Religious and Traditional Symbols in the Lottery by...

Religious and Traditional Symbols in the Lottery Religious groups encourage and enforce conformity of their social norms and beliefs upon their members. Religious traditions are usually passed on from parent to child at an early age. In â€Å"The Lottery,† Shirley Jackson reveals the tradition of the lottery and how all of the villagers conform to the ritual of a human sacrifice. Growing up with an exceptionally religious father I can relate to way of thinking of the villagers that traditions are accepted without questioning. In â€Å"The lottery,† the children were stuffing their pockets with stones before all of the parents had arrived, â€Å" Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his†¦show more content†¦Luckily my mother disagreed with the whole idea and the television remained . Even though my mother had not been a true believer in the church she had always gone along with my father’s traditions for fear of being a disappointment to the church. But when it was her turn to suffer and to not be able to watch her favorite soaps she didn’t look at the situation in the same way. This was the case with Mrs. Hutchinson in â€Å"The lottery,† she had not seen any crime in the annual stoning until it had directly affected her, â€Å" Tessie Hutchison was in the center of a cleared space by now, and she held her hands out desperately as the villagers moved in on her. â€Å"It isn’t fair,† she said† (534).The act of the annual lottery can be seen as a religious sacrificing, such as the human sacrificing to the Gods in ancient times and also the crucifixion of Jesus Christ that allowed mankind to be forgiven for their sins. My father’s religion strongly believes in personal salvation. They force their ideals upon others and they point out the sinful behaviors of society. All of my father’s church traditions seem to allow the members to believe that they are being separated from what they perceive as evil. In both â€Å"The lottery† and my father’s religion the theme that I believe that is best represented is the fear of change. The tradition of the lottery is so firmly established that no one in the village had ever questionedShow MoreRelatedThe Shock Value Of Jackson974 Words   |  4 PagesThe shock value of Jackson in The Lottery is not only widely known, but it is widely felt. Her writing style effectively allows the reader to pass a judgment on themselves and the society in which they live. Also In The Lottery Jackson is making a comparison to human nature. It is prominent in all human civilizations to take a chance as a source of entertainment and in this chance taken in the lottery, something is both won and lost. 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The author of this text describes a chain of themes in his work, and they include; tradition and customs, society and class, as well as family setups and hypocrisyRead MoreLuisaldo Mendiola. Professor Price. Engl 1302 Nt6. Research2132 Words   |  9 PagesLuisaldo Mendiola Professor Price ENGL 1302 NT6 Research Essay April 21, 2017 Tradition and the Sheep A Critical Analysis of Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery† Traditions are common part of culture and religion in the world today; almost everyone has a tradition that they follow. The traditions you practice can be new and only just have started with your generation or the generation before yours. The traditions could also have been old, spanning many generations before your generation and your parents’Read MoreHidden Symbols in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson1170 Words   |  5 Pagesshort story, â€Å"The Lottery†, Mrs. Hutchinson got picked for the lottery. 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In The Lottery, the black box represented tradition for the townspeopleRead MoreSymbolism1922 Words   |  8 PagesMost symbols used in literature are objects used to represent other things or ideas. There are several ways to recognize symbolism in literature. One of common ways is the frequency an object or character is mentioned in a piece of literature. If it is mentioned often, it is probably important. (Jones) Another way in finding symbolism is used in describing an object. These are two methods that give clues that the writer wants you to infer something about a particular object. Shirley Jackson is the