Critical Analysis of The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson Essays

In the short story The Lottery, author Shirley Jackson creates a very shocking and horrifying situation through the use of characterization, setting, and the theme of the individual versus society, which is portrayed in the story as scapegoating. She writes as if the events taking place are common to any town (Mazzeno 2). The story was very unpopular when first published, mostly because of the fact that people did not understand it. The story of the all-to-familiar town, ordinary in every way except for the ritualistic murder taking place has since grown great popularity, even being adapted for television, ballet, and radio (Lethem 1-2). Shirley Jacksons short story entitled The Lottery was published in an issue of The New†¦show more content†¦She was fascinated with the paranormal and even voodoo and witchcraft. Jackson had a strange fascination of the psychology of human beings as well. She noticed the disturbed, disposed, misunderstood, or thwarting characteristics of people and of people to each other. Jackson was incredibly good at picking out the impurities of the human psyche and exploiting them to a great extent (Lethem 1). The village portrayed in The Lottery is said to be the same village where Jackson resided. She was a mother of four, married to Stanley Edgar Hyman. She was somewhat of a social outcast in her town. Eventually, her psyche was reshaped by the hostility and persecution of the villagers of the town (Lethem 4). Even before she moved to the town, Jackson had an obvious split in her personality. One side of her was a fearful, shy one which she brought to life in many of her stories. Th e other side of her was almost a direct contrast, being expulsive and bitter. This side of Jackson drank and smoked, rejected society, and this is the side of her that was fascinated by magic and voodoo. This is the side of her that is represented by Tessie Huchinson in The Lottery (Lethem 3). This story in particular best depicts Jacksons view on people. A reader can see that she views life as irony and notices the evils and darkness that lurks within every individual (Hilton 250). To put it most simply, Shirley Jackson wrote about the mundane evilsShow MoreRelatedThe Lottery, By Shirley Jackson And A Rose For Emily By William Faulkner960 Words   |  4 PagesThe Use of Symbolism in â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson and â€Å"A Rose for Emily† by William Faulkner The use of symbolism is used in literature to enhance writing and add meaning to a story, this is evident in the two short stories â€Å"The Lottery† written by Shirley Jackson and â€Å"A Rose for Emily† written by William Faulkner. With the authors use of symbolism Jackson and Faulkner are able to add depth to their writing in a way that connects with the readers. By adding symbolism to the short storiesRead MoreEssay on The Lottery by Shirley Jackson: an Analysis1522 Words   |  7 PagesKouyialis EN102: Composition II Professor Eklund The Lottery by Shirley Jackson: An Analysis The short story â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson was written in 1948 and takes place in a small town, on the 27th of June. In this story, the lottery occurs every year, around the summer solstice. All families gather together to draw slips of paper from a black box. When reading this story, it is unclear the full premise of the lottery until near the end. The heads of households are the firstRead MoreThe Unexpected Surprise of Violence1009 Words   |  5 Pagesvalued once risks are taken, but the outcome is never expected. Shirley Jackson, reader of witchcraft books, horrifies people with her perspective on the understanding of merciless rituals that kept communities at ease. 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When the lottery is formally started, roll call is initiated followedRead More Essay on Shirley Jacksons The Lottery - Message of Social Responsibility912 Words   |  4 PagesThe Message of Social Responsibility in The Lottery      Ã‚  Ã‚   Often, we paint a fairytale view of life for ourselves and our children. Sometimes, an author paints a frightfully realistic picture of life and forces us to reconsider the fairytale. In Shirley Jackson’s story, The Lottery, a town each year conducts a lottery in which the winner or looser, in this case, is stoned to death by his or her own neighbors. The tradition is supposed to uphold social structure within the town, but in orderRead MoreEnglish1285 Words   |  6 Pagesevery one of us because we are persuaded by such advertisements. Robert Scholes of â€Å"On Reading A Video Text†, and Shirley Jackson of â€Å"The Lottery†, show appropriate examples of the world we live in today. Robert Scholes proves how distorted and misconceiving people construe the world through the â€Å"Lottery†, proving his idea of cultural reinforcement. In â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson, the small town of 300 people consists of a very active community, which is very routinely. The children go off toRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson1438 Words   |  6 PagesWriter Shirley Jackson was born in 1916 in San Francisco, California. Among her early works was The Lottery.Do not be fooled by this name.The Lottery was the highly controversial and famous tale about a village that partakes in an annual death ritual. On June 26, 1948, subscribers to The New Yorker received a new issue of the magazine in the mail. There was nothing to outwardly indicate that it would be any different, or any more special, than any other issue. But inside was a story that editorsRead MoreCritical Analysis for The Lottery1205 Words   |  5 PagesCritical Analysis for â€Å"The Lottery† Shirley Jacksons short story, The Lottery, aroused much controversy and criticism in 1948, following its debut publication, in the New Yorker. Jackson uses irony and comedy to suggest an underlying evil, hypocrisy, and weakness of human kind. The story takes place in a small village, where the people are close and tradition is paramount. A yearly event, called the lottery, is one in which one person in the town is randomly chosen, by a drawing, to be violentlyRead MoreAbstract the Lottery by Shirley Jackson2321 Words   |  10 PagesLateisha Davis Professor Coleman English 101 (2503) 25 July 2012 Abstract for â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson Although Shirley Jackson’s short story â€Å"The Lottery† is widely read, it has received little critical review in the decades since it was published. This analysis of the text illuminates Jackson’s intertwining of the story’s theme, point of view and language. One finds that each of these three an integral part depends on the other. One must examine Jackson’s