10-18-11 The Lottery

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson tells the story of a day at the end of June in a town with a barbaric ritual called the lottery. The story starts out as the children being to gather in the town square and them filling their pockets with rocks. Soon the adults are arriving and getting their family together. Next the official of the Lottery arrives with a black box and a three legged stool. Then he has the heads of the families draw a piece of paper out of the box and wait to look at it. Once that is finished the family who has the black spot on their piece of paper have to redraw to see who "wins the lottery". In the village that is the Hutchinson's who end up getting the spot and one of the daughters and the mother "win the lottery".  The prize is that you get stoned which is people throw stones at you until you die and that is what happens to Tessie the daughter and Mrs. Hutchinson. This is a barbaric ritual that would have probably never survived into present day.