grass was richly green."

The morning is very similar to one that many people can relate to. This allows readers to be at ease with the story from the very beginning.

Outside of that, the people in the town seem relatively at ease. The villagers seem to be carrying on the typical banter of those engaged in normal everyday life.

Soon the men began to gather, surveying their own children, speaking of planting and rain, tractors and taxes. They stood together, away from the pile of stones in the corner, and their jokes were quiet and they smiled rather than laughed. The women, wearing faded house dresses and sweaters, came shortly after their menfolk. They greeted one another and exchanged bits of gossip as they went to join their husbands.

The villagers seem to be at ease, not speaking of what is to come and actually talking and joking about normal things.

It is not until the lottery actually gets underway that the mood begins to change. Therefore, Jackson "lulls" readers into being content with the beauty of the summer day and the casual conversations and joking taking place between the villagers.

There are two major ways that Shirley Jackson misleads the reader, making us think that this is an ordinary town and an ordinary story. The first way is through the imagery that she uses, which creates a peaceful opening for the story. The first few lines, for instance, state, "The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green." In the next paragraph, she begins, "he children assembled first, of course. School was recently over for the summer, and the feeling of liberty sat uneasily on most of them; they tended to gather together quietly for a while before they broke into boisterous play." Through these descriptions, all scenes that any audience could relate to, and all actions that are commonplace, Shirley Jackson leads the reader to believe that this is in fact an typical, boring little town.

The second strategy that Shirley Jackson uses is the point of view. She writes from a very objective, very detached, perspective. Because of this, we only see the superficial setting and the appearance of the people. There is no indictation that anything is atypical, therefore, because to the townspeople, the events are an annual tradition. Since the narrator only shows their outward characteristics, we only see the celebration of a loved town tradition.

I think most people are suprised by the ending of the story if they have not previously read it. Upon another reading, however, one can more easily pick up other instances of foreshadowing.  For instance, the boys gather pebbles and stones in a pile at the beginning of the story.  Also, people are speaking rather quietly and they are subdued, which is not indicative of a raucous, exciting lottery draw!  

As the story progresses, there are more instances of foreshadowing, including the black box and the behavior of Tess when she "wins."  

One of the techniques Jackson uses to lull the reader into complacency is through her use of the setting.  The town and state are never named in the story. Also, the time period is not revealed.  This is because Jackson wanted the story to be one that could be happening in ANYTOWN, USA and at any time.  Her theme is a universal one, which was her aim...to show the inhumanity of violence in our society and how we have become so apathetic about it.

The author begins her story by allowing the reader to believe that it is about an ordinary town on an early summer day.  It is suggested that the town is gathering for an event that is similar to a county fair, or a town picnic.  It is an annual event and the children are assembling and running around collecting rocks. 

We don't know what the event is, because the preparations and the assembly of people who gather do not give us any indication that they are gathering for a random execution.

The title of the story suggests that something is going to be raffled off and that there will be a winner in the truest sense. 

The first time that the reader really gets the idea that the lottery is not a happy, positive event is when the slips of paper are chosen and a hush, a nervous quiet falls over the crowd as everyone waits till each family has chosen a slip.

When the Hutchinson family gets the black dot, and they have to pick again, the author foreshadows the true nature of the lottery because Mrs. Hutchinson complains that the selection process was rushed.  It is clear that if there was a prize of value to go to the winner, she would not be complaining.

The ending is very surprising, for the level of cruelty that Shirley Jackson gives to the members of the town and the cold indifference they express as they stone Tessie Hutchinson to death, relieved that they have survived.