The Lottery

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Everything may not be what they seem to be in Shirley Jackson short story “The Lottery” people hold loyalties of varying level to various items incident and rituals in their lives. The townspeople hold the utmost loyalty towards their tradition of the lottery. Their loyalty also lies with some traditions and items such as the ritualistic drawing box, which is tattered and worn. Also their loyalties lie more with this than they do with the townspeople’s neighbors and families. As a whole these people feel more loyalty to a tradition that feel has gotten through hard times and have seen no reason to chance over many years.
The lottery has been a part of the village for as long as anyone can remember. It was established in connection with the yearly harvest of corn, “‘Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon.’” (Jackson para 26) This suggests that the town used the lottery as a means of ritual sacrifice to a deity that they felt contributed to the yearly harvest. This town seems to be one of the few towns still practicing the ceremony of having lotteries, "They do say," Mr. Adams said to O...

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