Preview

Why Is The Lottery Wrong

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
95 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Why Is The Lottery Wrong
#6 In “The Lottery”, a short story by Shirley Jackson, the story exposes the cruelty of humans nature; thus, the injustice of society . In the short story, it says “‘It isn't fair, it isn't right,’ Mrs. Hutchinson screamed, and then they were upon her.” This shows that they knew that it was wrong, yet they did it anyway. The lottery ritual was very ancient in their village, so they did not want to change. Their complacency during the stoning of their friend reveals the darkness in the village; nevertheless, the darkness in human society.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Those Who Blindly Follow the Masses in Shirley Jackson's “The Lottery”
    • 766 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Those Who Blindly Follow the Masses in Shirley Jackson's “The Lottery”

    There have always been horrid traditions that many people blindly follow because they live in a society that practices them. In Shirley Jackson's short story, “The Lottery,” Tessie Hutchison becomes the unlucky victim of a brutal and merciless stoning which questions our contemporary ethical values. Although the setting in “The Lottery” is not specified, we can assume that it is centered in small-town America in a time era resembling present day. There is a lot of evidence that the people in the story are not from a specific culture but represent a generic culture that can be applied to many facts about culture and even to civilizations worldwide. The people of “The Lottery” blindly follow the traditions of their culture, even when it is taking away their morals.…

    • 766 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Does Shirley Jackson Use Irony In The Lottery
    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages

    How Does Shirley Jackson Use Irony In The Lottery

    Usually, when one hears anything about a lottery, it is perceived as being a great fortune brought down upon whoever wins it, even if the person has done nothing to actually deserve it. After all, it is won only by a stroke of luck, an unforeseen and unexpected circumstance. But even so, it is supposed to bring wealth and luxury into the winner’s life. Not one person in today’s society would ever see the lottery as an unfortunate event that winning it would bring serious repercussions such as execution and death. On the contrary, “The Lottery,” written by Shirley Jackson, uses irony to exemplify how people can illogically follow senseless traditions and ultimately demonstrates how society can blindly persecute innocent individuals.…

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Lottery Rhetorical Analysis
    • 410 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Lottery Rhetorical Analysis

    “The Lottery” is a short story written by Shirley Jackson. The author states that some traditions are irrelevant. In this story, a tradition becomes irrelevant because it causes manipulation, cruelty, and death. The lottery is a form of manipulation because it controls the villagers.…

    • 410 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Examples Of Justice In The Lottery
    • 247 Words
    • 1 Page

    Examples Of Justice In The Lottery

    There is absolutely no justice in the ‘The Lottery’. How is it right to stone someone to death for no particular reason. The determination of who gets stoned is methodical. The person chosen to die has done nothing wrong to end their life in such a way. Overall there is no justice in the villages idea of lottery.…

    • 247 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Lottery And The Most Dangerous Game Comparison Essay
    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Lottery And The Most Dangerous Game Comparison Essay

    In “The Lottery” the narrator describes the setting as a beautiful, warm summer day where the town’s people are gathering for what seems to be a typical social event. The reader anticipates a positive outcome as the narrator describes the day and the characters dispositions. However as the story reaches its climax, the reader realizes that the outcome is not positive at all. The winner of the lottery is to be stoned to death. The author’s intention of this story shows how people become blind to the outcomes of their traditions because of their obsession with traditions. In Richard Connell’s, “The Most Dangerous Game” and Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” the characters are portrayed as normal human beings with normal behaviors, but as both stories unfold, the characters are shown to be evil with an enjoyment for murder. In “The Most Dangerous Game” humans are hunted, as mere animals, to serve as the perfect prey to satisfy a desire for challenge. In “The Lottery” the townspeople are forced to participate in a ritual that will result in the death of an unwilling participant to satisfy a belief that the sacrifice of one of their own will guarantee a bountiful harvest. By comparison, the elements of violence and cruelty demonstrate the self-centeredness that abounds in each…

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Significance Of Sacrifice In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
    • 550 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Significance Of Sacrifice In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

    (Introduction) “The Lottery,” a short story by Shirley Jackson, is about a woman who has been selected for sacrifice by a lottery drawing. Tessie Hutchinson, and the rest of her town, are unfeeling about how the annual sacrifice affects the selected. However, they carry on with their tradition year after year, with no intent to make changes to meet modern day morals and needs. “The Lottery” is about blindly following tradition, the awareness of how cruel a practice sacrificing is, and how one’s mindset can change when they are the chosen one.…

    • 550 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Symbolism In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Symbolism In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

    The Lottery, a short story written by Shirley Jackson explains two of the most important aspects of humanity: traditions and rituals. The story takes place in a small town in New England where every year a lottery is held, most people would relate lottery to wining cash. In this lottery one person will be randomly choose to be stoned to death by the people in the village including their own family members. The lottery has been practiced for over seventy years by the townspeople and even though the villagers do not know the purpose of this tradition or the origin of it, they keep it to show respect to their ancestors ignoring the fact that is cruel and it is turning the whole village into murderers.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Barbarity Of Human Nature In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Barbarity Of Human Nature In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

    One of the major themes of Shirley Jackson's “The Lottery” is the barbarity of human nature. The story depicts a seemingly average American town, where the people willingly participate in an annual tradition of killing one of their own. The person is chosen randomly by a lottery, which gives the people enough humanity to continue on with the ritual.…

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Traditional Law In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Traditional Law In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

    “The Lottery” is a dystopian short story written by Shirley Jackson and it was published in 1948. The setting takes place in a very seemingly typical country village. Despite the fact this village is very normal, the traditions of it make it very cruel. The people of the village are very blinded by their laws, illustrating that people not using their voice can allow a government to enforce corrupt laws on innocent people. Leading to none guilty people losing their lives and teaching children to carry on the laws as a tradition.…

    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Lottery Rhetorical Analysis Essay
    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Lottery Rhetorical Analysis Essay

    In modern times, the lottery is generally acknowledged as a set of fantastic prizes that people vie to win; however, in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery,” the exact opposite is true. Jackson transforms this rather innocuous-sounding practice to a dark, perverse town ritual in a shocking twist that leaves the reader hungry for more details. Jackson conveys her message that tradition is not always best with her omission of details, use of foreshadowing and abrupt ending.…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Importance Of Tradition In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Importance Of Tradition In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

    In Jackson’s short story “The Lottery” it is evident that conforming to society and sticking with tradition can lead to outweighing personal morals./be a burden on the lives of people. Although The Lottery was a tradition that has been occurring for years, nobody sticks up to support their morals to challenge The Lottery. Not only does The Lottery limit the rights of many, but many other expectations in their society do too.…

    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Lottery By Shirley Jackson Literary Analysis
    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Lottery By Shirley Jackson Literary Analysis

    “ The Lottery”, written by Shirley Jackson, shows the corruption in a village whose people treat life with insignificance. Through the use of literary devices, Jackson portrays how practices in traditions can be barbaric;ultimately, resulting in persecution.…

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Irony In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery
    • 1159 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Irony In Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

    In “The Hunger Games,” the district really never has a say so on that is selected, but yet everyone gathers to watch. Similarly in “The Lottery” villagers gather to select a ticket to find one villager to be stoned to death. In “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, the events of the narrative seem to suggest that traditions are a normal part of society. However a close look at the use of irony and foreshadowing demonstrate the lack of normalcy in the community. The tension in these readings ultimately indicates complacency in our society with the status quo until we become the victims.…

    • 1159 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Literary analysis of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
    • 847 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Literary analysis of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

    The story of “The Lottery”, written by Shirley Jackson is very different in terms of the ways you and I may see the lottery today. The lottery today is looked at as fun, entertaining and almost as a type of recreation for many Americans but not in this short story. The lottery in this story is the total opposite of the way we view it today. It does not deal with entertainment but it deals with your life literally, almost as if they are playing Russian roulette. But this all seems like a normal everyday occurrence to this small farming community that seems to be just like any typical farming community except for the fact that each harvest moon someone in the town is sacrificed. Many of the seemingly innocuous details throughout “The Lottery” foreshadow the violent conclusion.…

    • 847 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Lottery Tradition Essay
    • 508 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Lottery Tradition Essay

    In the short story, The Lottery by shirley Jackson, blind tration and resistance to change are explored through the story. Presented to anyone who might find themselves in the similar situation that the main character of The Lottery, Tessie Hutchinson found herself in. The invisible pressure that is enforced by society to act a certain way, and follow certain traditions is one of the main themes of this story. More importantly though, this story also encourages individuals who feel oppressed by society in one way or another to speak up and defend what they truly believe in, even though the price of that might mean their lives. In addition, author utilizes literary elements such as irony, symbolism and allegory.…

    • 508 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics