Sacrificial Rituals

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how Jackson leads the reader through an annual sacrificial ritual in a representative small town, all along stressing the faults of the townspeople who continue to murder one of their own on a scheduled basis without applying logic to their acts or questioning the validity of the tradition. The paper explains that Jackson uses ironic imagery in the title, the setting, and the names of the townspeople to mislead the reader, and make the true intentions all the more shocking. The paper also looks at how she then uses ominous symbols such as the black box to foreshadow the true intentions and the aura of darkness and death that surrounds the characters in the story. The writer concludes that by choosing to continue the lottery and refusing to fight for its removal, the townspeople are setting their own fate and are removing themselves from the rest of the world.

From the Paper:

"Jackson begins her story with a detailed description of a cheerful sunny day with an annual town gathering. The casual chatter of the townspeople and the playful collection of stones by the children support the warm and sunny setting. Jackson refers to the children's "feeling of liberty," (208) which contradicts their true state, as any one of them could be chosen to die by the very stones they are collecting, with no freedom of choice or liberty to save them. Jackson's characters seem normal and typical of any small town, which makes their brutal acts hit closer to home with the reader. Jackson is showing that anyone, no matter how normal they seem, can be convinced to do awful things under the pretense of a tradition that is not to be broken; and they can be made to do so under the power of peer pressure, or rather the need to fit in within their section of society."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Jackson, Shirley. "The Lottery." Literature: A Portable Anthology. Ed. Janet E. Gardner, et al. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2004. 208-215.

More papers on Sacrificial Rituals:

• Analytical Essay # 141828 : "Mayan Rituals as Hegemonic Power"
• Research Paper # 67006 : "Wiccan Rituals"
• Essay # 67980 : "Sacrifice: Hinduism and Christianity"

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