THE LOTTERY BY SHIRLEY JACKSON

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson

Thesis Statement

The basic social theme focuses on how people often hold on to customs, even when they are barbaric and have lost their earlier meaning. The idea of the lottery itself refers back to a primitive fertility custom of scapegoat; that is, choosing one member of the community to be sacrificed to appease the gods and assure a good crop (Jackson, 1963).

Jackson's calm description of the lottery procedure—the reader is given more commonplace details about the workings of the lottery than about any of the characters—helps counterpoint the horror ...