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T O P I C     R E V I E W

CSteiner

Shirley Jackson's short story of "The Lottery" is a well written literary work, which has the 4 basic elements of a story; atmosphere, characterization, plot and theme. Her writing is done so well that as the atmosphere changes from a warm, sunny and happy gathering to the actual stoning of one of the townspeople, Tessie Hutchison, we are moved right along as if we were watching it in person. How ironic it is that even Tessie is seemingly excited in the beginning, but as her family is the one chosen her mood and attitude changes. The atmosphere surrounding her is so evident that we feel her dismay. The characterization was set by the fellow townspeople, both as they talked to one another and amongst themselves. Without any descriptions, we pretty much knew the main characters. Symbolism is abundant in this story, as in the black box. Both the age of it and the color were symbolic of the aged old tradition and evil. The names of some of the people, like Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves, or hearing the attitudes of some of the people like the oldest man in town who doesn't want change. Standing next to him is the young couple talking of other towns doing away with the lottery, symbolizing youth and change. This short story is an organic narrative because the entire story from start to finish has a close connectedness to the theme. Every member of the townspeople is at the town square for one reason and they all seem to accept it as if it were a typical summer day. They were all eager to hurry and get the whole thing over so they could go eat dinner and continue on with their lives. I think this story is very sad. Shirley Jackson said she was trying to symbolize the pointless violence and everyday inhumanity in our world. This story is a real good example of nonchalant behavior, committing a sensless murder with absolutely no remorse. I will remember this story for a very long time.