Shirley Jackson, The Lottery

785 Words2 Pages

Shirley Jackson sets out to weave a disturbing story that reveals the underlying blackness of a seemingly happy community in, “The Lottery”. Jackson masterfully uses writing strategies to craft a solidly thrilling story. The story’s voice is that of an objective third view that plunges the reader into the sleepy little village. Author Shirley Jackson sets her readers right into the middle of a small village and sets about weaving her story into the very mind of her audience. “The Lottery” contains several smartly used writing techniques. Each of these techniques breathes life into the story. Sprinkled throughout the story are instances of figurative language that opens the readers mind to the possibility. One use of figurative language is imagery and another is the author’s use of symbols. Jackson use of the third person point of view allows for an unobstructed picture of the occurrences in the village, letting readers draw some of their own conclusions. One of the best uses of writing techniques, by the author, is the foreshadowing throughout the story. Shirley Jackson masterfully uses several writing techniques to craft a solidly thrilling literary work.
Jackson paints a vivid word picture of the village, "The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green (Jackson 263).” Now the reader feels the warm day and smells the flowers and the rich green grass. Jackson also creates characters that speak to the reader, little boys collecting pebbles, small children rolling in the dirt, and young girls whispering and talking quietly. The author gives a good amount of detail on about the mothers’ quiet manners and faded house dr...

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...red to use stones (Jackson 268).” The author uses the men’s reluctance to even help hold the black box stable as a hint at the horrors that lie ahead. Then men are afraid of the box and all it represents and this in itself should let the reader know the box has an ominous purpose. Using foreshadowing Jackson builds a finely tuned tension in the story as the reader is allowed brief glimpses at the horror hidden in the seemingly innocent ritual.
Shirley Jackson masterfully uses different literary techniques to bring her story to life. The innocent village, full of simple people, headed toward a major community event. The author takes her reader down the road with little whispers of the truth to what is coming in the end and yet when the final truth is revealed the reader is left stunned and thoughtful. Jackson’s story is a skillfully constructed piece of literature.

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