The Power and Pain of Traditions

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Recommended: The Lottery By Shirley Jackson

Traditions are like a two-edged sword. They can be very powerful and helpful or they can be very hurtful and painful. Traditions gain momentum with each passing year, and in many cases they become difficult or impossible to stop. In “The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson uses situation irony, suspense, and dialogue to show that some groups of people have traditions they do not want to end, even if there is no reason for the tradition.
One way Jackson shows the importance of traditions is through situational irony. At the beginning of the story, all the people in the town seem sweet and innocent. But by the end of the day, they change, and they throw rocks at Tessie Hutchinson and kill her. Mrs. Hutchinson is the one that loses the lottery and she says, ” It isn't fair.” And then a stone hit her on the side of the head.“ (Jackson 5) The stones they use to throw at Mrs. Hutchinson are from the piles of stones collected by the kids in the morning. Every year it is a tradition to do the lottery, and by the end of the lottery the townspeople kill one of the people that lives in the town. ...

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