Lottery Behind traditions and rituals in "The Lottery"

Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" is a frightening story to read. The setting seems very familiar to the average reader: Hometown America on a clear Summer day. However, the traditions followed by this small town contrast greatly with the setting in which they are taking place. The Lottery in question in this story is not one to win money or another prize, but rather it is a system by which a human sacrifice is chosen in each village. The purpose of the sacrifice, unlike those performed in Ancient cultures, is not clear in the story, and in fact it is not clear to the characters either. The Lottery is a tradition left over from many years ago, and although the original purpose has been forgotten, the ritual remains an annual event. Jackson uses the setting, symbols,...

The town is described in small town like speech, where everything is described in relationship to something else. The square is between the post office and the bank. The children are out of school for the summer, and they are playing. The men of the town are talking about farming, so the reader knows this is a rural community. The Lottery is to be performed by the same man who runs the square dances, the teen club, and the Halloween program; this is a man for whom everyone also feels pity. The conductor of the Lottery dresses in a white shirt and jeans, and one member of the crowd is late because she had to finish washing…