The Lottery
This article is about the short story. For other uses, see Lottery (disambiguation).
"The Lottery" is a short story by Shirley Jackson, first published in the June 26, 1948 issue of The New Yorker.[1] Written the same month it was published, it is ranked today as "one of the most famous short stories in the history of American literature".[2] It has been described as "a chilling tale of conformity gone mad."[3]
Response to the story was negative, surprising Jackson, Caleb Mann (the local head editor at the local paper) and The New Yorker. Readers canceled subscriptions and sent hate mail throughout the summer.[4] The story was banned in the Union of South Africa.[5] Since then, it has been accepted as a classic American short story, subject to critical interpretations and media adaptations, and it has been taught in middle schools and high schools for decades since its publication. Contents * 1 Characters and story * 1.1 Lottery Process * 2 Analysis * 2.1 Collective Mentality * 2.2 Themes * 3 Reception * 3.1 Readers * 3.2 Critical interpretations * 4 Dramatizations * 4.1 1951 radio version * 4.2 Television adaptation * 4.3 1969 film * 4.4 1996 TV film * 4.5 References in other works * 4.6 Parodies * 5 References * 6 Sources * 7 External links |
Characters and story
Details of contemporary small town American life are contrasted with an annual ritual known as "the lottery." In a small village of about 300 residents, the locals are in an excited yet nervous mood on June 27. Children gather stones as the adult townsfolk assemble for their annual event, that in the local tradition has been practiced to ensure a good harvest (one character quotes an old proverb: "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon"), though there are some rumors that nearby communities are talking of "giving up the lottery."
In the first round of the lottery, the head of each family draws a small slip of paper from a black
"The Lottery" is a short story by Shirley Jackson, first published in the June 26, 1948 issue of The New Yorker.[1] Written the same month it was published, it is ranked today as "one of the most famous short stories in the history of American literature".[2] It has been described as "a chilling tale of conformity gone mad."[3]
Response to the story was negative, surprising Jackson, Caleb Mann (the local head editor at the local paper) and The New Yorker. Readers canceled subscriptions and sent hate mail throughout the summer.[4] The story was banned in the Union of South Africa.[5] Since then, it has been accepted as a classic American short story, subject to critical interpretations and media adaptations, and it has been taught in middle schools and high schools for decades since its publication. Contents * 1 Characters and story * 1.1 Lottery Process * 2 Analysis * 2.1 Collective Mentality * 2.2 Themes * 3 Reception * 3.1 Readers * 3.2 Critical interpretations * 4 Dramatizations * 4.1 1951 radio version * 4.2 Television adaptation * 4.3 1969 film * 4.4 1996 TV film * 4.5 References in other works * 4.6 Parodies * 5 References * 6 Sources * 7 External links |
Characters and story
Details of contemporary small town American life are contrasted with an annual ritual known as "the lottery." In a small village of about 300 residents, the locals are in an excited yet nervous mood on June 27. Children gather stones as the adult townsfolk assemble for their annual event, that in the local tradition has been practiced to ensure a good harvest (one character quotes an old proverb: "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon"), though there are some rumors that nearby communities are talking of "giving up the lottery."
In the first round of the lottery, the head of each family draws a small slip of paper from a black
References: in other works In the June 24, 2007 (S01E04) TV episode of Army Wives Denise makes a reference to the author and story when explaining to Claudia how she feels while they wait to hear if Denise 's husband is dead or alive after a Black Hawk helicopter crash in Iraq. The 2010 Squidbillies episode "Double Truckin ' on the Tricky Two", villain Dan Halen threatens the main character and his family with a reference to the story, and is then genuinely baffled when he finds that none of them have ever heard of it. He then sits them down and reads the entirety of the story out loud. Parodies The South Park episode "Britney 's New Look" (season 12, episode 2; episode 169 overall) portrays the town as ensuring its food supply (and, allegorically, American popular culture as obtaining sustenance) by sacrificing young celebrities through a cycle of attention and exploitation that eventually lead them into self-destruction. Specific references to the original work include the use of "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon" as a phrasal and syntactic template for "Sacrifice in March, corn have plenty starch."