Writing an introduction - religious symbolism in "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson

I'm writing a paper on religious symbolism in "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson, in order to introduce the paper, should I give a brief summary of the story? Also, my thesis is a bit shaky, any suggestions would be much appreciated!

Thesis:
In Shirley Jackson's, "The Lottery", she uses symbolism to take a story with no outwardly religious connections and give it a strong religious undertone.

Some teachers ask you to give a brief summary, and other teachers ask you to assume the reader is familiar with the story.

As a general rule, you should catch the reader's attention with an intriguing idea in the intro paragraph, and then give a brief summary in para #2. That is what I do.

Now how about that thesis statement?

Start by Googling this: Shirley Jackson, symbolism, "the lottery"
Also try this: Shirley Jackson, analysis, "The lottery"

Your thesis statement should be your own unique observation. It doesn't have to be life-changing... just unique.

:-)