The short story, “The Lottery” by author Shirley Jackson, centers around an unnamed village that holds an annual lottery drawing and what appears to be a harmless tradition quickly turns sinister. The lottery is a ritual in the village that is held every June 27th.
Villagers gather and are assigned slips of paper preliminary to the lottery. A committee is chosen to help organize the lottery and the slips, which were all blank, are put into a black wooden box. Mr.
Summers, the one who facilitates the lottery, mixes the slips and reads out the names to be selected. Tessie Hutchinson, the mother of four children, is the unlucky winner of the lottery and is violently stoned by the villagers.
It becomes apparent from the villagers’ behavior, that this lottery is not only a gruesome ritual, but also that it has been maintained for generations, presumably for some unknown purpose. Jackson uses symbolism in her story to give a deeper meaning to the story.
The black box, made from pieces of different boxes, symbolizes the past tradition of the lottery being passed down from generation to generation. As the story reaches its climax, it is revealed that the lottery means death for its winner as a sacrifice for the good of the village.
At the end of the story, it is left to the reader to speculate the ritual’s true purpose.
Why did tessie get stoned in the lottery?
Tessie got stoned in the lottery because it was a tradition in the village. Every year, the villagers would randomly select one person to be stoned, and it was a “sacrifice” that had to be made in order to ensure the village’s prosperity.
Tessie was chosen by drawing slips of paper out of a black box; the paper with Tessie’s name on it was the one that was chosen. Tessie was seen as the symbol of the village and was seen as the “one who had to be sacrificed for the good of the village.
” This tradition had been going on for centuries, and no one wanted to challenge or oppose it. Though Tessie’s death was a tragedy, it was part of an age-old practice that the villagers had come to accept and respect.
What happened at the end of the lottery?
At the end of the lottery, the final winner of the grand prize – a brand new car – was revealed. The winner, a local man from the small town, was overwhelmed with excitement and joy. As everyone cheered, he was called up onto the stage and given the keys to his newfound prize.
He thanked the organizers and all who had helped make the event possible, expressing his eternal gratitude for the opportunity. He then went on to thank all the other participants, wishing them luck and success in future endeavors.
After taking a few more moments to savor the moment, he reluctantly drove off with his new car and his newfound good fortune.
What does Tessie symbolize?
Tessie in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” symbolizes the randomness of oppression and cruelty in a society. Tessie symbolizes how seemingly random events can have profound consequences. She is an ordinary woman of no particular importance who is chosen by random as a sacrificial offering for the village.
Her fate serves as a reminder of the arbitrary nature of oppression, and how it can happen to anyone regardless of their social standing. Beyond that, Tessie herself is also a symbol of early feminist defiance, as she tries to no avail to protest her lottery selection.
She stands up for her rights, although ultimately to no avail, showing that even in the face of oppressive systems, people can still express their opinion and stand up for themselves.
What happens to Tessie at the end?
At the end of the short story, Tessie’s fate is left to the reader’s interpretation. However, it is likely she is killed in the lottery since the villagers are preparing to stone her to death. We know that the villagers take their belief in the lottery seriously, and Tessie’s defiant attitude when drawing the marked paper suggests she is resigned to her fate.
However, it does seem that at least one villager is hesitant to go through with the execution since Old Man Warner hesitates before giving the command to start stoning her. This moment of hesitation implies that the village may be beginning to experience a sense of remorse over the tradition, leading to the possibility that Tessie may be spared at this moment.
Ultimately, it is up to the reader to decide what happened in the end.
Does Tessie win the lottery?
No, Tessie does not win the lottery. The lottery in the story is a game of chance put on by the townsfolk for the purpose of determining which family is to be sacrificed. The result of the lottery is revealed at the end of the story, and Tessie is not the winner- Old Man Warner’s family is.
Tessie’s husband, Mr. Hutchinson, is the one who draws the marked slip of paper.
Who won in the lottery story?
In the lottery story, no one won the lottery. The lottery tickets were distributed by a young miser, who was reluctant to part with his money and had devised a method to make up the difference. He distributed lottery tickets among his neighbors, who eagerly purchased them in the hope of becoming rich.
However, the miser had printed out numerous tickets, but only a single ticket was marked as a “winner. ” Unbeknownst to his neighbors, the old man had used his own money to purchase that ticket. He kept it for himself and claimed the prize money, leaving his neighbors with nothing but disappointment.
What moral lesson does the author seem to be teaching in the lottery?
The moral lesson that is being taught in the lottery is one of human nature and the consequences of tradition. This is depicted in the ritualistic folk ritual that is condoned by the townspeople and that ultimately results in the murder of an innocent person.
It serves as a warning and a lesson that, in our own lives, we must ensure that the traditions that we uphold are morally sound and do not lead to the death of innocents. By doing so, we can form a more positive and constructive society for all.
We must be attentive to our morals, evaluate our beliefs, and consider the ramifications of our actions, as the consequences may have dire results.
What moral question does the lottery challenge the reader to?
The lottery posed in Shirley Jackson’s short story, “The Lottery,” challenges the reader to consider the morality of mob mentality and the consequences of traditions and customs that may not be supported by any moral justification.
In the story, a small village’s citizens follow an annual tradition of holding a lottery where one member of the village is chosen as the “winner,” who is subsequently stoned to death. Viewing the story through a moral lens, one must consider the ethical nature of blindly following tradition without questioning the morality of it.
The reader is left questioning why the citizens follow the lottery and risking their own lives for an event that has no moral justification. Additionally, the story questions the idea of whether it is moral to condone an act such as death by stoning simply because it is tradition.
With all of these questions, the story of “The Lottery” encourages readers to consider the morality of following a tradition despite the consequences.
What is the lesson the lottery is trying to teach its readers?
The lesson that “The Lottery” is trying to teach its readers is that tradition and ritual can blind people to their own ability to think independently and critically. The story conveys that blindly following tradition can lead to the acceptance of antiquated, horrific rituals and the mistreatment of individuals and groups.
In the story, the townspeople gather every year to perform a lottery, where the “winner” is chosen to be stoned to death as a sacrifice. All of the townspeople seem to go along with this practice without considering what it actually means or if it is even necessary.
The lesson is that people should never simply accept a traditional practice without considering the implications or inviting questioning.
What do you think is the purpose of the author in writing the story lottery?
The purpose of the author in writing the story “The Lottery” is to critique the blind faith and ritual nature of some traditions and the dangers of culture and not questioning the status quo. In the story, one of the characters, Tessie Hutchinson, is chosen by lottery as the “sacrifice” to a ritual stoning.
In a village that has followed the same tradition for years and years out of fear of change, the brutality and violence of what they are doing is masked and normalized due to the fact that it is seen as an accepted practice.
The idea of the lottery being a fair and just way to choose a person for a ritual points to the arbitrary and capricious nature of some traditions, as well as how following tradition without thinking can sometimes lead to violence.
Ultimately, the author is attempting to expose and create a discourse about how the participation in traditions can be sometimes dangerous and how we should think for ourselves and not rely solely on tradition to decide what is right.
What were Tessie’s last words?
Tessie’s last words were not recorded, however it is reported that her last words were a wailing cry of “Oh, Lord, Jesus, forgive me!” according to eye-witness accounts. This cry is in line with Tessie’s strong religious beliefs and practices, so it is likely that Tessie’s last words were a prayer or an invocation to her God as her life is taken from her.
Tessie was executed by being dropped into a pond filled with water and weighted with stones. Even after all the horrible events which had led to her death, Tessie was still asking for the Lord’s forgiveness.
What does Tessie’s final scream?
Tessie’s final scream is an anguished cry for help. It is an expression of despair and helplessness at being unable to escape her fate. The moment of realization that no amount of effort can save her is punctuated with a heart-wrenching yelp.
This is her last attempt to be heard, to feel seen and to make sure she is not forgotten. Her wail is her ultimate cry of despair, a final plea to be spared from a cruel and inevitable death. Her voice is a reminder of the horrors of the lottery and serves as a warning of the consequences that await if unchecked tradition is allowed to continue.
How does Tessie change in the story?
Tessie changes quite a bit throughout the story. At the beginning, Tessie is an innocent, obedient 12-year-old girl who follows her family’s expectations and does not protest against the lottery and the tradition.
As the story progresses, she starts to realize the consequences of blindly following her family’s traditions, and she begins to recognize that something is wrong with the lottery. As the story continues, Tessie’s attitude begins to shift and she begins to show more courage and determination when speaking out against the lottery.
She gradually realizes that her family’s actions are wrong and she eventually stands up to them, even though it means that she is putting herself in danger by doing so. By the end of the story, Tessie is a brave, determined woman who refuses to bow to the pressure of her family’s traditions and speaks out against the unfairness of the lottery.
Why was Tessie a scapegoat?
Tessie was used as a scapegoat in Shirley Jackson’s story “The Lottery” in order to illustrate the dangers of blindly following traditions without considering the potential consequences of their actions.
In the story, Tessie’s village had a long running tradition of drawing lots in order to randomly select a person to be sacrificed. Each year, the villagers gathered together to take part in the ritual in order to ensure the success of their crops and other activities for the coming year.
Tessie was accidentally chosen as the scapegoat, and her being used as the sacrifice was meant to illustrate how people can become victimized by participating in customs without critically examining their impact.
It also serves as a warning about how unchecked traditions can lead to terrible consequences for innocent people.