Symbolism in the lottery
Symbolism in the lotteryShirley Jackson’s, “The Lottery”, clearly expresses her feelings concerning traditional rituals through her story. It opens the eyes of readers to properly classify and question some of today’s traditions as cruel, and allows room to foretell the outcome of these unusual traditions. “The Lottery” is a short story that records the annual sacrifice ceremony of a fictional small town. It is a detailed narrative of the selection of the person to be sacrificed, a process known to the townspeople as “the lottery”. This selection is extremely rich in symbolism. Shirley Jackson uses symbolism to make readers aware of the pointless nature of humanity regarding tradition and violence. There are three main types of symbolism in this piece: characters’ names, objects, and numbers.
The names of the characters play a large role in the story. Some such as Delacroix, are rather obviously religious natures. Others, such as Adams, are a bit more obscure. The Delacroix family has a name that literally means of the cross. The principal Delacroix character, Mrs. Delacroix, appears several times throughout the short story. She functions as a friend to Tessie Hutchinson, the woman ultimately selected for the sacrifice, but turns on her at the end along with the rest of the townspeople. Delacroix is not angry with Hutchinson, but helps kill her because of the tradition. The symbolism here is apparent. The church, usually seen as a positive influence, can sometimes turn on a person in the name of ritual and tradition.
Mr. Adams, another character, is the first to draw from the lottery box. His name, Adams, coupled with the fact that he is the first man to draw from the lottery box,
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indicates that he is biblically representative of humanity. Like the other characters, he is supposed to stand for the average person. This illustrates that the story is universally applicable to everyone.
Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves also have symbolic names. Mr. Summers, the owner of a coal business, runs all the civic activities, including the lottery. His name is a representative of the lottery itself, which occurs every summer. Jackson makes certain readers know “the lottery” is an annual tradition. Old Man Warner quotes an old saying, “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon”(232). Mr. Graves, the town postman, assists Mr. Summers in directing the ceremony of selecting the unlucky lottery winner. Just as he is an integral part of the drawing, his name symbolizes the element of death that is an integral part of the lottery process.
The black box is the central theme or idea in the story. The box symbolizes, at first, some type of mystery. However, as we read the ending, it is realized that is synonymous with doom. Its black color symbolizes death and absoluteness. A townperson’s fate lies in an inanimate object,...
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