In “The Lottery”, Shirley Jackson uses conflict, theme, and irony to develop this suspenseful short story. One literary device used by Jackson is conflict. A conflict is a problem or struggle between two opposing forces in a story. ( Teaching...2) In this short story it was man vs. society. Tessie is one of the main characters in “The Lottery” , who has to deal with a big problem.
Throughout the story, Shirley Jackson creates a sense of normality, ending with a conclusion that has both suspense and foreshadowing. The secrets, traditions and immoral behaviors in the town prove the point that society's basest instincts are ones of compulsion and destruction place. The violence and suspense littered throughout the story prove that human nature is one of fight or flight. Secrecy is one of the prevailing themes in the story. The town keeps the lottery hidden and does not let the outside world see their terrible secret.
This is seen through her many novels and short stories as the reader is greeted with something new in each one. “The Lottery” is no exception to this as it entails all of Jacksons best attributes. “The Lottery” depicts that all that glitters is not gold and tradition can be detrimental. The lottery begins on a summer day with all the villagers gathering in the town
In the beginning of the story, Jackson automatically begins the story perfect or in a sort of happy mood or tone. Jackson starts off with “The morning of June was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full summer day, the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green.”(351). This statement uses situational irony to perpetuate the readers to believe that a happy story was to come along. Jackson foreshadows these afflictions by using imagery to allow readers to assume the scene is too perfect and it to have a deeper meaning. As the story continues, the mood immediately changes, creating a foreshadowing effect that the lottery is not as warm as it seems.
Jay Yarmove, from the University of Cincinnati, wrote “The underpinning of Shirley Jackson’s famous post-World War II story “The Lottery” demonstrate that the work is far greater than the sum of its parts” (Yarmove). This one sentence speaks volumes about the theme and symbolism in the story. The story is written in a manner that allows the reader to empathize with the characters and shows the importance but also the mockery of family and traditions. Traditions are often thought of to be a way for families or communities to demonstrate the customs or beliefs of previous generations. Traditions are commonly thought to be a positive reflection on the past, however in “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson traditions are not positive in nature.
When people think of a lottery, some of the first words that pop into their mind are money, luck, and happiness. However, those words would be contradictory to the lottery spoken of in this story. The conclusion makes spines shiver with chills with the cruel--cruel acts the people do in the village. The story uses unique techniques of concealing the true happenings, with a flowing river of unexpected ironies and symbolisms. In Shirley Jackson's short story “The Lottery” and director of “The Lottery” becomes so shocking that it becomes unbearable with the contrast between the seeming normality of a society and the savage acts the people commit.
Jackson uses the theme to convey the harsh tradition of the lottery and to demonstrate the powers of conformity, the inhumanity of society, and how inherited traditions can become evil. In Jackson’s story, the lottery is a tradition that towns from all over participate in and conform to the inhumane killing of innocent people. This tradition is not at all like your normal community gathering. In this tradition, every person, including children and elders
Literacy analysis Authored by Shirley Jackson in June 1948, “The Lottery” is a short story and first in an issue of The New Yorker the same year. At the core of the story is a narration about a small town in the modern day world America in which “the lottery,” which is an annual ritual takes place. In the history of American literature, Shirley Jackson's "the lottery" has continued receiving acknowledgements as one of the most successful and famous short stories. As defined by several commentators, “The Lottery” is a chilling tale of traditionalism gone mad. For several decades following its publication, the short story has been taught in not only high schools but also colleges.
Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” is an amazing fiction short story. This story is highly focused on symbolism, imagery, and allegory. These three literary devices are what make this story as successful and impactful as it is. This profound impact from symbolism is more immediate and keeps readers interested throughout the story. It does not take much creative thought to connect the objects in the story and how they foreshadow their use.
The initial reaction after the initial publishing of the story was widespread outcry, which made Shirley Jackson, the author, a literary villain. The Lottery is a short story about small town in New England made of about 300 citizens who are looking forward