Irony In The Lottery By Shirley Jackson

The Unexpected Symbolic Outcome of "The Lottery" Violence and human cruelty are two horrible things that occurred a long time ago and continue to be an ongoing issue in our society today. Everyone has either experienced, been apart of, or witnessed these awful acts at least once in their lifetime. Author Shirley Jackson coveys both violence and human cruelty in her well known short story "The Lottery". "Jackson's The Lottery" states, "The date of the lottery, its location, and the symbolic or ironic names of its characters all work to convey a meaning that is even more disturbing than the shock created by its well-known ending" (Yarmove 242). In Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery", she uses techniques such as symbolism and irony to reveal
"Jackson's The Lottery" states, "Not only do time and place bear important clues as to the allegorical meaning of ‘The Lottery,' but the very names of the characters are laden with significance. The prominent names-Summers, Adams, Graves, Warner, Delacroix, and (most obviously) Tessie Hutchinson-have much to tell us" (Yarmove 243). Mr. Summers is one of the main characters in "The Lottery", whose name is a symbol in an ironic way. Mr. Summers was the man in charge of conducting the lottery and all of the other civic activities that took place in the town because he was the only one who had the energy and time to do so. His name is satirical because it sounds to be such a happy, cheery, and fun name that reminds people of the good times of the warm summer. However, instead if being a delightful and amusing person he is in charge of the lottery, which consists of the killing of someone every year. Another important character in the story is Mr. Graves. He is the one who carried the box to the square and the people of the town receive their pieces of paper from the black box from him. So in a way Jackson was using his name to symbolize that he is the one in charge of sending the next person to their grave. Not only does Shirley Jackson use the character's names to symbolize things in the story, but she also uses certain actions that the characters do to symbolize problems that will occur. For example, Mrs. Hutchinson was the last to arrive at the square on the day of the lottery. Symbolism is shown when Mrs. Hutchinson says, "Clean forgot what day it was" (Jackson 119). This shows ironic symbolism because Mrs. Hutchinson almost misses the entire lottery event, but then she ends up being the one to draw the black dot and be stoned when she could have easily missed the occasion. It is ironical also because