Lottery/Dangerous Game
A reader of both Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and Richard Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game" must decide when can murder be an acceptable action. Is the tradition of an annual stoning acceptable? Is murder as a game acceptable? Is murder as self-defense acceptable? Each story asks the reader to understand the context in which the murders are taking place and to determine if the murders were justified.
In "The Lottery" Jackson asks the reader to consider if tradition is an acceptable reason for murder. The annual tradition of the lottery and the stoning has become just another event is the life of the village. The lottery is a ritual using the same wooden box, the same mode of selection and killing and always takes place on the same date. Prior to the drawing, the community members express goodwill and fellowship amongst themselves; once the victim has been chosen, the community is united in its' duty to stone the selected person. The story turns from love for all to hatred for one. Jackson raise the question of justifiability by having a few of the villagers question the practice of the lottery. They wonder if it is a tradition, which has outgrown it purpose.
In "The Most Dangerous Game," hunting is the tradition of wealth men. During the voyage on the way to hunt jaguar, Rainsford and Whitney discuss the thrill of the hunt and debate if the jaguar feels any fear while being chased and killed. Later in the story, Rainsford becomes the hunted for the pleasure and thrill of General Zaroff. Rainsford is force to kill Zaroff in self-defense. The contrast between killing prey for the sport of it and killing for the purpose of self-defense poses the question of is Rainsford's killing of Zaroff a justifiable reason for murder.
Essay outline:
1. Introduction: Can murder be justified?
2. Does tradition justify the stoning in Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery"?
a) The community
The community's interaction prior to the lottery
The community's interaction after the Hutchinson family is selected
The community's interaction with Tessie Hutchinson is selected
b) Is the tradition still relevant?
The traditions of the lottery
Those who cling to the tradition
Those who were questioning the tradition
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