Symbolism in “The Lottery” Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” is a short story filled with an immense amount of symbolism used in a way that conveys to readers the evil nature of society and traditions. Every year the community gathers to select a winner for the year’s lottery and this year it is Mrs. Tessie Hutchinson who is the lucky winner to be stoned to death. The story begins in a setting so real it could have taken place any where right here in America but it does not give an exact location. This signifies that these evils of humanity and tradition that take place in the story can take place any where we live. The time period the event occurs in is not stated either, signifying that such cruel acts can take place at any time.
What similarities are in the stories B. How they compare to each other V. How the stories are different A. What makes them different from each other B. How they contrast VI. In comparison of The Lottery and The Most Dangerous Game both Connell and Jackson convey to the readers that man is inherently evil and that choices made based on societal standards, traditions, and learned behavior may not be the morally correct choice.
Alike a fictional story, it presents highly unrealistic events (the boy’s ability to foretell the winners of horse races, the whispering house). “The Lottery” is a short story about a small village gathering, an annual tradition of a drawing for one person to be the winner of the lottery. At first glance of both stories the reader will think that there is no likeness between the two short stories. By taking a closer look the stories develop similarities such as: love, symbolism and fear. A few cohesions are enhanced by human nature in the stories, and an old question “is human nature foreseeable?” Considering a deeper look into each story there is a profusion of symbolism in both stories.
In Shirley Jackson’s, “The Lottery,” Jackson displays the fear of the lottery in the villagers by using symbolism, word choice, and sentence structure. Symbolism [Mr. Summers and Mr. Adams] grinned at one another humorlessly and nervously. Then Mr. Adams reached into the black box and took out a folded paper. He held it firmly by one corner as he turned and went hastily back to his place in the crowd. Where he stood a little apart from his family.
Sabrina Branham Mrs. Kathryn Brackett English 102-85 23 February 2015 Symbolism in “The Lottery” “The Lottery” is a great example of literary symbolism. Symbolism is used in this story to help the author reflect on how the human nature is flawed and impure, no matter how pure a person thinks they are, or how pure their environment may seem. “The Lottery” is a very effective story which raises many questions about how pointless the nature of one’s humanity about violence and tradition actually is. This story is clearly an expression of how the author, Shirley Jackson, feels about mankind and the evil nature one has hidden behind rituals and traditions. Her coldness and her lack of compassion is obvious.
'The Lottery' is a short story written by Shirley Jackson in 1948. The story is set in a small American town with 300 inhabitants where the people are close and tradition is important. In the beginning of the story the children of the town are gathering stones and putting them in piles. As Mr. Summers conducts all civic activities it is almost time for him to begin the lottery. The lottery is an annual event that has been around for over seventy-seven years and it is practiced by every member of the town but has one single winner.
Central to Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery is the theme of injustice. In both texts, the theme of injustice is present, due to societies failure to question superstitious beliefs and tradition resulting in inhumane treatments. The societies in both texts, adhere on tradition and superstitious beliefs regardless of the harmful effects it may cause. Fundamentally, it portrays human kind’s vagueness concerning the purpose of their actions, being more alarmed about tradition and rituals. Failure to this, leads to harsh penalties and measures towards the main characters, John Proctor and Tessie Hutchinson.
Traditions, Logical or Illogical Writers often use symbols to help convey underlying themes and ideas. Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery is a perfect example of a story that can be so loosely interpreted or misunderstood without understanding the stories symbols and underlying themes. At a glance “The Lottery” is just a story about an unusual and morbid village whose people share the love for murder. By analyzing the short story’s symbols, the story becomes much more than a morbid village full of pointless hate. The lottery itself, the black box, family, and the lottery rules are all symbols that build the underlying theme of the story, tradition.
When the villagers gather in the morning, she wants the readers to realize the villagers get nervous and quiet when traditional objects are pulled out to begin the lottery. These objects, such as the “black box” (18) and the “three-legged stool” (18), are connected symbols to their ritual. The color black, which symbolizes “complete death” (black) and “mourning” (black), is used frequently giving the image of darkness in the story. A box symbolizes that it “holds a secret” (box) indicating the power that it contains. The “three-legged stool” (18) is considered to support the citizen’s fate and how the people support this ritual.
For example there was a story that the present box had been made with some pieces of the box that had preceded it, Mr. summers was also supposed to walk among the people, but years and years ago this part of the ritual had been allowed to lapse. Mr. Summers name brings an uninviting reality to the lottery because the winner gets stoned. On the other hand, Mr. Summers has a delightful name, which also matches his description as "a round-faced, jovial man". Mr. Summers is the mayor of the town and also runs the most successful business the coal company. When one thinks of summer one generally thinks of pleasantness and happiness.