The Lottery

The Lottery
  1. “Lottery” is a game of death; the contestants are picked from the head of the house and descending each member of the family. The names of all 300 people are put on a piece of paper and picked out, the name that has a small black dot on it is the winner; their prize is to get stoned to death. The title deceives the reader, making the reader assume it’s a real lottery, for example: like the one in 7-eleven.
  2.   Scapegoat is a person or group made to bear the blame for others who suffer in their place. (dictionary.com) Mr. Summers is the scapegoat in the story, because since he is the official he doesn’t have to participate in being a contestant for death.
  3. Basically the story tries to seem civilized when it’s totally barbaric, the people enjoying the lottery as a form of entertainment stoning the victims to death. The story flows fluently because the lottery is viewed as a normal event like the sun rising every morning.
  4. The original box being lost and the rituals being forgotten goes to show that it’s more like a routine for entertainment then for a purpose. “The original paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been lost long ago…there was a story that the present box had been made with some pieces of box that had preceded it, the one that had been constructed when the first people settled to make a village here…”
  5. (a)Mr. Summers acts very calm toward the stoning, obviously since he is the leader in all he never has to participate in the death wish. (b) Old man Warner believes that the ritual is excellent, and young people don’t know a thing. (c) Mr. and Mrs. Adams- Mr. Adams are uneasy about the whole ritual he even tells Old Man Warner, “that over in the north village they’re talking of giving up the lottery”. (d) Mrs. Hutchins is not even worried about her husband or anything; she even jokes around in front of the crowd. (e) The villagers don’t regret anything...