Analysis of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson (Essay Example)

In “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, a small village has its yearly lottery, but it is unlike any conventional lottery. A shock to the unsuspecting reader, this lottery is used to decide who to sacrifice so that the community can harvest corn in a few weeks when it is harvest season. Families gather upon an unfaithful June day around a black box, nonchalantly, waiting to get back to work once the lottery is completed. The village where this short story is set plays a significant role in numerous ways. Shirley Jackson artistically uses the setting throughout the story to set the tone, give context to the plot, and contribute to the moral.

At the beginning of the story, the first thing that the reader is introduced to is the setting. The author starts off with, "The morning of June 27 was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day: the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green. The people of the village began to gather in the square, between the post office and the bank..." Using this introduction, it is obvious Shirley Jackson wants to give the reader a mood of calmness while reading this. This piece of the text shows the reader that it is a rather pleasant day where the citizens of the village are out and about, hinting at the story possibly being upbeat and cheerful. But soon, it is found that this is not the case as the characters of the story are apprehensive regarding the lottery and are noticeably uncomfortable once the black box, out of which the lottery is drawn, is placed in the town square. Once the Hutchinson family has to each select a slip of paper to decide which of them will be sacrificed, the author manipulates the setting once again writing, "Mr. Graves had selected the five slips and put them in the box, and he dropped all the papers but those onto the ground where the breeze caught them and lifted them off." The breeze could possibly signify a turn of events in the negative direction, relating to the analogy "every storm starts with a breeze". 

Another way setting contributes to the story is that it gives context to the plot. While reading "The Lottery", the reader might question why is the village holding a lottery to murder one of their acquaintances. This is a question that may possibly be in the minds of many readers until a character in the story named Mrs. Adams states, "Some places have already quit lotteries." From this, the reader learns that the setting of the novel is located in an area where human sacrifices for a better harvest were normal at some point in time, explaining why the villagers might be taking part in this disturbing ritual.

Using this information, the reader also learns that the story takes place in a considerably rural area where crops play a major role in the quality of life since, without food, the villagers would not be able to survive. The fact that it is a small village that doesn't want to be influenced by what other neighboring villages are doing also allows the reader to realize that they strictly follow traditions, often blindly. This contributes to the greater moral of the story which is to not blindly follow traditions without thinking of its purpose critically.

The moral learned in this short story can be applied in day-to-day life.  Shirley Jackson subtly shows readers that just because something is tradition, it doesn't mean that we should blindly do it without using our own brain to think about whether or not it is right. Through the lives of a fictional village, the consequences of following what society does just because it has been done for a long period of time are shown in an abstract manner that resonates with many people from different backgrounds.