Author: Shirley Jackson
Published: 1948 (in The New Yorker)
Genre: Short Story / Horror / Allegory / Dystopia
Setting: A small, seemingly idyllic rural village in America, summer
⭐ Why It Matters
The Lottery is a chilling masterpiece of modern short fiction — exploring mob mentality, tradition, and the banality of evil. It caused public outrage on release and has since become a literary classic, frequently taught in schools and studied in universities for its symbolism, structure, and social critique.
👥 Main Characters
- Tessie Hutchinson – A cheerful housewife who becomes the story’s tragic focus.
- Mr. Summers – The civic-minded man who runs the lottery with businesslike calm.
- Mr. Graves – The village postmaster, who helps prepare the ritual.
- Bill Hutchinson – Tessie’s husband, quiet and compliant.
- The Villagers – A mix of old and young residents, all complicit in the lottery’s tradition.
📚 Plot Summary
🔹 A Beautiful Day, A Strange Gathering
The story opens on a sunny summer morning in a small village. Children gather stones. Families assemble in the town square for the annual lottery — a long-standing tradition, its origins barely remembered.
🔹 A Ritual With No Purpose
Each household draws a slip of paper from a black box. No one questions the ritual, though some talk about neighbouring villages giving up the lottery — which is frowned upon.
The tension builds gradually, masked by casual conversation and small-town familiarity.
🔹 The “Winner” is Chosen
The Hutchinson family is selected. Within the family, another draw is held — and Tessie Hutchinson receives the marked slip.
She immediately protests:
“It isn’t fair, it isn’t right!”
But no one listens.
🔹 A Gruesome Tradition
The villagers — including her own children and friends — begin to stone her to death.
The story ends abruptly, without reflection, as the ritual continues like any other civic duty.
🧠 Themes & Takeaways
- The Horror of Tradition – The lottery continues simply because “it’s always been done.” No one questions why.
- Mob Mentality – Ordinary people commit atrocities when they’re part of a group and shielded by tradition.
- Banality of Evil – The story’s tone is disturbingly casual, underscoring how violence can be normalised.
- Power & Powerlessness – Tessie only protests when she becomes the victim — a critique of selective outrage.
- Symbolism of the Black Box – A decaying tradition, passed down without question, still holds deadly authority.
