Justin Vandyke

Mrs. Senac
English 10 Period 6
26 April 2016
Not Your Everyday Lottery
Shirley Jackson, the author of the story Lottery most often writes gothic literature and
creepy stories, and this is displayed in the Lottery.Throughout the story they mention how
other towns have stopped using the Lottery and the townsfolk do not agree because it has been a
tradition throughout time. In Shirley Jackson's, The Lottery, she uses her characterizations,
setting, style, and plot to highlight the theme that people should not follow tradition blindly and
how it is not always beneficial.
Characterization
The characterization of The Lottery is evidence that people follow tradition blindly. In
the story, the town and most of the surrounding towns, hold a Lottery; the Lottery is ran by Mr.
Summers who is the head of the town and has also put together square dances, the teen club, and
the Halloween program. In this town the Lottery is a very normal yearly event, which is evident
when Mrs. Hutchinson states, Thought my old man was out back stacking wood, and then I
looked out the window and the kids was gone, and then I remembered it was the twenty-seventh
and came a-running (Jackson 2). Shirley Jackson uses characterization to portray the townsfolk
as innocent, and that everyone follows the tradition without asking questions and it shows when
Old Man Warner hears of other towns closing the Lottery and he states Pack of crazy fools,
listening to the young folks, nothings good enough for them. Next thing you know they'll be
wanting to go back to living in caves, nobody work anymore, live that way for awhile (Jackson

3). The characterization Shirley Jackson uses highlights the theme that tradition should not
always be followed blindly.
Setting
Shirley Jackson uses the setting to portray the theme that tradition is not always
beneficial. In the story Jackson paints a picture of the town being normal and cheerful: it was
The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the
flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green (Jackson 3) Later in the story
it emerges that the town is not so normal and that there is a lottery held annually where one
person is stoned by the town. Mr. Adams states, They do say, that over in the north village
theyre talking of giving up the lottery (Jackson 3). Jackson uses these methods to tie the setting
and the theme together that not everything is as it seems and some traditions are better broken.
Style
In the short story The Lottery Shirley Jackson uses an assortment of literary devices to
relate the readers to the story and allows them to apply the situations and theme to their own life.
Shirley Jackson uses third person objective to not give any of the characters feelings or views
away and simply allows the plot of the lottery to unravel. Jackson uses humor to lighten the
mood : Mrs Hutchinson said, grinning, Wouldnt have me leave mdishes in the sink, now,
would you, Joe? (Jackson 2). She also uses diction menfolk (Jackson 1) and lad (Jackson 3)
to give the readers a sense of what time period and area of the world this story took place in.
Even though Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box... no one
liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box (Jackson 1). Jacksons
use of style ties together the theme and uses the box as an example; after so many times of using
it, the box is old and damaged and nobody wants to change the box. This symbolizes that the

tradition of the lottery is old and every year some change it or question it but no one cares
enough to change it, therefor it stays around.
Plot
The development of The Lottery reiterates the theme. Jacksons strategic placing of the
events in the story, the reader understands the theme of tradition not always being beneficial. The
story begins with everyone starting to gather in the town plaza and the children gathering rocks,
which seems like it would be for a game they play. As the story develops you learn that the
lottery is a yearly tradition where slips of paper are drawn and the family with the black dot is
chosen and has to redraw within the family. At the end of the story you find out that the stones
the children gathered earlier on are used to stone the winner of the lottery. The story is ironic
because in the beginning Mrs. hutchinson is late to the lottery and makes a joke about it, but later
on she is picked as the so to say winner and is killed. The plot and theme relate because in the
story the town follows the tradition and it is fair every year but when Tessie is picked she
exclaims it is unfair.
Conclusion
In life many people follow tradition blindly and do what has been done for centuries and
say nothing about it, almost like Monkey see monkey do. This lesson applies to everyone
because people think traditions always have to be held and that they are still acceptable in some
societies, and other places or groups are lunatics for not following these traditions.

Works Cited

Jackson, Shirley. New York: New Yorker, 1948. Print.