Introduction
Life in society requires people to comply with specific norms, whether it be ethical principles of communication or standard rules of etiquette. However, regardless of the level of development of a particular community or nation, the values characteristic of a specific population group can be flexible and shift in favor of individual needs. The short stories “The Lottery” by Jackson (2017) and “The Rocking-Horse Winner” by Lawrence (2017) are examples of how people can be affected by distorting the fundamental aspects of life.
The dystopian motifs, which both authors touch upon, set themselves to describe such a shift in values. The stories differ in content and distinctive social issues; ritual relics and a focus on material goods are themes of stories by Jackson (2017) and Lawrence (2017), respectively. Nevertheless, the plots have standard features, particularly the inability of people to appreciate life and strive for something that has spiritual value. The key purposes of the stories in question are to persuade the reader not to follow rude traditions unthinkingly and to condemn the thoughtless pursuit of material goods.
Jackson’s Reflection on Injustice
The purpose of demonstrating injustice expressed through social relics and barbaric traditions is expressed by Jackson (2017) in her story. The emotional tension created makes it possible to highlight that blind chance should not be the determinant of human destiny because each citizen has the right to decide how they should live independently. Jackson (2017) uses frightening yet straightforward language to show the inevitability of one character’s death: “It isn’t fair, it isn’t right” (p. 271).
The main difference between the story of Jackson (2017) and that of Lawrence (2017) is that the issue is raised not within one family but within the whole community of residents. As a result, obedience to an outdated tradition entails regular and senseless deaths. All these sacrifices result from the unwillingness to develop and make efforts for normal coexistence, which, in the end, can lead to mass discontent.
Lawrence’s Condemnation of the Desire for Material Values
The key theme that Lawrence (2017) seeks to convey to the reader is the impossibility of achieving happiness through the constant pursuit of material goods and, accordingly, ignoring spiritual values. The health of loved ones is a much more critical good, which people often forget and neglect. Lawrence (2017) shows the boy’s death at the end of the story to emphasize the futility of the pursuit of wealth: “he’s best gone out of a life where he rides his rocking horse to find a winner” (p. 309).
The simple language in the story enhances the effect on the reader and makes the main idea as serious as possible, comparable to a moral message. Unlike Jackson (2017), Lawrence (2017) shows a more realistic picture of one family where the tragedy is no less severe. Thus, one can speak of the loss of true life ideals when focusing solely on material values.
Similarity of the Authors’ Messages
The main goal of both stories, which brings the authors’ messages closer together, is the need to abandon false ideals to focus on what is essential. Although the plots are different, death is a natural outcome of impaired values in each of them. According to Jackson (2017), promoting prejudice cannot bring social well-being, and the stereotypes ingrained among people are far from always favorable.
The keynote of Lawrence’s (2017) story, in turn, is that the pursuit of money, whether in a mystical or another setting, distracts a person from what is essential in life, namely the health and well-being of loved ones. Despite financial benefits or ambiguous material prospects, normal relationships between people should be built, first of all, on spiritual values. As a result, although the authors utilize distinctive ways to convey their main messages, they both emphasize the need to abandon false ideals and focus on loving one’s neighbor.
Conclusion
The key messages in the considered short stories are the themes of the inadmissibility of mindless following of prejudices and false values underlying the pursuit of material values. The authors use a variety of means to communicate their ideas, including simple language, tense endings, and mysticism, which helps achieve a greater effect on the reader. Although the plots are different and set in distinct social settings, the stories are similar in their appeals to focus on the love of neighbor as one of the main principles of human coexistence.
References
Jackson, S. (2017). The lottery. In G. Johnson & R. R. Arp (Eds.), Perrine’s literature: Structure, sound & sense (13th ed.) (pp. 264-271). Cengage Learning.
Lawrence, D. H. (2017). The rocking-horse winner. In G. Johnson & R. R. Arp (Eds.), Perrine’s literature: Structure, sound & sense (13th ed.) (pp. 297-310). Cengage Learning.