Analyzation of "The Lottery"

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The Dangers of Tradition Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” recounts a chilling tale of disturbing ritual in a small village. Jackson uses profound introductory skill to keep the reader guessing what the “lottery” may be. In the scholarly journal, “Grand Openings,” Steve Dimeo commends Jackson’s ability to keep the lottery unknown to the reader until the very end. Jackson also brings the idea of a patriarchally led household as well as the dangers of blindly following tradition into question in the short story. The short story begins on a warm day in late June, the people of a small unnamed village gather in the town square to participate in a traditional lottery run by Mr. Summers, a powerful business owner in the village. The village children arrive first and begin collecting stones until their parents call them to order, Jackson does not state what the stones are for. After everyone has arrived, Mr. Summers calls each head of the household, the patriarch or eldest son, forward to a black wooden box to select a slip of paper. After all the men have chosen, Mr. Summers allows everyone to open the paper, revealing that Bill Hutchinson has been selected. His wife, Tess Hutchinson begins to protest, insinuating that the lottery is not a positive thing. Mr. Summers places five slips of paper into the box, one for each member of the Hutchinson family. Each member of the family then draws a slip of paper from the box. Tess draws a slip of paper with a big black dot in the center. Jackson now reveals what the “prize” of the lottery is, a stoning. As the villagers advance upon her, the reason for the children gathering the stones becomes apparent. The story ends with Tess protesting in vain as the villagers attack her. Jackson does not reveal what the lottery truly is until the very end of the short story. She does this to keep the reader on their toes and always
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