Short Story: The Lottery

Short Story: The Lottery

A Story of Tradition, Violence, and Human Behavior

Lesson goals

• Understand the key themes, plot, and symbols in Shirley Jackson's The Lottery.
• Analyze how tradition influences human behavior and decision-making in the story and in real life.
• Reflect on the dangers of following harmful traditions without questioning them.

Introduction to The Lottery

Author: Shirley Jackson (1916–1965)

Published: The New Yorker, June 26, 1948

Genre: Short Story, Psychological Horror

Summary: The story begins as an ordinary village gathering but ends with shocking violence.

Key Themes:

Blind obedience to tradition

Normalization of violence

The dark side of human nature

Detailed Story Overview

Setting:

A bright and sunny summer morning in a small rural village.

Villagers gather in the town square for the annual lottery. Everyone seems cheerful and casual.

The Lottery Process:

A black box holds slips of paper for each family.

Families draw slips one by one, keeping to strict tradition.

The Twist:

Tessie Hutchinson, a wife and mother, draws the "marked" slip.

The villagers turn on her and stone her to death as part of the ritual.

Ending:

The story concludes abruptly, leaving readers shocked and questioning.

Symbols in the Story

The Black Box:

Represents outdated traditions and resistance to change.

The box is old and damaged, but the villagers refuse to replace it.

The Stones:

Symbolize unthinking, collective violence.

The simple tools of the villagers become instruments of cruelty.

The Lottery Itself:

A metaphor for rituals or systems that harm individuals but are accepted without question.

Key Theme: Blind Tradition

In the Story:

The villagers follow the lottery because it’s “what has always been done.”

Even when parts of the ritual are forgotten, the violence continues.

Real Life Connections:

Many harmful practices (like discrimination or superstitions) survive because of tradition.

Key Theme: Normalized Violence

In the Story:

The villagers are kind and friendly but easily turn violent when the ritual demands it.

Even Tessie’s own family participates.

Message:

Violence can become "normal" when it’s part of a system or rule.

Question for Discussion:

Have you seen examples where harmful actions are accepted because “it’s the way things are”?

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Why do people follow traditions without questioning them?

Character Focus: Tessie Hutchinson

Who Is She?

A lively, outspoken woman who arrives late to the lottery.

Protests loudly when she is chosen, saying, “It isn’t fair!”

Her Role:

Tessie’s fate highlights how the group can sacrifice individuals to maintain order.

Her objections are ignored because the ritual is more important than fairness.

Food for thought: Why do people resist change, even when traditions are harmful?

Impact of The Lottery

Public Reaction:

Many readers were shocked and angry when the story was first published.

Some even canceled their New Yorker subscriptions.

Why It Matters:

Jackson forces readers to confront the darker side of human nature and society.

The story remains relevant today as a warning against unthinking obedience.

Conclusion

Main Takeaways:

Traditions should be questioned, especially if they harm others.

Ordinary people can commit terrible acts when influenced by the group.

Violence can hide behind normal, everyday routines.

Check-out question: What would you do if you lived in the village? Would you stand up against the tradition or follow the crowd?

Did we meet these goals?:
Understand the key themes, plot, and symbols in Shirley Jackson's The Lottery.
Analyze how tradition influences human behavior and decision-making in the story and in real life.
Reflect on the dangers of following harmful traditions without questioning them.

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