Shirley Jackson’s story, which shook society in the last century’s forties, became a kind of accusatory revelation. The plot in The Lottery is reduced to the fact that in a particular abstract town a lottery is held, where all residents gather. From their conversations, it becomes clear that this is a long tradition held every year. One of the local residents helps the participants to check the lottery. He puts tickets in an old black box and takes turns inviting people. The lottery winner is sacrificed to the city and people start throwing stones at him. The final fate of all the practices presented in this story is marked by death, perceived as atonement for the many evils people commit against each other. Notably, Jackson’s atmosphere to demonstrate the confidence and norm of lottery practice in the village is compelling. As a consequence, The Lottery is based on psychological problems, human vices, and the impact on human consciousness. This essay will examine the psychoanalytic criticism of the story.
The influence on consciousness materializes not only within the social community but also with the traditions that society imposes. Anderson and Kröger (2016) describe that “in his studies, Freud argues that a group cannot live in a society if it is not governed by something” (p. 55). Thus, he supports the point of view according to which rules are used only as an excuse to influence the human mind. All kinds of traditions are also present in modern times. Many of them are harmless and straightforward, such as Christmas trees, but there are much more sinister, such as racism and sexism. The latter are still troubling and became even more severe problems in 1948 when the story was published.
Transmitting human vices through the book, Shirley Jackson gives examples through the prism of psychoanalysis. In The Lottery the tradition of stoning has lost its original meaning. History shows that although these meanings are lost, people still throw stones for fun. Thus, Shirley Jackson is trying to light all the senseless cruelty of ancient rituals that sometimes occur. It should be noted that this story depicts extreme evil done in the usual way, which implies a person’s hidden sin. It is quite evident from the way such evil happens in a purely friendly atmosphere that reflects the masking nature of people.
Along with hypocrisy, the lottery represents the weakness of human nature. Given that, this act has been common in the village for many years, no one questions its negative impact on the people’s general welfare. Anderson and Kröger (2016) say that “letting others be stoned to death for tradition also shows how selfish and painful human nature is” (p. 56). Simultaneously, various vices are much more challenging to see in real society than in those with which we are less familiar, which is one of the The Lottery values.
Ultimately, The Lottery is a prime example of how a book that seems innocent and naive enough can openly and subtly shock readers, exposing individuals’ prejudices and the general culture of humanity. The story reflects social abuses committed by community concerning each other. Simultaneously, psychological views rooted through generations do not allow full attention to their negative consequences. The author also emphasizes that sometimes society can lose its real purpose of following traditional customs.
Reference
Anderson, M. R., & Cröger, L. (Eds.). (2016). Shirley Jackson, influences and confluences. Routledge.