hi everyone. this is my first post on this forum. so i have this essay to write about the lottery by shirley jackson. its got to be around 5 pages. i have about 2 as of now and ive hit a massive writers block. my intro is great, my first body is fine but my english teacher tells me the first body "isnt finished" . i dont really understand what he means by that. also i am very confused where i start next? so hears my essay i hope someone can help me on hear thanks
the Lottery
"...we as Americans seem to have no problem "butting in" where we do not belong. We have no problem remarking on an individual's adultery until it is ourselves who get caught. We have no problem stereotyping people until it is we who are stereotyped. It seems as though we sometimes condemn everyday truths that we know are characteristics of most people, including ourselves, and being afraid to admit them, place a spotlight on someone else."(1) In the short story "the lottery" an entire town is gathered annually to participate in the lottery. Not until we finish the story do we understand that the "winner" will be stoned to death by the rest of the villagers without any complaints or questions rather the entire town is enthusiastic and excited about joining. You may ask by reading this book why didn't anyone stand up for Tessie as she is being stoned to death, not only by strangers but her own children? Shirley Jackson wrote this story not to establish sadism but to establish how truly hypocritical and unethical the world is today. People witness murder on a daily basis and don't say anything about it because they have accepted forms of murder since they were born. People are afraid to express their feelings publicly because they are afraid of being outcasted or they are afraid they will be looked at, "put on the spotlight". Shirley Jackson's The Lottery is symbolic of modern day earth and how unethical society really is, especially where excepted forms of murder are concerned.
So, if you've ever been hanging out with a group of friends and done something truly stupid, you may have heard the refrain, "If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump, too?" Your answer is probably "no," but Shirley Jackson disagrees. She thinks you - and anyone and everyone - would race off that bridge if your community decided it was necessary. According to her, while individuals may be great, a group of people is another animal. An animal that eats its own. "The Lottery" is like the world's creepiest public service announcement against peer pressure. Similar to those warnings about drinking or smoking - except Jackson is warning against unthinkingly follow along with a group. first there's peer pressure and second there's the exclusion of one person to give the remaining community members a bonding experience. The next ingredient in the horror of "The Lottery" is tradition, which is what prevents any of the villagers from questioning their roles in ritualistic murder. In other words, Jackson believes "You think tradition's so great and meaningful, well, look how it deadens people's abilities to think for themselves." Many if not all people in this earth "follow" somebody or they try to be like someone else for the sake their "social rank" and how they are portrayed in the eyes of others. In the story the village boys engage in the play/labor of collecting stones for the lottery Moreover, they follow the lead of Bobby Martin, the one boy in the story whose father is a member of the village ruling class in hoarding and fighting over these stones as if they were money. Yes it may be a coincidence that the boys take the lead from Bobby Martin whose father is one of the higher members of the village class but Shirley Jackson is trying to show hear is that the other village boys are taking the lead of Bobby simply because of name recognition or Bobby's "social rank" which clearly is the highest among all the other boys.
the Lottery
"...we as Americans seem to have no problem "butting in" where we do not belong. We have no problem remarking on an individual's adultery until it is ourselves who get caught. We have no problem stereotyping people until it is we who are stereotyped. It seems as though we sometimes condemn everyday truths that we know are characteristics of most people, including ourselves, and being afraid to admit them, place a spotlight on someone else."(1) In the short story "the lottery" an entire town is gathered annually to participate in the lottery. Not until we finish the story do we understand that the "winner" will be stoned to death by the rest of the villagers without any complaints or questions rather the entire town is enthusiastic and excited about joining. You may ask by reading this book why didn't anyone stand up for Tessie as she is being stoned to death, not only by strangers but her own children? Shirley Jackson wrote this story not to establish sadism but to establish how truly hypocritical and unethical the world is today. People witness murder on a daily basis and don't say anything about it because they have accepted forms of murder since they were born. People are afraid to express their feelings publicly because they are afraid of being outcasted or they are afraid they will be looked at, "put on the spotlight". Shirley Jackson's The Lottery is symbolic of modern day earth and how unethical society really is, especially where excepted forms of murder are concerned.
So, if you've ever been hanging out with a group of friends and done something truly stupid, you may have heard the refrain, "If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump, too?" Your answer is probably "no," but Shirley Jackson disagrees. She thinks you - and anyone and everyone - would race off that bridge if your community decided it was necessary. According to her, while individuals may be great, a group of people is another animal. An animal that eats its own. "The Lottery" is like the world's creepiest public service announcement against peer pressure. Similar to those warnings about drinking or smoking - except Jackson is warning against unthinkingly follow along with a group. first there's peer pressure and second there's the exclusion of one person to give the remaining community members a bonding experience. The next ingredient in the horror of "The Lottery" is tradition, which is what prevents any of the villagers from questioning their roles in ritualistic murder. In other words, Jackson believes "You think tradition's so great and meaningful, well, look how it deadens people's abilities to think for themselves." Many if not all people in this earth "follow" somebody or they try to be like someone else for the sake their "social rank" and how they are portrayed in the eyes of others. In the story the village boys engage in the play/labor of collecting stones for the lottery Moreover, they follow the lead of Bobby Martin, the one boy in the story whose father is a member of the village ruling class in hoarding and fighting over these stones as if they were money. Yes it may be a coincidence that the boys take the lead from Bobby Martin whose father is one of the higher members of the village class but Shirley Jackson is trying to show hear is that the other village boys are taking the lead of Bobby simply because of name recognition or Bobby's "social rank" which clearly is the highest among all the other boys.
