Imagery In The Lottery And The Possibility Of Evil
The stories “The Lottery” and “The Possibility of Evil,” both written by Shirley Jackson, can be depicted as similar as they collectively use the literary devices imagery, symbolism, and foreshadowing.
Jackson is able to utilise the literary tool of imagery in both “The Lottery” and “The Possibility of Evil” to elaborate and expand on the many different aspects of her stories. At the beginning of “The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson utilises imagery to create a clear, concise setting of the story. “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green.” (The Lottery: Page 1) Similarly, within the first few lines of The Possibility of Evil, the author …show more content…
The author has woven symbolism throughout the whole short story, “The Lottery.” A common symbol found would be of death. The first symbol would be Jackson’s common use of the colour black. The black box and the slip with a black dot are the central part of the lottery itself. While the reader will not necessarily understand at the time of the symbol’s appearance, at the end, it can be clearly correlated into the plot and what happened to the person who receives the dot. Furthermore, Jackson references death with the use of symbolic names. For example, the name “Mrs.Delacroix,” meaning “on the cross,” is a religious allusion, but could also be symbolizing death as a cross is a common Memoriam. Another name would be “Mr.Graves,” with the clear connection to death being grave. Within “The Possibility of Evil,” there are several symbolic references made by Jackson. One major use of symbolism appears with the conclusion of the story. As the protagonist, Mrs.Strangeworth, wakes up, she finds out that her roses have been chopped down. “She began to cry silently for the wickedness of the world when she read the words: LOOK OUT AT WHAT USED TO BE YOUR ROSES.” (Elements of English 10: Page 228) Shirley Jackson does not fail at incorporating symbolism into her short stories. Both have major symbolic aspects that connect deeply into the plot of her story. Both stories can considered as similar because of the author’s use of symbolism to further her short
Jackson is able to utilise the literary tool of imagery in both “The Lottery” and “The Possibility of Evil” to elaborate and expand on the many different aspects of her stories. At the beginning of “The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson utilises imagery to create a clear, concise setting of the story. “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green.” (The Lottery: Page 1) Similarly, within the first few lines of The Possibility of Evil, the author …show more content…
The author has woven symbolism throughout the whole short story, “The Lottery.” A common symbol found would be of death. The first symbol would be Jackson’s common use of the colour black. The black box and the slip with a black dot are the central part of the lottery itself. While the reader will not necessarily understand at the time of the symbol’s appearance, at the end, it can be clearly correlated into the plot and what happened to the person who receives the dot. Furthermore, Jackson references death with the use of symbolic names. For example, the name “Mrs.Delacroix,” meaning “on the cross,” is a religious allusion, but could also be symbolizing death as a cross is a common Memoriam. Another name would be “Mr.Graves,” with the clear connection to death being grave. Within “The Possibility of Evil,” there are several symbolic references made by Jackson. One major use of symbolism appears with the conclusion of the story. As the protagonist, Mrs.Strangeworth, wakes up, she finds out that her roses have been chopped down. “She began to cry silently for the wickedness of the world when she read the words: LOOK OUT AT WHAT USED TO BE YOUR ROSES.” (Elements of English 10: Page 228) Shirley Jackson does not fail at incorporating symbolism into her short stories. Both have major symbolic aspects that connect deeply into the plot of her story. Both stories can considered as similar because of the author’s use of symbolism to further her short