The Importance of the Setting in a Story

When and where a story takes place can be deeply important. Considering where the author’s story takes place and why the author chose that location will likely give the reader a better understanding of what message the author is trying to get across. Most stories would be transformed if their setting were different and setting is, therefore, essential for interpreting the story’s significance. Shirley Jackson uses irony and foreshadowing in the start of "The Lottery". The setting in "The Lottery" gives a feeling of quiet normalcy. Jackson offers an image of a ordinary town on a ordinary summer day. However, Jackson employs the setting in "The Lottery" as a way of foreshadowing an ending that is not expected. Jackson describes the location of the town square "between the post office and the bank" (133). This gives an idea of how small the town is.
Jackson starts "The Lottery" by developing the setting, by establishing the year and what day it is. Thus, further creating a sense of normalcy for the reader. She goes on to describe the grass as "richly green" and that "the flowers were blooming profusely" (133). These descriptions of the environment make the reader feel secure about the setting as if there was nothing could go wrong in such a normal small town.
Until this point in the story Shirley Jackson has not indicated anything out of the ordinary that would foreshadow an twisted and unexpected ending. Nevertheless as the story proceeds Jackson provides the reader clues about the oddities of this town. Shirley Jackson produces the feeling of an ordinary town on a ordinary summer morning. This setting produces a feeling of a calm and peaceful environment. By using discreet details, Shirley Jackson is able to foreshadow the s...

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...oughts of values eventually influence what actions Sammy will decide to take. In the end, it is the setting that drives Sammy to change, and a gives the realization that the world is a lot tougher than he thought.
While the main ideas of each of these three short stories vary greatly, each author used the setting as a way to set up the plot and provide the reader with a general mood to the story. Each one of the short stories mentioned used setting to develop the plot and build on the main ideas and feelings the author was trying to create.

Works Cited

Jackson, Shirley, (2011). 'The Lottery'. In: E. McMahan, S. Day, R. Funk, L. Coleman (ed), Literature and The Writing Process. Backpack ed.: Pearson. pp.133-138.
Chopin, Kate. Kate Chopin's "the Story of an Hour". Patterson, N.Y N.p., n.d. Print.
Updike, John. A&p. Princeton, N.J N.p., n.d. Print.