The Lottery By Shirley Jackson Essay - 1353 Words

Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery†, is a short story that was written in the 1948 issue of The New Yorker. The short-story is based on a fictional small town that holds a yearly lottery that determines the future of one of its citizens. After this dark short-story was released, it received multiple negative reviews and caused several readers to cancel their subscriptions with The New Yorker. Although the future of one of the citizens is not vividly described, the reader gets a clear understanding of it. Throughout the short-story, the authors choice of not releasing the meaning of the lottery, the tradition’s history, and overall betrayal, leave the story to be open to interpretation by the readers. Shirley Jackson was born in San Francisco on December 14, 1916. Growing up, Jackson struggled with her physical appearance causing her to lack confidence. Unable to fit in with the rest of children, Jackson relied on writing short stories for comfort. After transfer ring to Syracuse University due to being harshly judged by professors in her previous university, Jackson joined the campus literacy magazine where she met her husband. Together they had four children and lived in a quiet rural community in Vermont. Jacksons reputation as a master of the horror tale began after â€Å"The Lottery† was published. This short-story although it is open to interpretation, it is often defined as a story with a dark meaning. The story begins with the author giving a vivid description of the day;Show MoreRelatedThe Lottery, By Shirley Jackson1195 Words   |  5 PagesOn the surface, Shirley Jackson’s short story, â€Å"The Lottery,† reads as a work of horror. There is a village that holds an annual lottery where the winner is stoned to death so the village and its people could prosper. Some underlying themes include: the idea that faith and tradition are often followed blindly, and those who veer away from tradition are met with punishm ent, as well as the idea of a herd mentality and bystander apathy. What the author manages to do successfully is that she actuallyRead MoreThe Lottery by Shirley Jackson757 Words   |  4 Pagessucceed but many fail just like the main character Tessie Hutchinson in Shirley Jackson’s short story â€Å"The Lottery†. When someone hears the word â€Å"lottery†, he or she may think that someone will be rewarded with prize. But â€Å"The Lottery† By Shirley Jackson is different than what one thinks. In the story, a lottery is going to be conducted not like Mega Million or Powerball one play here. In the story, the person who wins the lottery is stoned to death instead of being rewarded with the prize. TessieRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson931 Words   |  4 PagesIn 1948 Shirley Jackson composed the controversial short story â€Å"The Lottery.† Generally speaking, a title such as â€Å"The Lottery† is usually affiliated with an optimisti c outlook. However, Jackson’s approach is quite unorthodox and will surely leave readers contemplating the intent of her content. The story exposes a crude, senseless lottery system in which random villagers are murdered amongst their peers. Essentially, the lottery system counteracts as a form of population control, but negatives easilyRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson1504 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson In The Lottery Shirley Jackson fills her story with many literary elements to mask the evil. The story demonstrates how it is in human nature to blindly follow traditions. Even though some people have no idea why they follow these traditions. The title of the story plays a role in how Shirley Jackson used some literary elements to help mask the evils and develop the story. The title â€Å"The Lottery† serves as an allegory. When people think of the lottery majorityRead More`` The Lottery `` By Shirley Jackson894 Words   |  4 Pagesshort story â€Å"The Lottery†, author Shirley Jackson demonstrates Zimbardo’s concepts in three different areas: Authority figures, Tradition and Superstition, and Loyalty. The first concept Jackson portrays in â€Å"The Lottery† is the authority figures. Jackson indicates that the lottery is being held in the town center by one authority figure, Mr. Summers, annually on June 27th. Every June 27th, without fail, townspeople gather in the town square to participate in the annually lottery even though mostRead MoreThe Lottery, By Shirley Jackson1510 Words   |  7 PagesShirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† illustrates several aspects of the darker side of human nature. The townspeople in Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† unquestioningly adhere to a tradition which seems to have lost its relevance in their lives. The ritual that is the lottery shows how easily and willingly people will give up their free will and suspend their consciences to conform to tradition and people in authority. The same mindless complacency and obedience shown by the villagers in Jackson’s story are seenRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson8 11 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† was published by Shirley Jackson. The story was true expression of Jackson’s genuine thoughts about human beings and their heinous competence in an annual village event for corn harvest . First, her used to word symbolized main point of the story. Second, Jackson was inspired by few historical events happened in the past and a life incident in her life. Lastly, She was able to accomplish the connection between historical and biographical with the story. Therefore, Shirley Jackson’sRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson934 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson signifies the physical connection between the villagers and their unwillingness to give up their tradition. â€Å"The Lottery† is very unpredictable and quite misleading. The black box has no functionality, except every June 27th. Shirley Jackson depicts the black box as an important and traditional tool. Although the villagers in â€Å"The Lottery† are terrified of the goal of the lottery and the black box, they are unwilling to let go of the tradition. Shirley Jackson portraysRead MoreThe Lottery by Shirley Jackson799 Words   |  4 Pagesthe mood and to foreshadow of things to come. The Lottery by Shirley Jackson is a story in which the setting sets up the reader to think of positive outcomes. However, this description of the setting foreshadows exactly the opposite of what is to come. In addition, the theme that we learn of at the end leads us to think of where the sanity of some human beings lies. The story begins with the establishment of the setting. To begin, Shirley Jackson tells the reader what time of day and what time ofRead MoreThe Lottery by Shirley Jackson1764 Words   |  7 Pagesfilled with excitement and eeriness, leaving the reader speechless. The Lottery , a short story written by famous writer Shirley Jackson, created an uproar on June 26, 1948, when it was published in the magazine The New Yorker (Ball). The gothic thriller, set in an unknown time and place, shares the tradition of a small town, a little larger than three hundred people, in which a drawing is held once a year. In this â€Å"Lottery,† each family’s husband draws a slip of paper from a black box. The husband