The Lottery Rhetorical Analysis

Tradition has always been something engrained in every culture and it can be beautiful, fun, unusual, or in some cases ruthless. Every year in Bosnia they hold A Festival of Scrambled Eggs where free eggs are given out due to its symbol of new life. On the other hand, every year followers of Jainism conduct in a practice of fasting until death. 500 believers die every year from this because they don’t see the body as a sanctuary of the soul but instead as a prison of the soul. The Lottery was written shortly after World War II and the author declared the purpose of writing it was “to shock the story’s readers with a graphic demonstration of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives” (Jackson). Old Man Warner symbolizes this blind faith in tradition and is used in this story to show us the opposite of what the author believes. The author uses literary devices such as symbols, characterization, and theme to portray her message. Shirley Jackson shows through Old Man Warner that tradition in societies based upon ritual and blind faith leads to failure.

Symbol are the strongest literary device that Shirley Jackson enforces in The Lottery. One of the most interesting aspects of this story

is trying to understand what the symbols truly represent. The title itself is symbolic in that it symbolizes undisputed rituals and traditions that make no sense but are done because it has always been done. The stones represent a cruel death and can be originated to the roots of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism as a means of punishing an outlaw to strengthen group beliefs. The black box is a physical sign of the villagers’ connection to tradition but is becoming shabbier. Gary Johnson with the Ohio State University Press stated “the continued use of a “shabby” receptacle for the slips of paper that function as the lots only because “no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box” (Jackson 293)—contributes to the comfort that certain abiding rites or traditions can engender in a society” (33-49).
Some might believe why try to change tradition if its been proven to work and is effective? The people of the village might not know that their tradition is wrong but feel slightly hesitant to change when they hear of towns giving the ritual up. However, it is inhumane and cruel to kill a person based upon practice or belief. Old Man Warner is perhaps the most symbolic character of all in the story. He is the linchpin of the tradition in The Lottery and refutes any remark about changing it. He signifies everything that is flawed with tradition. When Mr. Adams tells him of a village up north that might give up the lottery he says
“Pack of crazy fools. Listening to the young folks, nothing’s good enough for them. Next thing you know, they’ll be wanting to go back to living in caves, nobody work anymore, live that way for a while…Bad enough to see young Joe Summers up there joking with everybody” (Jackson 240).
The characterization of Old Man Warner is the most important in this story because it shows an Irony of Point of View from the author. Shirley Jackson doesn’t believe that the Old Man is right but believes the complete opposite of what he stands for. Rituals are usually seen as a religious activity and in The Lottery it seems that way. Jennifer Hicks from Massachusetts Bay Community College states “In fact, Jackson points us in this direction when Old Man Warner states, “There used to be a saying about Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon.” (Jackson 240). She wants her audience to question tradition and to see that humans have always been involved in inhumane and evil practices due to tradition and belief. Old Man Warner can’t even remember the reason or origin of the lottery. “The black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born” (Jackson 237). Old Man Warner is the only static character because he is determined to keep the tradition of the lottery the same.
Theme is used extensively throughout the story but there are two prevalent ones.

They are the dangers of following tradition blindly and the scapegoat. A scapegoat is someone who is used to shoulder the blame of others and in this case it is Mrs. Hutchinson. Both themes lead up to the stoning of Tessie Hutchinson. The final scene is rich in detail and Old Man Warner is the one who encourages everyone to start the ritual “Come on, come on, everyone.” …It isn’t fair, it isn’t right,’’ Mrs. Hutchinson screamed and then they were upon her. (Jackson 237). The part that sends goosebumps down the backs of readers is “and then they were upon her’’. It chillingly shows the actions of the town and how they use Mrs. Hutchinson as their scapegoat for their cruel

behavior.
The peer pressure from the mob behavior and Old Man Warner causes the town to act without reason and kill an innocent person based on tradition. The culture of the town and the culture of the Nazis weren’t that different in that they both worked on mob mentality and blindly followed authority. The way the men of the village say “Glad to see your mother's got a man to do it,” further emphasizes the patriarchal nature of the village, and the hopeful optimism of Mrs. Adams's remark is buried within the town's demand for tradition and ritual”(Hicks).

In conclusion, Old Man Warner represents the unwillingness to change and conform to new ideas. In America people including the president are still resisting change such as accepting refugees and funding useful arts. One of the reasons The Lottery is such an effective story is due to the style of the narrator. “Jackson wants to provoke a particular reaction, and restricting her narrator to the matter-of-fact reporting of a series of increasingly disturbing events effectively serves that purpose”(Johnson 33-49). Shirley Jackson makes her audience look at themselves as a society and think twice before they do something just because it’s a ritual or has always been that way through her use of the character Old Man Warner.