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What Are The Symbols In The Lottery

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The Lottery by Shirley Jackson is a story of a small town during1948. In this story there are several symbols present. The symbols in this story can be read however you want to read them. The symbols in this story can have many meanings. The symbols in this story do not just represent one meaning. A person can have their own opinion on what these symbols mean. This story can be read how you want to read it. The Lottery has many symbols in it but this essay will only include these, the three legged stool, the black box, and the stones. .
The first example of symbolism in the story is the three legs of the stool that the village people used to hold up the black box. Based on this line for the story ,“ Mr. Graves followed him carrying the three legged stool…Mr. Summer set the black box down,” This shows that the village used the three legged stool for the black box (Jackson 420).The three legs represent the Christian Trinity; God the Father, God the Sun, and God the Holy Spirit. The three legged stool is symbol because the Holy Trinity is a connection to the village people god. The villager's god was an important part of the village people lives. …show more content…

The village people had stones for people who died based off the black slips from the box. For example, this line from the story states that the piles of stones that the boys had made earlier was ready; there were stones on the ground with blowing scraps of paper that had come out of the box(Jackson 425). Based on this quote the reader could tell that the village people had the stones made with a tag on them.
The lottery had many symbols throughout the story but this essay only include the three legged stool, the black box, and the stones. The three legged stool was a thing that the village people used for the black box. The village people used the black box to see who will have death that following year. The stone was something the village people want to remember their people

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