The Lottery Essay

The Lottery Have you ever imagined being killed for winning a lottery? In “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, the author does an outstanding job describing the main character, the plot, and the theme. The character Tessie Hutchinson in this story makes the reader feel as if he or she is a part of the plot. Additionally, the plot of this story is very surprising and unexpected. Jackson does a really great job writing the story, and in the end it is very easy to think about a theme. Certainly, “The Lottery” is a perfect example of a story combining an interesting plot, good characterization, and a clear theme. Tessie Hutchinson starts out being a regular citizen of the village and ends up being the main character; ultimately, she is killed. First, she is described as: “an old house woman.” This tells the reader that she probably works all day and is very tired. Next, she nearly forgets about the lottery and she arrives late. This tells us that she is exhausted and doesn’t really care about the lottery. In the end, she “wins” the lottery as Mr. Summers announces: “It’s Tessie!” Winning the lottery means being killed, and this is exactly what happens to Tessie. The subtle increasing of the level of importance of Tessie throughout the story made it more interesting to read. The plot of this story was surprising and unexpected at the same time. In the beginning, the scene is described as: “Clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day.” Ironically, this makes the reader think this is going to be a positive story. Later, we shockingly find out that: “Someone’s life is going to be over.” This clearly tells us that someone is going to die in this story. Finally, in the end Tessie screams: “It’s not fair, it isn’t right!” Lastly, the story ends and we then know that Tessie has been killed. These three significant changes that transpire during the plot make it a more compelling story. The theme of this story is to never relax until you are completely safe.