THE LOTTERY

SHIRLEY JACKSON

• SHIRLEY JACKSON WAS BORN IN 1916 AND DIED 1965
• IN 1936, AFTER A YEAR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER, SHE DROPPED OUT OF COLLEGE.
• WHILE AT HOME, SHIRLEY PRACTICED WRITING, PRODUCING AT LEAST 1000 WORDS A DAY.
• LATER, SHE WAS A PROFESSOR AT BENNINGTON COLLEGE.
• IN ADDITION SHE MOTHERED HER CHILDREN AND CONTINUED WRITING.

SHIRLEY JACKSON CONT.

• IN 1949 SHE WROTE HER HIT "THE LOTTERY".
• BY 1952 THE FIRST OF SEVERAL SHOWS WAS AIRED OF THE LOTTERY.
• THE LOTTERY WAS FOLLOWED BY SEVERAL OTHER SUCCESSES.
• TIME MAGAZINE SAID WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE IS A TOP 10 NOVEL.

SUMMARY
IT IS JUNE 27TH, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY THE LOTTERY. ALL 300 RESIDENTS OF THE SMALL TOWN GATHER FOR THE UNLUCKY DRAW. THE PERSON WHO DRAWS THE SLIP WITH THE BLACK DOT, IT STONED TO DEATH. IN PREPARATION THE BOYS IN THE TOWN GATHERED STONES. A VILLAGER, BY THE NAME OF TESSIE, "WINS" AND IS STONED TO DEATH ON THE SPOT, AFTER SHE WAS ABLE TO BLURT OUT, "IT'S NOT FAIR"

Themes
Blindly following tradition/elders
-Everyone participates in the lottery without knowing the origins
--Without any question, old man Warner gets respect and say in the lottery, because of age. For example, he says, "Without the lottery people would go back to living in caves," which puts the fear into the people and maintains power.
Scapegoat.
-In a way the protagonist,Tessie, is a scapegoat, for all the bad is exercised unto her via the lottery

Untitled Slide

CHARACTERS

• Protagonist:
• Tessie the girl who was stoned to death
• She is the only one in the story to question the lottery
• Jackson introduces her as odd, for only an odd person do such a thing
• Would she have raised suspicion if she was not chosen?

CHARACTERS CONT.

• Antagonist:
• All other villagers, including Old Man Warner
• Old Man Warner heads the conspiracy that lottery is necessary.
• None of the natives question this, but instead go along with the flow.
• As a result they lose a villager every year, this year it was Tessie.

PLOT

• Conflict: Tessie vs village
• Rising Action: Tessie shows up late to the drawing
• Climax: Tessie is chosen, questions the fairness, and is stoned
• Descending action: Everyone dispurses after stoning
• Resolution: Tessie is dead, no one bats an eye, for this helps the community

Tone and Mood
Tone: Interrogative
Shirley Jackson wrote as if the methods used by characters in "The Lottery" were questionable.
Mood: Normal, consistent, and exciting
It seemed to be a consistent thing of no emotion when Tessie picked the black slip. Prior everyone was thrilled for the day the lottery also.

SETTING

• The setting is a backdrop for the story
• The initially described warm and sunny day contrasts the dark ending
• In "The Lottery" there is a reluctancy to even change the slips let alone the box
• Along with the drawing itself, this indicates a primitive people, for the times

FORESHADOWING

• The children pick up stones, which indicates that something was off
• Along with the stones, the weird feeling when Tessie arrived late
• With those two happenings, something bad was bound to happen

CONFLICT:
ILLUSION VS REALITY
There is an allusion among the people in "The Lottery" that the lottery helps keep order. This is incited by Old Man Warner, who is not old enough to even know of its origins. When in reality it aimlessly takes a villagers life.

LITERARY TERMS

• Symbolism: The black box represents their reluctancy to change
• Imagery: The black box grew shabbier each year..no longer completely black..
• ..original wood color showing.. faded or stained represents the lottery for the
• beginning it could have seemed logical, but seems worse every year
• Irony: killing a villager aimlessly will help rather than hurt

Connection
It has become a trend that young black men are shot by white police officers, under suspicious circumstances. The bad part is, even with the rallies, like the lottery it has just become a "thing", which is sad.

SOURCES