Plot over The Lottery - 1503 Words

An Imperfect Society Shirley Jackson wrote â€Å"The Lottery† in 1948 with a purpose in mind. Upon hearing the title, many readers think about a lottery in people want to win due to the fact that they could win millions of dollars. However, this is not the case in Jackson’s version where the lottery is one in which the winner is stoned to death. Jackson’s focus in this story is that society is flawed, imperfect, and sometimes stuck in the past. She declared that her purpose was â€Å"to shock the story’s readers with a graphic demonstration of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives† (Jackson 239). Her goal is for the reader to notice these traits of society upon evaluating the plot, point of view, and†¦show more content†¦Jackson makes the statement, â€Å"Although the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the original black box, they still remembered to use stones† (244). The next element to look at i s whether or not the author gives the reader access to any character’s consciousness. In reading the story the reader can tell how certain characters feel by listening to what they say. An example of this is when Old Man Warner states, â€Å"It’s not the way it used to be. People ain’t the way they used to be† (244). The reader can tell that he is frustrated because people are not responding to the lottery as they used to. However, Jackson does not allow the reader access into any character’s consciousness and let him or her know how a particular character feels outside of what that character says. The third concept involves the narrator’s position and presence, which determines whether that person is involved in the story or not. If the narrator is involved in the story, the reader must then determine if that character is a major or minor character and if his or her presence is pervasive, dominate, or obtrusive. Jackson’s use of t he narrator in this story is one that is an outside observer looking in at the events unfolding and not a participant in the story. The fourth and final concept of point of view is the reliability of the narrator. The reader must determine if they find the narrator believable or not. The fact that the narrator inShow MoreRelatedThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson918 Words   |  4 PagesThe Lottery by Shirley Jackson, is a short story about an annual lottery draw in a small town. The story sets place in a small town of three hundred or so people. The theme of destructive tradition pervades the text, beginning with irony manner of choosing the person and, of course, ultimately leading to the person’s death. Every year a lottery is held, in which one someone is cruelly chosen to be stoned to death by the people in the town to be able to provide more for the others in the town. TheRead MoreThe Lottery Short Story847 Words   |  4 Pagesdramatic. â€Å"The Lottery† is a short story written by Shirley Jackson, and it is a great example of a story that uses all three types. Parts of the story and the whole story itself use irony to confuse but entertain the reader. Situational irony is defined as something happening that was the opposite of what was expected. â€Å"The Lottery† uses situational irony for the entire plot of the story. In the beginning of the story, families are gathering in the town square to draw names for a lottery. The settingRead MoreThe Use Of Characterization In The Lottery By Shirley Jackson902 Words   |  4 Pages inhumane lottery in a situation in which the town goes together, the results may be a terrible end in a young life. In â€Å"The Lottery† written by, Shirley Jackson, the main character Mrs. Tessie Hutchinson’s and the town folk are the main characters of this story. In â€Å"The Lottery† Shirley Jackson uses the use of characterization to portray the main ideas of the story. Shirley Jackson also uses the use of plot structure and the point of view in which the story is being told. The Lottery is a way toRead MoreComparing The Lottery and Hills Like White Elephants Essay805 Words   |  4 PagesComparing â€Å"The Lottery† and â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† â€Å"The Lottery† written by Shirley Jackson is a story based off of its point of view, the story would not be told or understood in the same way if it was written in a different point of view. This story keeps the interest of its readers because it has a point of view where only the people in the story know whats going to happen and know more information than the readers do. If this story was written in first person the readers would knowRead MoreEssay on The Use of Symbolism in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson1192 Words   |  5 PagesThe Use of Symbolism in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson In The Lottery, Shirley Jackson uses symbolism to make us aware of the pointless nature of humanity regarding tradition and violence. The story starts off on a beautiful summer day in a small town. The author describes the day as very euphoric but strikes a contrast between the atmosphere of the town and the atmosphere of the people gathered in the square. The atmosphere is subdued, where the children are gathered aroundRead MoreAnalysis Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson1226 Words   |  5 PagesSignificance of Mr. Summers’ Character in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson In the short story, The Lottery, Jackson applies Mr. Summers’ character to highlight his significant role in the village’s life as a whole and more particularly in the lottery. It is also significant to note that the character is also a deep irony in relation to the plot of the story. Mr. Summers is the most notable figure and an important person of all the people who manage the lottery. The lottery is held on June 27th, which is notedRead MoreAnalysis Of Shirley Jacksons The Lottery1303 Words   |  6 PagesAZQuotes). In Shirley Jacksons chilling story The Lottery, a town celebrates a special custom of stoning people to death every year. Jackson perfectly depicts a possible event that may occur from blindly following tradition without evaluating the purpose or usefulness of it in the first place. Jackson’s use of plot, theme, and symbolism reveal the evil reality of blind faith, tradition, and their consequences. Initially, Jackson’s twisted plot reveals the infinite, vicious cycle that a traditionRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson Setting Essay1511 Words   |  7 Pageslittle town sound like a setting fit for a stoning occurring later that day? The setting of a story is very important to the storyline and gives meaning to each element and theme of the story. The setting of â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson has extremely significant meaning to the plot of this story. The setting represents elements of irony, tradition, and unity. The mood in the beginning of the story is cheerful and appears to be a normal day. The children are playing, the men are talking aboutRead MoreThe Day Of The Lottery1397 Words   |  6 Pagesin a small town are gathering on a warm, beautiful summer day in the square for the lottery. The children, who have just finished school, are playing while waiting on their parents to meet them in the square and are gathering up rocks into a pile off to the side. Everyone enters the square and the parents call their children over to stand with the family. Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves, the men who conduct the lottery, arrive in the square with the black box. The box is falling apart and Mr. SummersRead MoreTheme Of Empathy In The Lottery803 Words   |  4 PagesThe Importance of Empathy Empathy is fundamental to institute showing sympathy and understanding towards other people. The two stories, â€Å"The Lottery† and â€Å"The Interlopers†, are centered around solidifying how significant empathy is. The authors in both of the stories use specific literary devices to get their message across. The techniques they use include situational irony, characterization, and pacing. Each of these devices help create the mood of their stories, which aids in your understanding