“The Lotter y”
Worksheet Review
1. D e s c r i b e t h e s e t t i n g o f t h e
s t o r y.
• Time: The morning of June 27th (year
not identified)
• Place: Small, rural village (name/
geographical area not identified)
• The lottery is held in the village square, between
the post office and the bank
2. H ow m a n y p e o p l e p o p u l a t e t h e
village?
• About 300 people populate the
village
• Relatively small population
• 12% of UHS population (2,500)
• .5% of Union Township population
(54,500)
3. D e s c r i b e t h e vi l l a g e r s ’ m o o d o n
t he d ay o f t h e l o t t e r y
• The general mood appears relaxed and calm, as if this
was any other day during the year
• Summer-time feel; care-free; children acting jovially
• There are clues provided, however, which demonstrate
a pensive and reluctant attitude among many of the
villagers
• “…their jokes were quiet and they smiled rather than laughed”
(2).
4. Describe the paraphernalia of the
lotter y as well as the pre -lotter y ritual.
Paraphernalia = miscellaneous items
• Black wooden box (“…grew shabbier each year”)
• Slips of paper (one per person), with one slip of paper marked by a black
dot (original settlers of the village used chips of wood)
• Three-legged stool which holds the black wooden box in place
Pre-lottery ritual
• Mr. Summers (civic coordinator of the village) is responsible for
assembling papers and marking one; black box is held at his coal company
office but is held in various locations from year to year
5. Who is late to the lotter y and how does
this character react upon realizing he/she is
late?
 Tessie Hutchinson is late to the lottery (foreshadows her fate)
 She reacts with urgency and rushes to get to the village square
 She acts cordially when she arrives, making jokes in order to
shake-off the humiliation of arriving late
• “Wouldn’t have me leave m’dishes in the sink, now, would
you, Joe?”
6 . H o w d o e s O l d M a n Wa r n e r f e e l a b o u t
other villages getting rid of the lottery?
 Old Man Warner fears change and warns against the alteration of
tradition/rituals
• “Pack of crazy fools… Listening to the young folks, nothing’s good
for them. Next thing you know, they’ll be wanting to go back to living
in caves, nobody work anymore, live that way for a while. Used to be
a saying about ‘Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon.’ There’s always
been a lottery…”
 Warner = Village elder who has lived through 77 lotteries; he
represents the way things used to be as compared to the way things
are heading in the future
7. Consider the old saying, “Lotter y in June, corn be
heavy soon.” What seems to have been the original
purpose of the lottery?
The original purpose of the lottery was for
ritualistic sacrifice of one member of the
community for the greater good of the whole
community
• People believed that offering up a human life
would ensure a bountiful harvest for all to
enjoy
8. H ow d o es M r. H ut ch in s o n t r ea t h is w ife a ft er
s h e q u e s t i o n s t h e l o t t e r y. H o w d o t h e o t h e r
townspeople react to her?
Mr. Hutchinson snaps at his wife: “Shut up, Tessie.”
• This demonstrates the power of the lottery over familial
obligation
The general reaction of the townspeople is one of
indifference; they seem to ignore her pleas that the
drawing was unfair
• This demonstrates the power of social tradition over
communal obligation
9. Generally detail the process of
the lottery
 Mr. Summer acts as the coordinator
 Head of household draws for entire family
 Drawing is conducting alphabetically by last name
 The head of the household that draws the slip of paper from black
box with black dot on it “wins” the first round of the lottery
 A separate lottery is conducting within “winning” family
 The “winner” is stoned to death by all members of community
W h a t i s t h e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f Te s s i e ’s f i n a l s c r e a m ?
What aspect of the lottery does she explicitly
challenge; what aspect goes unquestioned?
Tessie screams, “It isn’t fair, it isn’t right!”
She challenges the fairness of her being
picked but does not question the tradition itself
• Perhaps her earlier hints at moving the
family to another lottery-free village factor
into whether or not she thinks it is “fair”
or “right” for her to be chosen?
1 1 . A n o m n i c i e n t n a r r a t o r t e l l s t h e s t o r y. H o w d o e s
t h e P OV a f f e c t w h a t w e k n o w a b o u t t h e
s i t u a t i o n / p r e s e r v e t h e s t o r y ’s s u s p e n s e ?
 Omniscient point of view: narrator sees and knows all about the
happenings of the story but is not a character acting within story
 The point of view allows readers an unbiased perspective of a variety
of characters and is not limited to any one perspective from one character
• The story would be completely different if told from Old Man
Warner’s perspective… or Tessie’s perspective
 Since the story is told by a narrator who sees and knows all, suspense
is preserved by Jackson only providing small aspects of individual
accounts (this allows clues/hints/foreshadowing)
12. Some critics insist that the story has an
a d d e d s y m b o l i c m e a n i n g. W h a t m i g h t Ja ck s o n b e
trying to tell us about humankind?
Humans are naturally sadistic
Humans blindly commit to traditions
Humans are dictated by fear (inhibited or
motivated to do something unwillingly)
Humans will do whatever is necessary for the
greater good of the community
1 3 . Wo u l d m u r d e r b e j u s t i f i e d o r m o r a l l y
acceptable if it happened due to an
accepted, ageless tradition?
 Answers may vary… Open for discussion!
A.If we follow traditions blindly, than
anything can be morally justified or
customized to “fit” the social norm.
B.Under no circumstance should tradition
be followed if it compromises the
sanctity of human life.
14. How would you respond to cultures
that are different from ours that perfor m
“strange” rituals?
 Answers may vary… Open for discussion!
A.“To each his own” (respect for
cultural differences)
B.All strange rituals must be banished!
(push for global normalcy)
15. Provide examples of
foreshadowing which hint at the
s t o r y ’s c o n c l u s i o n .
 Children gathering stones
 Tessie arriving late to the lottery
 Mr. Summer’s comment to Tessie: “Thought we were going to
have to get on without you.”
 The Watson boy draws for his family (his mother and father have
died/ “won” past lotteries)
 Tessie’s protests when her husband, Bill, draws the slip of paper
with the black dot on it
16. Identify the symbolic meaning(s)
of the following:
 The Lottery
• Ritualistic human sacrifice for a bountiful harvest
• Humans’ need to blindly follow social traditions
 The black box (as well as the stones, stool, lists)
• Tradition/Normalcy/Social equity
 The boys gathering stones
• Innocence lost
 Old Man Warner
• Advocate against changing social traditions
• Superstition/illogical
1 7 . W hy m i g h t h ave S h i r l e y Ja ck s o n n o t
used an existing town or area for this
story?
 Perhaps Jackson wanted her audience to utilize imagination as
much as possible?
 Perhaps Jackson wanted her audience to view this town as if it
could exist anywhere/everywhere?
 Perhaps Jackson did not want her readers to be biased by
geographical stereotypes (create neutrality among a varied audience)?
 Any other ideas? Volunteer and discuss!