The lottery is a game of chance. People buy tickets and hope to win the big prize, but most of the time they lose. When you lose the lottery, something dies inside of you, but it is hard to quit playing because you are always convinced that this time, you will win.
In The Lottery, Shirley Jackson portrays a small village that is similar to most American towns at the time the story was written. The villagers are gathered together to participate in a tradition that has been passed down for generations. Despite how cruel the ritual is, the villagers remain fully loyal to it and continue with it, no matter how many lives will be lost in the process. This is a great example of how blind following traditions can lead to horrific results.
The lottery is started by Mr. Summers who carries out a black box filled with slips of paper. He mixes it up thoroughly, which is a standard procedure to ensure that luck determines the winners of the lottery. After he has done so, everyone starts to draw their numbers from the box. Tessie Hutchinson draws the unfortunate number and is inevitably stoned to death. Throughout this story, we see how family members turn against each other in order to preserve their own interests. This theme is also a strong representation of how tradition can cause a person to ignore reality and remain loyal to outdated beliefs and customs.
