Surprising, I though something was slightly fishy as I began The Lottery by Shirley Jackson. "...and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest roundest stones"(Jackson, 264). This was the first indication of the importance of the stones in the story. Stones usually do not have much to do with lotteries in with the Hunger Games in the back of my mind, I knew that this was not a normal lottery that the town was dealing with. As it progressed, it became more and more disturbing how nonchalant the townsfolk were regarding the situation. Even the family near the end of the story seemed undisturbed and accepting of their mother's impending doom.
The lottery itself though was not all that was out of place in the story. The mother throwing her married daughter under the bus showed another discontinuity from the normal. Any good mother would never throw their daughter in the path of death by stones. Additionally, the widespread but shrinking use of this lottery is rather unnerving. The peoples acceptance of this atrocity really confuses me. They all walk to the town square knowing that they could be dead within the hour. However, by the observed atmosphere, one would not immediately assume a lottery for a sacrifice. I believe it's safe to say that this town is messed up.
No comments:
Post a Comment