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Tess Hutchison Tradition

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The Annual Tradition Introducing the story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson the author is trying to inform the reader about an annual tradition. The unifying theme is fading tradition seen through Old Man Warner, Tessie Hutchison, changes in the ritual and the black box. The unifying theme is also relevant to the content by reason of an annual from past generations. Overall a tradition is held to celebrate and has its beliefs from generation to One example of the unifying theme is Old Man Warner. Old man warner is the oldest man in the village who seems to take it upon himself to make sure, the annual tradition stays the same. His loyalty …show more content…

Tessie Hutchison is the only powerful woman in the village who has questionable actions approaching the ritual and tries to prove her rights to live. She and other villagers are proudly a part of the tradition while the black box is placed to begin the lottery. Tessie Hutchison changes and has an outburst saying “it wasn’t fair” (Jackson 108). The black box also resembles the unifying theme because Tessie Hutchison changing her thoughts about the annual tradition just as the necessities being replaced in the black box. Mr. Summers stated “Had all be well when the village was tiny, it was necessary to use something that would fit more easily into the black box” (Jackson …show more content…

The ritual being changed symbols the unifying theme because in earlier years the ritual took place differently within the postmasters greeting the villagers. The greetings is “a recital of some sort, performed by the official of the lottery” (Jackson 106). The black box represents the ritual being changed due to the different locations of the black box. The narrator says, Mr. Summers “safe at his coal company, Mr. Graves barn and the post office”(Jackson 106). The ritual changing adjust the villager’s mindset about the black box. However the Black Box is the most important symbol in the lottery. The unifying theme is connected to the black box. The black box is fading in many ways which doesn’t interfere with the villager’s belief towards the tradition. The black box has a similar look to a black coffin. The Black box is described as “grown shabbier each year, by now it was no longer black”. Not only is the conditions of the black box is fading but also the way villagers view it. Mr. Summers said “the ritual had been allowed to lapse” (Jackson

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or instance on paragraph” [5] The original paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box” This clearly shows people were following a tradition with no questions due to feeling like they were a part of a larger, more connected community. On the other hand, compliance helps this town's dark tradition take place every year upon her. “ This proves “ Old Man Warner was saying, “Come on, come on, everyone.” Steve Adams was in the front of the crowd of villagers, with Mrs. Graves beside him.

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Usually there’s a winner in a lottery, but not in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”. This story intrigued me by it's suspenseful nature and it's chaotic events. In small town America, they come together once a year to perform an annual tradition. Mrs. Jackson demonstrates literary devices such as foreshadowing, mood, and conflict in “The Lottery”. Foreshadowing is used quite a few times in “The Lottery”.

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The Lottery Template Topic Sentence: One can see by examining the symbolism of the worn out black box, and the foreshadowing of the children putting rocks in their pockets in the The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, that this story is a classic archetypal horror story. Argument: Firstly, one can see that when Mr. Summers arrived at the square carrying a black wooden box, he asked the villagers if anyone would give him a hand with putting the box on the three- legged stool, however, many hesitated to come near the black box, a symbolic twist that foreshadows the imminent ending. The black box has been used for generations, even before the oldest villager. It has been said that the current box was made from the pieces of the

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She again backs this up by stating, “The villagers kept their distance…” providing insight in that they didn’t want to be close to the box where they draw for the lottery. The people didn’t want to be associated with what the lottery and box represented and seemed to hesitate when it was their turn to draw from the black box. Jackson’s use of diction and the way she set the tone throughout the story clearly led the reader to believe that what the box and the lottery represented was negative and represented

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This is shown by the senseless murders that the villagers partake in each year. Jackson's story also shows how the world she created relates to the world that we live in. A world in which people continue with ritualized traditions like putting up Christmas trees, and acting with great animosity toward one another. Subtle hints throughout the story, as well as its shocking conclusion, indicate that the villagers' tradition has become meaningless over time, like the traditions that we still follow today. What's particularly important about tradition in The Lottery is that it appears to be eternal, no one knows when it started, and no one can guess when it will end.

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There was a story that the present box had been made with pieces of the original box that had preceded it. ”(Jackson 1).Jackson uses symbolism to show that the black box symbolises death. It also shows they don't want to make a new box because the box had been this way since the lottery had started many years

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Jackson gives an impression that the shabby, black box is a personal and constant reminder to the people so that they must remain faithful to the tradition of their forefathers and never ponder on the notion that those customs might be wrong or immoral. In addition, the villagers’ behavior towards the box embodies their assessment on the entire system of the lottery. They seem to be frightened by the lottery and the box, but they are even more petrified to alter or doubt one or the other. Pressures, traditions and longstanding beliefs may potentially guide that society to an extensive ignorance and sanctioned malevolence that is directly strengthened by

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Most traditions and celebrations are meant to be jubilant and joyous, yet “The Lottery” shows another way to interpret it and confuses the readers with the title. “It had spent one year in Mr. Graves’s barn and another year underfoot in the post office and sometimes it was set on a shelf in the martin Grocery and left there” (6). This quote represents the tradition that the small town has been holding onto for many years. Like the lottery itself, the black box has no functionality except for two hours every June. As time passes, the purpose of the box is cloudy and confusing.

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The story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is a short story of horror and realism. On June 27th on a late summer morning, the villagers of a small New England village gatherd together in the town square to conduct their annual lottery. There is a black box on a stool and in the box there is pieces of paper in the box. Each person from a family get one paper from the black box even the children get a piece of paper and every stayed quiet and nervouse. Then Bill Hutchinson looked at the paper and notice that he got the black dot.

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The Lottery itself represents a primal example of loss of innocence; portrayed through the young boys who gather at the town square to collect rocks for the horrors soon to follow. An illustration of how traditions can lose their true meanings and come to represent violence and warfare. Furthermore, “The Lottery” also represents the decaying characteristics of traditions, as symbolized by the town’s black box, in this case where every year, someone’s name is drawn out of the black box and they are stoned to death, by other members who may or may not end up to be family. Nonetheless, it ends up to be the villagers who

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The Symbolism of The Lottery One big symbol that the short story is discreet about is the black box that is repeated throughout the short story symbolizes fear to adults which could affect even the most innocent. The black box appears to be the only paraphernalia that is still being used in the tradition of having a lottery. Mr. Summers is the one who is running the lottery at the time. Mr. Summers is seen as a nice man, however, when he is introduced, he is seen with the black box. “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is a short story that uses the black box as a symbol to convey an underlying message that when the power of a tradition is given to a person, it could lead a crumbling society.

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In Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery," the author has demonstrated each symbol and the meaning that holds behind them. The black box is culturally known as a dark and evil color. It represents the fate of the people in town, and the three-legged stool is used as a support for the black box to lay on top of the object. Stoning is ancient.

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In her story "The Lottery", Shirley Jackson implies the negative consequences of blindly following tradition through the acceptance, by the villagers, of the tradition of the lottery. Jackson suggests that the people of the village are afraid to give up the little tradition they have, even if it is not good. Every year after the lottery, the conductor of the lottery, Mr. Summers suggests that they should build a new box but, “No one [likes] to upset even as much tradition as [is] represented by the box.” (Jackson, 1). The black box symbolizes ritual and tradition.

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Shirley Jackson’s “The lottery” is a story based on tradition. When hearing the word tradition, most people think of team rituals before games, or something families do together annually. However, Jackson is obviously not like most people. She builds up a fair amount of tension around this ritual that is taking place to make readers wonder what is going on. She uses many different techniques to show that sometimes, traditions are not always meant to go on forever.

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The villagers on “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson are afraid to let go of their tradition, the lottery. They are concern of unknown consequences that will happen if they change their old customs. So, for every year, the villagers gather at the square to do the lottery at 10 AM . The villagers are afraid to quit their outdated tradition because they think that changing their old customs will only bring trouble.

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