Hidden Symbols in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson - 1170 Words

Symbolism has been scraping the surface of literature for many years, but you probably don’t notice them, unless you really dig deep behind the text. Symbolism can be anywhere from the diverse objects around your room that represent a certain time, to the books of literature you read in school. Symbolism is an object, which represents something else. For example, in the short story, â€Å"The Lottery†, Mrs. Hutchinson got picked for the lottery. The word â€Å"hutch† is another word for box, and she happened to have her life taken from her by a paper in a box. The odd, short story of â€Å"the Lottery† is a story that should be read by many people for any urge to find symbolic references or to just kick back and read an interesting story with a twist.†¦show more content†¦The odd part is that she is a symbol of what took her life, the black box. The term â€Å"hutch† is â€Å"a term for a chest or a compartment for storage†. Mrs. Hut chinson’s name in all reality in the story washer fate. The box from what she was chosen, is the same one that chooses her for the scapegoat. Mrs. Hutchinson was a foreshadow for who was going to get chosen for the scapegoat, therefore, she is a symbol of the black box. The black box is a beaten up box that has been around for decades, and through an enormous amount of lotteries. The black box is a way of life for the villager, being the tradition for many years. The black box would be another clear symbol for tradition. The box has never left and has been kept for so long and the villagers of the town are â€Å"unwilling to replace it† (Symbols: The Black Box). Mr. Summers himself, as the conductor of the lottery, recommended to change the Munoz5 box and replace it, but everyone disagreed and decided to keep the one and only, traditional black box. As of the box being a traditional figure and a way of life, the black box is also a negative thing. The box is a terrible symbol of complete evil. The black box is a very obvious symbol of pure evil. This object is evil because god is not taking the life of any one in the village, but the box doing his work because in this village it â€Å"holds the key between life and death for every single one of the town’s people† (Martin MA).Show MoreRelatedLottery Essay Symbolism1249 Words   |  5 Pagesthings by symbols, or of investing in things with a symbolic meaning or character (â€Å"Symbolism†). Examples of symbolism are: an eagle representing freedom, a dove representing peace, and the color green can symbolize the feeling of envy. The following pieces of literature, â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson, â€Å"We Wear the Mask† by Paul Laurence, â€Å"Richard Cory† by Edwin Arlington Robinson, and â€Å"Mirror† by Sylvia Plath are all poems that use symbolism. The story â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson narratesRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson931 Words   |  4 PagesIn 1948 Shirley Jackson composed the controversial short story â€Å"The Lottery.† Generally speaking, a title such as â€Å"The Lottery† is usually affiliated with an optimistic outlook. However, Jackson’s approach is quite unorthodox and will surely leave readers contemplating the intent of her content. The story exposes a crude, senseless lottery system in which random villagers are murdered amongst their peers. Essentially, the lottery system counteracts as a form of population control, but negatives easilyRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson972 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson, is a short story about an annual lottery draw in a small New England town. The town’s people have performed the lottery for more than seventy years. Shirley Jackson gives â€Å"The Lottery† a whole different meaning . The lottery is used for a public stoning, opposing to the very first thing that approaches to a reader s mind when they think of the lottery; a big amount of money . The reader sees both literal and metaphorical meaning of the Shirley Jackson’s short storyRead MoreSymbolism Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson926 Words   |  4 Pagesimpact. Shirley Jackson’s short story â€Å"The Lottery† contains symbolism to affect the readers’ feelings as well as add interest. The story begins with the villagers gathering at the square to participate in the lottery. The villagers chat while waiting for the event to begin. After Mr. Summers comes with a black box, he stirs the pieces of paper in the box. The narrators describe the lottery as an old ritual that the community continues to respect. Once Tessie Hutchinson arrives, the lottery startsRead MoreThe Rocking Horse Winner By F. H. Lawrence, And The Lottery1155 Words   |  5 Pagesthe hidden theme in thi s short story, which is the absence of love that prompt the quest for cash and material wealth, or greed, and will eventually obliterate happiness and prompt inevitable defeat. In The Lottery, the author uses its setting and irony to show the theme, which is violence and cruelty towards another human being shows there is a lack of love in the community. In The Rocking-Horse Winner, by D. H. Lawrence, and The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson, the two makers represent symbols andRead MoreThe Lottery, By Shirley Jackson1380 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† Would it feel good to the win the lottery? When people win the lottery, they are filled with excitement and joy, but this lottery is one that people would rather have no chance of winning. In Shirley Jackson’s short story â€Å"The Lottery† the members of a small town gather each year to hold a special event to see what â€Å"lucky† towns member will win the annual lottery. Each year the families of the town meet in the square and the head of each household draws a slip of paper to determineRead MoreThe Lottery, By Shirley Jackson And The Yellow Wallpaper1302 Words   |  6 Pages Reading The Lottery by Shirley Jackson and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Gilman make the reader so passionate to know what is going to happen next because they are two of the most expressive and meaningful stories that have lots of great deep meanings. These stories share so many similarities when it comes to symbols, themes, and conflicts. Although The Lottery and The Yellow Wallpaper do not have the same plot, their themes have some similarities like following unfair traditionsRead MoreFiction Essay - Young Goodman Brown and the Lottery1051 Words   |  5 PagesFICTION ESSAY WRITING STYLE USED: APA OUTLINE I. THESIS: A thorough analysis of Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† and Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† reveals that different literary elements, such as tone and setting, are used to convey the characters’ arrival at dark, sinister places. II. INTRODUCTION III. SHIRLEY JACKSON’S â€Å"THE LOTTERY† A. Setting the tone: Peaceful and relaxing B. Irony: Even though the mood is relaxing, there is a premonition of something bad toRead MoreEssay about A Rose for Emily vs the Lottery940 Words   |  4 Pages There are many ways that a reader can be prepared for the ending of a story, â€Å"The Lottery† and â€Å"A Rose for Emily† are two very grueling short stories with a long suspense and a similar plot. The narrator’s stance in â€Å"A Rose for Emily† was first-person observer, which is defined as a single character point of view in which the narrator was is not involved with the story and the narrator’s stance in â€Å"The Lottery† was third-person anonymous which is involves a narrator that does not enter any mindsRead MoreA Rose for Emily, A Worn Path, and The Lottery1175 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"A Rose for Emily,† â€Å"A Worn Path,† and â€Å"The Lottery† by William Faulkner, Eudora Welty, and Shirley Jackson all have similar writing styles in the ir literature. In these three short stories the authors all use contrasting nature within their literature to predict the outcome and to learn for the upcoming events in the readings. The authors take subliminal phrases and subliminal symbolic text to have the reader become more attached and understand more of what the characters, setting and theme of the