Disturbing Aspects of The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

Everyone knows what a lottery is. Lotteries usually involve winning money or some other grand prize. Most people know someone who has entered in a lottery, but may have lost. But would someone draw in a lottery where the prize may be unnerving? Well, in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery,” that is exactly what happens. The most disturbing aspects of “The Lottery” are what comes from the person being drawn in said lottery, the family drawing a slip, and the black box. 

In the story The Lottery, everyone in town will draw a slip from a box, and see who has the “winning” slip, which has a black circle drawn on it. Once it is seen who has it, the person must go to the center of town. However, what happens after this point is disturbing. Once in the center of town, the other townsfolk gather stones, and the person in the center is then stoned to death. The reason this is upsetting is because someone dies from drawing this winning slip. Yet, this is not the only reason it is upsetting. The reaction of the townsfolk to it is as well, as the woman who unfortunately gets this slip is Tessie Hutchinson. She screams many times, “It isn’t fair” and even says “It isn’t fair, it isn’t right,” (Jackson) up until the first stone is thrown. Another person-- known as “Old Man Warner” -- has close to the same reaction, saying, “It’s not the way it used to be. People ain’t the way they used to be” (Jackson). Nevertheless, this is not the only disturbing aspect of this story. 

As mentioned earlier, there is a single person who is drawn the unlucky winning slip. However, there is a step before this. When people are first drawing slips, the man of the family or whoever else is drawing, will draw to see which family is going to have the unlucky slip. For this lottery, it is the Hutchinson family. They consist of Bill Hutchinson, Tessie Hutchinson, and their children Nancy, Bill Jr., and little Davy. This is alarming, as the children of any age, including even a toddler, can get the slip of paper. In the story it says, “A girl whispered, ‘I hope it’s not Nancy,’...” (Jackson), meaning even the friends of a child drawing a slip worries about one of the children getting the bad one. In addition, what would happen if instead of Tessie being the one with the bad slip, what if little Davy had it? Would Tessie and Bill try and take his place, or would his death happen? Knowing that a child can be stoned to death in this lottery and it possibly happening before is truly creepy. 

The slips that the people in town draw come out of a black, wooden box. It has some damage to it, as the narrator explains, “... it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color, and in some places faded or stained” (Jackson). This can also be put towards showing its age, as it is mentioned in the story, “... the black box now resting on the stool had put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born” (Jackson). This is eerie, because this means that this lottery and the events of it has been going on for many decades, and maybe even more. The box’s age may also give an air of unease as, “The villagers kept their distance, leaving a space between themselves and the stool...” (Jackson) and “there was a hesitation before two men... came forth to hold the box steady...” (Jackson). The villagers keeping their distance from the box shows the fear of the event and shows how even though the lottery is a tradition rooted in fear and violence, that it will never cease to be. 

The Lottery is a story of fear, violence, and overall acceptance of the practice. While the event that takes place in the story is horrifying, it is something that the town accepts. The people have the event, then move on until the next time it happens. It is something that is a constant, whether that be good or bad. In conclusion, The Lottery is a timeless horror story that is compelling, and truly makes readers ponder.