Term Paper on "Lottery by Shirley Jackson"

Term Paper 5 pages (1583 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Shirley Jackson Lottery

Speaking to the San Francisco Chronicle in 1948 regarding her controversial short story "The Lottery," Shirley Jackson stated, "Explaining just what I had hoped the story to say is very difficult. I suppose, I hoped, by setting a particularly brutal ancient rite in the present and in my own village to chock the story's readers with a graphic dramatization of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives," (cited by Kosenko). When the story appeared in a 1948 edition of the prestigious New Yorker magazine, it caused a considerable stir. Especially as it was published during the intoxication of an Allied victory in World War Two, "The Lottery" aimed underhanded criticism against what most Americans believed was a triumphant modern society, superior to all others that existed or had gone before. In "The Lottery," a small New England town that is the epitome of American tradition and small town life becomes a twentieth-century Roman coliseum, an arena more violent than any glam-wrestling show, hockey rink, or Tarantino film. In Jackson's tale, a woman is stoned to death because she won an annual town lottery. The game has gone on since the inception of the town centuries ago; the lottery forms a core aspect of the citizens' identity. Old Man Warner, who embodies tradition and all things past by his name alone, exclaims that the surrounding towns that have abandoned their lotteries are all "young fools." Thus, Jackson implies two main themes with "The Lottery": One, American culture is permeated with senseless violence and even characterized by it; and two, like the public stoning of Mrs. Hutchinson, outmoded rituals and traditions permit and condone horrific, animalistic behavior. The themes running through "The Lottery," which Jackson elucidates via symbolism, mirror modern American social and political realities.

The Lottery" hearkens to tragically real events in American history, most notably the Salem witch hunts in seventeenth century Massachusetts. Jackson's story is set in New England, underscoring the geographic and topical relevance of her story to the famous witch trials. Moreover, some core symbolism that runs throughout Jackson's story evokes the mystique of witchcraft, primarily the "pile of stones" that the town children form at the beginning of the tale. Stone piles are reminiscent of Stonehenge and other ancient European megaliths. Both Stonehenge and the "pile of stones" in "The Lottery" symbolize ancient rituals that have little relevance in the modern world and both also hint at the practice of sorcery, witchcraft, and other ancient arts. Moreover, throwing stones is one of the most ancient means of public execution and humiliation, and is referred to throughout the Christian Bible. Jackson's including a female victim in "The Lottery" further emphasizes the connection between the short story and the Salem witch trials, most of which prosecuted women. In both cases, the victim was also innocent of any apparent crime. In both cases, the punishment and mob mentality are both predicated on ancient and outworn rituals.

More relevant to the era in which Jackson wrote, "The Lottery" represents McCarthyism, the modern day witch hunts that plagued American citizens during the Cold War. During the McCarthy trials, individuals who were thought to hold beliefs or values contrary to the American government were prosecuted as "communists" and tried under the Alien Registration Act. The House of Un-American Activities Committee in particular went after prominent Hollywood stars, many of whom warned against the dangers of an overly paternalistic American government. In many ways, Shirley Jackson's lottery resembles McCarthyism; the author accuses the town's authority figures of acting in a way similar to the American government during the Cold War. Jackson wrote her story just as the Cold War was beginning, as if she detected the fears and violence that has always been a part of the underbelly of American culture.

In Jackson's story, the lottery selects people at random, simply by pulling pieces of paper out of a black box; the victims are equally as innocent of any apparent crime. Many of McCarthy's victims were apparently chosen at random, perhaps because of left-wing political affiliations, but were also innocent of any actual crime. Over fifty years later, the American government continues to exhibit authoritarian and even violent behavior, predicated on custom, ritual, and tradition. Since September 11, the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act can be invoked any time government officials hope to hold individuals in custody without access to due process. With "The Lottery," Shirley Jackson points attention to the power of myth and legend in forming cultural identity: in the short story, the stoning lottery, with its ancient symbolism evocative of stone circles, Biblical punishment, and witchcraft, was an integral part of the small town's collective consciousness. Similarly, violent events which occurred during Jackson's lifetime like the attack on Pearl Harbor, and recent events like September 11, have become symbols of the American collective consciousness. The U.S.A. Patriot Act was passed in supposed reverence to tradition and to "American values," just as the lottery in Jackson's story was practiced to pay respect to the origins of the community. Just as Mrs. Hutchinson is stoned to death in "The Lottery" for no real reason, and just as Hollywood celebrities were accused of being "communists," individuals prosecuted under the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act are labeled "terrorists" and held without being tried in a court of law. The lack of liberty evident throughout the Cold War and throughout modern society is described in "The Lottery" with Jackson's description of the children: the young, upstart generation of the community. School had just gotten out for the summer, but "the feeling of liberty sat uneasily on most of them." The townspeople "had forgotten the ritual" in Jackson's story; likewise, American citizens have forgotten the fundamental philosophies of the United States: such as "liberty and justice for all." Thus, Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" remains a poignant and relevant social commentary today.

Moreover, in Jackson's story, the tradition of the lottery is purported to be a valuable and honorable custom. "No one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box." None of the townspeople, even Mrs. Hutchinson, objects to the practice of the lottery itself. No one protests, not even members of the youngest generations. When she is about to die, Mrs. Hutchinson only cries out that the means by which her husband selected his paper was "not fair." She never decries the institution itself. More than any other character in the story, Old Man Warner represents those in the village who stand by the lottery as a key element of their cultural identity, just as McCarthy and other officials clung to the House of Un-American Activities Committee as essential to the preservation of American values. Furthermore, in Jackson's "The Lottery," the townspeople don't even remember why they continue to practice the bloody game: "Although the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the original black box, they still remembered to use stones." The black box has physically degenerated, mirroring the state of the tradition itself: the black wood is "faded," "stained," and "splintered." Today, as in Jackson's time, many American principles have become "faded," "stained," and "splintered."

Violence has characterized American culture since the first European settlers landed on American soil. From driving away the native Indians to enslaving millions of African men and women, the founders of the United States of America created a nation out of labor and blood. Regardless of how time-honored American traditions and histories are, violence has permeated our society. Jackson addresses this violence with satire and symbolism in her short story "The Lottery."

When read today, Jackson's short story evokes painful memories of a sullied American past: one that in Jackson's time lynched African-Americans and imprisoned Japanese-American citizens in concentration camps. "The Lottery" also hints at the insipid social stratification of the… READ MORE

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