The villager’s lottery is the promise of death. “Bill Hutchinson went over to his wife and forced the slip of paper out of her hand. It had a black spot on it” (Jackson 3). Bill Hutchinson wife’s traumatic destiny by how she did not want to lose the lottery. “Indeed she focuses on the unde... ... middle of paper ... ...n the past.
(Jackson 78). Naturally, the rest of the self-centered people urge her to "[b]e a good sport"(Jackson 78). The most disturbing event in the entire story is when Tessie tries to get her older daughters to be part of the final picking, and is dissapointed when she is told that they are only drawn with their husbands. The lottery proceeds and Tessie is stoned to death by her fellow neighbors. Shirley Jackson wants us to float along with her upbeat story and be completely appalled in the end at the total loss of human decency.
Societies become so accustomed to “tradition” that they will participate in pastimes without questioning the ethics or morals of the situation. Ultimately when tradition takes the place of a rationalizing mind the outcome can be incredibly dangerous. The role of tradition is an underlying theme in the short story The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, forcing readers to ask themselves “At what point do people set tradition aside and realize the thoughtlessness of their actions in their practices?” The Lottery begins with the description of a clear, sunny summer day in a small village. The townspeople are beginning to gather in the town square for the annual “lottery”. Jackson starts the story off by describing what groups are assembling in the square and their actions.
Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. Twelfth Edition. New York: Pearson, 2013.
Mrs. Hutchinson protests the process of the lottery and the town’s methods, “It isn’t fair, it isn’t right” Mrs. Hutchinson screamed, and then they were upon her.” (Kennedy & Gioia, 2013, pp. 256). The interpretation of the stoning is that the town quantifies the reason to murder to satisfy the harvest. The point of view of materialism in the Rocking Horse Winner by D.H. Lawrence is the seen from inside the mind of child in the story, Paul. “He went off by himself, vaguely, in a childish way, seeking for the clue to “luck,” Absorbed, taking n... ... middle of paper ... ...ing horse, her desires are never satisfied.
In Shirley Jackson’s short story, “The Lottery” the use of the third-person dramatic point of view allow the readers to visualize themselves in a typical village spying on an annual lottery. However, in actuality they are about to realize that the subdued and ordinary townspeople have traditions that are much more sacred than a human life. Throughout the story, the third-person dramatic point of view contributes to the tone and idea as a result of Jackson’s effective use of language control, indifferent attitude, and characters’ dialogue. Jackson’s choice of point of view enables her to shape the tone with language control. She uses linguistic such as, adjectives and adverbs sparingly to define characters.
We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen” (Coelho). Life becomes valued once risks are taken, but the outcome is never expected. Shirley Jackson, reader of witchcraft books, horrifies people with her perspective on the understanding of merciless rituals that kept communities at ease. Shirley Jackson develops her theme of unexpected violence in her short story “The Lottery” through the use of irony, symbolism, and denouement. On a summer day in a small town in the short story, “The Lottery”, Jackson takes advantage of the peaceful environment and adds a convoluted twist through a misleading title and Old Man Warner and his traditions.
Summers said. “Let’s finish quickly” (262). In the third place, the use of violence towards the end is breathless. The villagers are going to stoned Tessie to death and even her family has to cooperate in killing her. The theme of this short story is that following a tradition can be dangerous.
Tradition in Shirley Jackson's The Lottery Shirley Jackson?s insights and observations about society are reflected in her shocking and disturbing short story The Lottery. Jackson reveals two general attitudes in this story: first is the shocking tendency for societies to select a scapegoat and second is the idea that communities are victims of social tradition and rituals. Anyone with knowledge of current events must be aware of times when society has seized upon a scapegoat as means of resolution. Countless politicians, military leaders, corporate executives and school administrators frequently use this proven technique. The people of the small village were very similar to the leaders of our society.
Jackson obviously saw examples of this misuse of tradition and ingeniously placed it into an exaggerated situation to let us see how barbaric our actions are. The townspeople, in the story, all come together for the annual lottery; however, in an interesting twist, those participating stone the winner to death. Everyone in the story seems horribly uncivilized yet they can easily be compared to today's society. Perhaps Jackson was suggesting the coldness and lack of compassion the human race can exhibit in situations regarding tradition and values. The People who were stoned to death represented values and good being as the townspeople, who represented society, cold-heartedly destroyed them ( Jackson 79 ).