Student Question

Why have other villages in "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson stopped the lottery?

Quick answer:

In "The Lottery," other villages have stopped the lottery, but no specific reasons are given within the story. Mr. Adams mentions to Old Man Warner that a village to the north is considering abandoning the tradition, which Warner dismisses as foolish. The villagers lack information about why others have stopped the lottery, indicating a broader shift away from the ritual without detailed explanation.

Expert Answers

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Old Man Warner, in Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery," is told by Mr. Adams that a village to the north is talking about giving up the lottery. Warner states that the other villagers are nothing but "a pack of fools." He claims that there has always been a lottery. 

Outside of the limited conversation about villages which have already given up the lottery (or are speaking about giving up the lottery), nothing is said about why other villages have given up the tradition. None of the villagers seem to have any information about why the villages have given up the practice, only that they have done so (or are thinking of doing so). 

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