Symbolism in Jacksons The Lottery Essay - 1039 Words

Lottery: A Terrifying Trip Symbols can be used to convey a special meaning to the reader by association, especially when a material object is used to represent something abstract. Throughout the years, American writers have been using their works as a way to describe society to their broad audiences. As time periods change, writers as well as readers change their view about society. Several factors affect how readers view society in a piece of literature. To get a better understanding of the society expressed in a piece of literature, one must consider not only the time period in which the work was written, but also the life of the author, the style in which the work was written, and criticism of the piece. In Shirley Jackson’s†¦show more content†¦Then, each member takes turns picking a piece of paper. Tessie picks the unfortunate marked slip and is stoned to death by her fellow townspeople. This tradition of stoning people to death is bad because it involves people being killed. â€Å"The Lottery,† Jackson’s most famous work, is often called a gothic horror tale. â€Å"The Lottery† is considered a part of the gothic genre because of the feeling of suspense as well as horror it brings to the reader, who may not fully understand the purpose of the lottery until the end (Wilson 144). â€Å"The Lottery developed in the story is very horrific because when we here about a Lottery we think about achieve something good but, in the story achieving a lottery is getting stoned to death by your own townspeople. Until the end author hide real meaning of the lottery. â€Å"The narrative technique for â€Å"The Lottery† is detached and objective, meaning the story is told without excessive emotionalism or description, which helps to impart the ordinariness of the barbaric act of the lottery† (143). â€Å"It is also ironic that the events of the story are related in a matter–of-fact and objective way since the story as a who le seeks to elicit profound emotions and question morality† (144). Emphasis is placed on the brutality of the lottery by not giving a specific time and place to the story. Critics often see the irony of the story. It is ironic that the story takes placeShow MoreRelatedEssay on Symbolism and Characterization in Jackson’s The Lottery726 Words   |  3 Pagesare passed on, from previous generations in Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery†. Traditions, which have been lost in time, but seemingly enough the stones have not been discarded. Set on a village in a warm summer day, the story begins with several boys gathering stones for the lottery. The rest of the villagers gather in the square. The fate of the villagers is determined by a slip of paper chosen from the black box. Symbolism and characterization, from the beginning to the end,Read MoreCreative Use of Symbolism and Irony in Shirley Jacksons The Lottery576 Words   |  3 PagesA lottery has always provided a sense of hope and adventure to people, but the lottery takes on an entirely different significance in Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery†. The story takes place in a village of roughly three hundred people. Everyone in the village gathers at the center to take part. One representative from each family comes up, to take a piece of paper from an old, black, wooden box. 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However, Jackson’s approach is quite unorthodox and will surely leave readers contemplating the intent of her content. The story exposes a crude, senseless lottery system in which random villagers are murdered amongst their peers. Essentially, the lottery system counteracts as a form of population control, but negatives easilyRead MoreFiction Essay - Young Goodman Brown and the Lottery1051 Words   |  5 PagesFICTION ESSAY WRITING STYLE USED: APA OUTLINE I. THESIS: A thorough analysis of Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† and Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† reveals that different literary elements, such as tone and setting, are used to convey the characters’ arrival at dark, sinister places. II. INTRODUCTION III. SHIRLEY JACKSON’S â€Å"THE LOTTERY† A. Setting the tone: Peaceful and relaxing B. Irony: Even though the mood is relaxing, there is a premonition of something bad toRead MoreSymbolism in The Lottery Essay802 Words   |  4 PagesTo a first time reader, Shirley Jacksons â€Å"The Lottery† seems simply as a curious tale with a shocking ending. After repetitive reading of Jacksons tale, it is clear that each sentence is written with a unique purpose often using symbolism. Her use of symbols not only foreshadow its surprise and disturbing ending but allows the reader to evaluate the communitys pervert traditional rituals. She may be commenting on the season of the year and the grass being â€Å"richly green† or the toying with theRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson854 Words   |  4 Pages Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† is a story about a ritualistic ceremony performed by a village every year around June 26. The meaning of conformity is to do something because everyone else is doing it and this story is conformity at it’s best. The townspeople continue this event year after year simply because it has always been done and because they believe they will have bad crops if it is not done. At the beginning of the story, the reader is led to believe it is a normal sunny day. ChildrenRead MoreShirley Jacksons The Lottery572 Words   |  3 PagesShirley Jacksons The Lottery   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Shirley Jacksons The Lottery is an excellent example of an allegorical short story. In this story, the reader learns of a towns lottery that takes place once a year, every year. It has been a tradition in this small rural town for many years and the villagers never question these activities, they just blindly go along with it. But what the reader doesnt know is just what kind of prize the winner is going to obtain. Jacksons use of symbolism is shownRead MoreCompare and Contrast Essay1047 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"Young Goodman Brown† and â€Å"The Lottery† By: Melissa A. Reeves Professor Andrew Smith ENGL 102-B46 LUO Thesis Statement The stories â€Å"The Lottery† and â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† both appear to show that human behavior and judgment can be flawed, even if the person’s intentions appear good to them. There is a level of fear and underlying evil in Puritan settings in both stories. I. Introduction/Statement of Thesis II. Themes and Author’s Purpose A. The Lottery i. Just because somethingRead MoreSymbolism in The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson Essay example1173 Words   |  5 PagesWhen most people play the lottery today, they think about having wealth. Generally, people who win are happy about it whether they win one dollar or a million. The lottery in our society has grown to support education and it is often worth several million dollars. Usually, the winner of the lottery gains a lot of recognition for the money they win. But what would happen if there was a small town where people held a yearly lottery in which the â€Å"winner† was the member of the town who was not sacrificed