Discussion Topic

Literary Devices in "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson

Summary:

Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" employs various literary devices, including allusion, allegory, irony, and analogy. The story alludes to historical figures like Anne Hutchinson and practices such as human sacrifice for harvests. It serves as an allegory warning against blind adherence to tradition, reflecting on themes like conformity and scapegoating, and has been interpreted as a reaction to events like the Holocaust. The twist ending uses irony, as the "winner" is stoned to death, subverting expectations. The story also functions as an analogy for harmful traditions upheld despite their brutality.

Expert Answers

An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

What is an allusion in "The Lottery"?

In Shirley Jackson's short story "The Lottery," the most obvious place to look for allusions is in the names of the characters. Jackson seems to choose names of characters deliberately: Mr. Summers presides over the ceremony with a sunny disposition, and Mr. Graves assists in the deadly ritual. The other names that don't have overt meanings in the English language may have historical significance. Two names that may allude to famous people in history are Mrs. Hutchinson and the Delacroix family. 

The name Delacroix brings to mind the Romantic painter Eugene Delacroix. He was the leader of the French Romantic school of painting. One of his most famous works is "Liberty Leading the People." While the painting champions the people's revolution under the flag symbolizing liberty, fraternity, and equality, it certainly romanticizes the carnage as dead bodies are strewn about at Lady Liberty's feet. A connection one might draw with the story is that the townspeople have romanticized their meaningless ritual of annual stoning without stopping to lament the real people who die for no reason on behalf of their "cause," which no one even understands anymore. The Delacroix boy is among the first to stockpile stones, and Mrs. Delacroix is among those eager to cast the first stone at Mrs. Hutchinson, thus they represent mob action without concern for the consequences. 

Mrs. Hutchinson is the only one in the story who seems willing to rebel against the ritual, especially after her family "wins" the lottery. Anne Hutchinson was a woman who lived in New England in the early seventeenth century. She stood against the blind ritualistic religion practiced by her Puritan church and advocated for a more heartfelt and spiritual Christianity. She ended up being excommunicated by the Church of Boston. It seems likely that Jackson means to pay homage to Anne Hutchinson by naming the brave and ill-fated Tessie Hutchinson after her.

Last Updated on
An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

What is an allusion in "The Lottery"?

It is very important to understand what an allusion is prior to finding evidence of one in a text. According to the eNotes site's Guide to Literary Terms, allusion is

a reference, usually brief, often casual, occasionally indirect, to a person , event, or condition thought to be familiar (but sometimes actually obscure or unknown) to the reader.

Shirley Jackson, in her short story "The Lottery," she makes one very prominent allusion through dialogue provided by Old Man Warner:

Used to be a saying about 'Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon.'

Here, Jackson is alluding to the fact that human sacrifices have been made throughout history to insure good yields at harvest. While some readers may not pick up on this (given the allusions are "sometimes actually obscure or unknown"), the fact remains that human sacrifices have been performed in the past for crops.

This allusion also provides additional foreshadowing. Other foreshadowing from the text comes from the second paragraph of the story:

Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest and roundest stones.

While an allusion is not made here, the clues are evident when used in connection with Old Man Warner's statement.

Last Updated on
An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

How is "The Lottery" an allegory?

In this small town we see the random killing of an individual. The selection process is simply a matter of chance. If you are lucky, you survive. However, if you have the infamous black dot on your paper, you will be stoned. For many Jews, their heritage was a “black dot”.

Allegory: an extended metaphor in which persons, abstract ideas, or events represent themselves on the literal level and also stand for something else on the symbolic level ... and involves moral or spiritual concepts that may be more significant than the actual, literal events.... (Wheeler, Literary Terms and Definitions)

An allegorical reading most often associates "The Lottery" with abstract ideas like justice, freedom and predestination.

According to some critics, especially Judy Oppenheimer, Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" can be read as a reaction against the Holocaust, though other critics disagree. 

The mark of the black dot is represenational, though not allegorical, of the yellow stars Jews in the ghettos were forced to mark their clothing with. Jews might then be “selected” (as the "Lottery" townsfolk were "selected") to work at a concentration camp or might be “selected” to have your life ended in a gas chamber. Despite some determing factors, there was a sense of randomness to the Holocaust selection process. So in “The Lottery”, Shirley Jackson makes clear the randomness of the townspeoples' selection.

There is a representational connection, though not an allegorical one, that as we are horrified to learn of Tessie Hutchinson’s fate, we might be reminded of the horror of the Holocaust. Allegory might be clearly seen in the abstract ideas of random horror and justice versus injustice that are expressed in "The Lottery."

Last Updated on
An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

How is "The Lottery" an allegory?

“The Lottery” is an allegory of the dangers of tradition.

An allegory is a story that symbolically represents something else.

In “The Lottery,” things are done the way they have always been done, even if there is no reason why.  No one remembers where the rituals originated, and no one seems to know why they are important.  Yet tradition is important, so they continue.

Consider two important symbols in the story—the box and the stool.

The postmaster, Mr. Graves, followed him, carrying a three- legged stool, and the stool was put in the center of the square and Mr. Summers set the black box down on it.

Neither works.  They are both busted and old.  Yet the villagers keep using them, because it’s tradition.  This is just like the lottery itself.  It is a destructive, useless practice, yet the people keep doing it.

Jackson wants us to compare the story to our own traditions, especially the destructive ones.  As the reader realizes what a terrible thing happens in this village, he or she understands the danger of doing something just because it has always been done.

Last Updated on
An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

What literary device is employed in the twist ending of "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson?

Shirley Jackson employs irony at the end of "The Lottery." 

Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. It may also be a situation that may end up in quite a different way than what is generally anticipated. In simple words, it is a difference between the appearance and the reality.

Throughout the story, the town has been preparing for the lottery. The very name of the ritual makes it sound like a positive event. When most people think of a lottery, they think of winning something. 

It is not until Tessie draws the slip with the black dot that the reader begins to get a real inkling that something is wrong with this lottery and that one probably does NOT want to win it. So, the naming of the event is ironic.

The greatest irony, however, is the actual event. The "winner" has the privilege of being stoned to death by all of his or her friends and family. This is ironic because the event appeared to be something different than what it actually was. As readers, we believe it to be something happy, only to find out at the last minute that it is something tragic. 

Last Updated on
An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

What is the analogy in The Lottery?

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson is the story of an average, small American town and the unusual tradition that they keep: that of stoning one townsperson to death every summer. When the story was published in The New Yorker, there were many harsh and confused reactions to the story, mostly just people who wanted to understand what the story was about and what Jackson's intentions were.

One possible interpretation of the story is that it is an analogy for traditions or rituals that are followed and kept around the world, even though they may be quite horrible, and the power that tradition and society have on individuals. Some examples we could think of are circumcision (both male and female), marrying girls off at a young age, and killing animals for certain rituals.

Jackson eventually did offer a possible explanation of her own in the San Francisco Chronicle in July 1948. She said,

“I suppose, I hoped, by setting a particularly brutal ancient rite in the present and in my own village to shock the story's readers with a graphic dramatization of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives.”

According to Jackson's interpretation, the story is an analogy for the general human barbary that can be found everywhere.

Get Ahead with eNotes

Start your 48-hour free trial to access everything you need to rise to the top of the class. Enjoy expert answers and study guides ad-free and take your learning to the next level.

Get 48 Hours Free Access
Last Updated on