The imagery of the “faded” and “stained” box highlights its deteriorating

condition, which will only get worse. The box represents the village and its people, who are also “faded” and “stained” but still refuse to deviate from old traditions. Overall, the detriments of following tradition without reason is evident through the symbolic examples.
Through an abominable story of the murder of an innocent victim, Jackson demonstrates the internal conflict of females seen as lowly and insignificant in an unjust patriarchal society, humans’ natural inclination to victimize in order to create a more “unified society,” and the dangers of blindly following tradition. Although extreme, the village in the “The Lottery” presents a contrasting view of tradition, which is normally viewed in a positive light, and compels the reader to question the true purpose of traditions and holidays celebrated today.

Word Count: 1319