Shirley Jacksons The Lottery Essays -- The Lottery Essays

Everything may not be what it seems in Shirley Jackson’s short story â€Å"The Lottery†. Within the story there are many reoccurring themes, ranging from the townspeople inability to establish bonds to the Jackson’s displaying how easily humans will engage in behavior that is otherwise frowned upon once given an excuse. The most prominent of these themes is the loyalty the townspeople hold towards various items and rituals in their lives. The townspeople hold the utmost loyalty towards their tradition of the lottery. The second most noticeable theme is the lack of ties within the community. At the beginning of the Lottery some of the fragile community ties are evident it becomes obvious how easily they are broken. The final and most important of themes is how readily and without reserve the town members participate in a murder they have reclassified as a sacrifice. These themes are the most important within the Lottery because all of them are alluded to on more than one occasion. The black box of the lottery represents the loyalty of the town to traditions. Despite the state of the black box, which is splintered and becoming shabbier each year, the townspeople make no move to replace it. For example, â€Å"Summers began talking again about a new box, but every year the subject was allowed to fade off without anything's being done† (Jackson par 5). While on the other hand they did away with some the other traditions such as the official formally addressing each person who pulled and the wood chips, they cling tightly to the black box. The townspeople see the black box as a way to hold on to the past because supposedly it is made with pieces from the original box (Jackson par. 5). The main tradition they are holding onto is the Lottery i... ... killing an individual is needed to ensure a prosperous crop is not only disheartening but also a scary idea. This is behavior that is thought to be barbaric and a thing of days long past. The Lottery is a very surprising story with many themes all of which are important. The ones previously addressed are the ones that occurred more than others and also seemed to bring more to the meaning and interpretation of the story. Works Cited Coulthard, A.R. â€Å"Jackson’s THE LOTTERY.† Explicator 48.3 (1990): 226. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Griffin, Amy A. â€Å"Jackson’s The Lottery.† Explicator 58.1 (1999): 44. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Jackson, Shirley. "The Lottery" Literature Interactive Edition. 12th ed. N.p.: Longman, 2011 Yarmove, Jay A. â€Å"Jackson’s The Lottery.† Explicator 52.4 (1994): 242. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Shirley Jackson's The Lottery Essays -- The Lottery Essays Everything may not be what it seems in Shirley Jackson’s short story â€Å"The Lottery†. Within the story there are many reoccurring themes, ranging from the townspeople inability to establish bonds to the Jackson’s displaying how easily humans will engage in behavior that is otherwise frowned upon once given an excuse. The most prominent of these themes is the loyalty the townspeople hold towards various items and rituals in their lives. The townspeople hold the utmost loyalty towards their tradition of the lottery. The second most noticeable theme is the lack of ties within the community. At the beginning of the Lottery some of the fragile community ties are evident it becomes obvious how easily they are broken. The final and most important of themes is how readily and without reserve the town members participate in a murder they have reclassified as a sacrifice. These themes are the most important within the Lottery because all of them are alluded to on more than one occasion. The black box of the lottery represents the loyalty of the town to traditions. Despite the state of the black box, which is splintered and becoming shabbier each year, the townspeople make no move to replace it. For example, â€Å"Summers began talking again about a new box, but every year the subject was allowed to fade off without anything's being done† (Jackson par 5). While on the other hand they did away with some the other traditions such as the official formally addressing each person who pulled and the wood chips, they cling tightly to the black box. The townspeople see the black box as a way to hold on to the past because supposedly it is made with pieces from the original box (Jackson par. 5). The main tradition they are holding onto is the Lottery i... ... killing an individual is needed to ensure a prosperous crop is not only disheartening but also a scary idea. This is behavior that is thought to be barbaric and a thing of days long past. The Lottery is a very surprising story with many themes all of which are important. The ones previously addressed are the ones that occurred more than others and also seemed to bring more to the meaning and interpretation of the story. Works Cited Coulthard, A.R. â€Å"Jackson’s THE LOTTERY.† Explicator 48.3 (1990): 226. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Griffin, Amy A. â€Å"Jackson’s The Lottery.† Explicator 58.1 (1999): 44. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. Jackson, Shirley. "The Lottery" Literature Interactive Edition. 12th ed. N.p.: Longman, 2011 Yarmove, Jay A. â€Å"Jackson’s The Lottery.† Explicator 52.4 (1994): 242. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Mar. 2014.