Although Shirley Jackson wrote many books‚ children’s stories and humorous pieces‚ she is most remembered for her story "The Lottery." In "The Lottery" Jackson portrays the average citizens of an average village taking part in an annual sacrifice of one of their own residents. When the story was published in the New Yorker magazine in 1948‚ reader response was tremendous. People were horrified by the story and wrote to express their disgust that a tale containing a pointless‚ arbitrary‚ violent sacrifice
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“The Lottery” – by Shirley Jackson Name:_____________________________ ELA 10 Questions From the context of the story‚ who controls the town? Explain. Mr. Summers‚ Mr. Graves and Mr. Martin are the leaders of the town. Because‚ in the story‚ Mr. Summers owns the village’s largest business and also the major of the town. Mr. Summers has more “time and energy to devote to civic activities.” It indicates that he has money and leisure. Mr. Graves is the government official; the
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Monique Lewis Ashcraft English 102 Feb. 25‚ 2013 The Lottery Following it’s publication in the New Yorker in 1948‚ Shirley Jackson’s "the lottery" aroused much controversy‚ leading to that issue of the new Yorker quickly being sold out. Through the use of comedy and irony‚ Jackson demonstrates the "pointless violence and general inhumanity in [readers] own lives" The lottery takes place in a small close knit town where tradition is taken quite seriously. Each year an event is held in which
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are passed down overtime because certain individuals are afraid of the consequences. In a small village‚ there is a yearly tradition that randomly selects one individual to be stoned by the entire village. This tradition is known as “The Lottery.” In “The Lottery‚” Shirley Jackson combines foreshadowing with a comforting tone thus both concealing and revealing the shocking ending. Shirley Jackson’s use of a benevolent tone leaves readers unsuspecting of the ironic ending. As the story begins
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The lottery is a short story that cruelly documents the annual sacrifice of an unlucky townsperson. The majory of the story is the process of selecting the townsperson being sacrificed. This process is called the lottery. Jackson uses an abundant amount of symbols throught her story which perfectly convey the inhuman tradition that is the lottery. The two main symbols Jackson uses are the townspeople’s names‚ and the objects used to conduct the lottery. The names assigned to the townspeople play
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Engl151C-17 September 16‚ 2011 “The Lottery” Traditions The main theme of “The Lottery‚” by Shirley Jackson‚ is tradition. Traditions are beliefs‚ legends‚ customs‚ information and other things that are passed down from generation to generation. This theme is shown in many different ways throughout the story. The first way tradition is shown in the story is with the ritual that the town people call the lottery. The second way tradition is shown is by the character Mrs. Hutchinson. Another character
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1102 14 February 2013 Mindless Tradition “The Lottery” (1948) by Shirley Jackson has provoked controversy and condemnation since its release. The short story takes place in a village where tradition is vital. The lottery is an annual event in which one individual is chosen by random to be viciously stoned by family and friends. All town members practice the ritual. The short story portrays how human nature engages in behaviors mindlessly. “The lottery was conducted—as were the square dances‚ the
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Destini Lloyd Joy Surles Eng 113 March 26‚ 2013 The Lottery What is the definition of inhumanity? Inhumanity is great cruelty and a lack of humanity. Once you understand that a normal human being would then question how people could be so cruel to one another. The inhumanity of taking chance is evident in “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson. The author paints a vivid picture of how taking a gamble is not worth the loss. The mindset of traditionalism‚ selfishness‚ and inhumanness speaks volume
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Artistic Text Written and published in 1948‚ “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is today ranked as “one of the most famous short stories in the history of American Literature” according to author Laurie Harris. This short story focuses on a village that every year has a lottery to determine which of the towns’ people will be sacrificed in order to guarantee a good harvest for the coming year. The readers are deceptively led to believe that the lottery is a normal‚ casual event when in actuality it is
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The Lottery The specific details Jackson describes in the beginning of “The Lottery” set us up for the shocking conclusion. In the first paragraph‚ Jackson provides specific details about the day on which the lottery takes place. She tells us the date (June 27)‚ time (about 10 A.M.)‚ and temperature (warm). She describes the scene exactly: there are flowers and green grass‚ and the town square‚ where everyone gathers‚ is between the bank and post office. She provides specifics about the town
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