The Lottery Shirley Jackson Analysis - 792 Words

â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson deals with many themes in very few pages, but the most intriguing are the death and violence, which seem completely unexpected. This short story can be seen as a perfect example of Rene Girard’s theories about sacrifice, desire, and ‘scapegoat’ mechanism, which is what this essay will endeavor to illustrate. One aspect of Girard’s sacrifice theory is that it â€Å"contains an element of mystery† and the participants â€Å"do not and must not comprehend the true role of the sacrificial act.† This so-called mystery is represented in the story by the fact that none of the people currently living in the village seem to know how or why this macabre tradition came about. One of the villagers even remarks: â€Å"There’s always†¦show more content†¦It is a way for the violence of a community to be properly channeled, so that other violent acts do not happen later on. It â€Å"restores harm ony to the community† by preventing â€Å"violent impulses that cannot by mastered by self-restraint.† The village used as the backdrop for Jackson’s story is described as a ‘Mayberry’-type town that is implied to be pure and wholesome. It is not very big and the same families have lived there for generations. The lottery has been carried out every year for hundreds of years, probably in an effort to maintain this type of clichà ©d, but otherwise desired, way of living. According to Ted Bailey, it is the most probable reason that things like jail and police are not mentioned in the description of the village. Because they are not necessary when the tradition, and the village’s outlet for their violence, is maintained (Girard 8, 18) (Jackson 1) (Bailey 39). In order for the village to properly perform and carry out the lottery, a substitute victim, or â€Å"scapegoat,† must be chosen to be a stand-in for the entire community. A scapegoa t must be simultaneously similar to and set apart from the rest of the community. Similarity is imperative or the â€Å"violent impulse would remain unsatisfied,† but separation is necessary because it requires the community to â€Å"choose victims outside itself.† The guilt of the scapegoat, or lack thereof, is completely irrelevant. Tess Hutchinson, the woman who ‘wins’ the lottery, starts out being set apart from theShow MoreRelatedAn Analysis Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson744 Words   |  3 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† - For Analysis 1. There are multiple examples to suggest that â€Å"The Lottery† is a ritualistic ceremony. In several instances â€Å"The Lottery† is referred to as a ritual: â€Å"..so much of the ritual had been forgotten..† and â€Å"†¦because so much of the ritual had been forgotten†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . In addition, the ceremony happens annually on June 27th, a t0:00 a.m., suggesting a ceremonial quality. This happens with such regularity that the citizens â€Å"†¦only half listened to the directions†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . This ceremonyRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson Analysis732 Words   |  3 PagesFollowing other people may have a positive or negative effect, but when it reaches a certain point where you blindly follow others it may not have a positive outcome. â€Å"The Lottery† made by Shirley Jackson is about a small community of villagers that gather together every year to perform a tradition. All of the villagers gather together and draw small sl ips of paper from a black wooden box, whoever draws the first slip with the black dot on it, their family has to draw first. Now all of the membersRead More Analysis of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson Essay693 Words   |  3 PagesAnalysis of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson was written in 1948. The story takes place in a village square of a town on June 27th. The author does not use much emotion in the writing to show how the barbaric act that is going on is look at as normal. This story is about a town that has a lottery once a year to choose who should be sacrificed, so that the town will have a plentiful year for growing crops. Jackson has many messages about human nature in this shortRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson910 Words   |  4 PagesLiterary Analysis of the Short Story â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson Shirley Jackson explores the subject of tradition in her short story â€Å"The Lottery†. A short story is normally evaluated based on its ability to provide a satisfying and complete presentation of its characters and themes. Shirley describes a small village that engages in an annual tradition known as â€Å"the lottery†. Narrating the story from a third person point of view, Shirley uses symbolism, foreshadowing and suspense to illustrateRead MoreEssay on The Lottery by Shirley Jackson: an Analysis1522 Words   |  7 PagesKouyialis EN102: Composition II Professor Eklund The Lottery by Shirley Jackson: An Analysis The short story â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson was written in 1948 and takes place in a small town, on the 27th of June. In this story, the lottery occurs every year, around the summer solstice. All families gather together to draw slips of paper from a black box. When reading this story, it is unclear the full premise of the lottery until near the end. The heads of households are the firstRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson1534 Words   |  7 Pages Literary Analysis: â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson is a short story written in 1948. Due to World War II ending around this time, her story took some strong criticism. The people at that time wanted uplifting stories, and this story is the very opposite because of its underlying theme of tradition and conformity. â€Å"The Lottery† shows that no matter the tradition or belief, people will not stray from their daily routine because humans are creatures of habitRead MoreAnalysis Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson773 Words   |  4 PagesIn the short story, The Lottery, written by Shirley Jackson, is about a small village or some type of society with a yearly tradition called, the lottery. From what the reader may read online, they may find out that during the time period Jackson wrote this, she was interested in magic and witchcraft. Not only that she was also rumored to have gotten rocks thrown at her by children who believed she was a witch. One may also say, that the story wa s absolutely unique and the ending completely shockingRead MoreAnalysis Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson1060 Words   |  5 Pagesthird point of view about other but our view are mostly to always limited, not knowing everything. In a story called â€Å"Charles† by Shirley Jackson, the author creates a limited first point of view of Laurels mother where the reader reads and understand only what Laurie’s mother understand and see. In the other story also written by Shirley Jackson called â€Å"The Lottery†, the story proceed at a limited third point of view where the reader understands more ideas. Although each storied have a differentRead MoreAnalysis of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson993 Words   |  4 PagesSpanish author, When we blindly adopt a religion, a political system, a literary dogma, we become automatons. We cease to grow. Shirley Jackson was born in 1919 in San Francisco, California to Leslie and Geraldine Jackson. She is most well known for her s hort story titled â€Å"The Lottery† which was first published in The New Yorker to overwhelming and mixed reviews. The lottery, as portrayed in the short story, is a religious, annual ceremony in the afternoon of June 27. This event is said to be olderRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson Analysis802 Words   |  4 PagesIf everyone else was doing something, would you? Or maybe if someone needed to be stood up for, would you have their back? In The Lottery, people do follow other people blindly. And the consequences are devastating. But in First They Came, not having someone’s back might get you in the same position†¦ The Lottery by Shirley Jackson is a story that takes place in a small village on a warm summer day. Little boy’s run around in boisterous play, collecting small stones into a pile. As the adults gather