•• The Prized Drawing ••

"The Lottery", written by Shirley Jackson, is a short story that offers much insight on the role of tradition and it's impact on our lives.

"The Lottery" tells of a place where villagers gather together to draw a slip of paper from a wooden box. On just one slip of paper there is a black dot. The black dot has chosen whom to claim its victim - Mrs. Hutchinson. As she begs for the villagers understanding little kids and adults all around grip on to their stones and begin to throw them with all of their power towards her. It is instantly forgotten that she is a mother, a friend, and a wife, and as soon as that black dot claimed it's prize it was each man for himself. The story closes with the villagers attacking Mrs. Hutchinson.

The story demonstrates the immense power that time has over human beings. It is never made clear exactly why this is a tradition for the village to continue, but for some reason as the people gather around they immediately grab their stones and manually get ready to stone the chosen one. This is a great example of how over time, traditions change and people forget the true meaning behind the tradition. It becomes something of a habit, rather than something of purpose.

"The Lottery" presents the idea that perspectives of right and wrong can be skewed by our individual experiences. Each society is different. The rituals one place has could be polar opposites of another place. It is easily forgotten that our surroundings influence us in a multitude of ways. As an outsider reading this short story, I was in shock. I questioned how parents could encourage their children to search for the biggest stone possible to throw at another human being. That is exactly the beauty of this story, though. Jackson forces readers to recognize the difference between the readers ideals and the villagers (in the story) ideals. To each individual in the story, the lottery means something different. We are each a pair of eyes and one brain. Our beliefs have been skewed by the environment around us just as much as the next persons.

Several different characters are presented throughout the short story and each has a different perspective on the tradition. Old Man Warner, for example, encourages the tradition. At first it is easy to think of this man in negative way. We wonder how one man can encourage a tradition that forces an innocent mother being stoned to death based off of a drawing of a slip of paper? After searching farther than beyond the words on th
e paper, however, it becomes clear that Old Man Warner is simply afraid of change.  For many people taking chances and searching the unknown is a frightening task. perhaps Old Man Warner does like the lottery tradition, but by questioning the lottery one is questioning who he is and what he has known all of his life. This circles back around to the idea that our experiences make us who we are. Without the lottery, who is Old Man Warner?

While reading "The Lottery" I was questioning the value of tradition. For each individual it is different. For some, the purpose of tradition is only to be fair. If a man died last year from being stoned to death then a man should die this year, right? For others, the purpose of tradition is to live with the comfort of something familiar. "The Lottery" emphasizes the idea of what an individual places values on and what a society places values on. Are you questioning what you believe yet?