THE LOTTERY - Essay Example

“The Lottery” Analysis Tradition is a leading theme in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery.” Jackson writes characters as individuals who adhere to tradition irrespective of its repercussions on their lives. “The Lottery” is a narrative about a yearly tradition by residents of a small, unknown town, which seems to be as crucial to them as Christmas is today. This nearly innate commitment to tradition arises from the village lottery that cultivates a vicious killing yearly. Small towns consider traditions a means of maintaining the connections between and amongst households and former generations. In this case, Jackson questions this tradition implicitly by stating that the villagers are not very conscious about the actual lottery but still continue to conserve its tradition (Jackson 7). The writer reveals how rationalizing such a primal tradition makes it difficult to view any rituals involved as anything but hypocritical. As a result, only readers can see the madness of this tradition by the villagers.
The theme of tradition is very applicable today. Much emphasis and emotional value is placed on yearly celebrations such as Christmas and New Year’s Day. On top of these emphases, consumerism marks both traditions and impairs any rational judgment required to rethink their rue values to society. Christmas today cannot be celebrated without overindulging in shopping behavior and bodily consumption to the extent that shoppers get violent when products sell out in stores. I think society’s blind adoption of excessive consumption during Christmas as a tradition allows it cover its ears to any logic and has ultimately become part of its fabric.
Works Cited
Jackson, Shirley. The Lottery. New York: The New Yorker, 1948. Read More