The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

Background information and SettingThe Lotteryby Shirley Jackson

The LotteryThe story enhances the contemporary reader's uneasy sense that the group violence in the story could be taking place anywhere and everywhere, right now.

Why Should I Care?If you've ever been hanging out with a group of friends and done something truly stupid, you may have heard the term, "If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump, too?" Your answer is probably "no," but Shirley Jackson disagrees.

Why Should I Care?She thinks you and anyone and everyone would race off that bridge if your community decided it was necessary. According to her, while individuals may be great, a group of people is another animal. An animal that eats its own.

Peer Pressure and TraditionFirst there's peer pressure and the exclusion of one person to give the remaining community members a bonding experience

Second is tradition, which is what prevents any of the villagers from questioning their roles in ritualistic murder.

Tradition"You think tradition's so great and meaningful, but look how it deadens people's abilities to think for themselves!" Shriley Jackson

And it's sometimes true that we don't think about the origins or significance of many of our regular traditions

SettingSetting is the physical location and time in which a story takes place. To identify setting, we must note the specific details the author provides concerning:The storys location.The time in which the action takes place.The social environment of the characters, including the manners, customs, and moral values that govern their society.

What is it Mr. E?While we often associate setting with where and when, it also has an emotional effect and can create a mood or atmosphere. Mood is the feeling that a text conveys to readers. Purpose Authors deliberately choose a setting and include specific details to conjure a certain reaction/feeling in their readers. Once I have identified the storys setting, I can identify the mood by asking :What things, thoughts, or feelings do I typically associate these details with? Given this, what mood is the author trying to create?

Examplesold, abandoned house= Whats the mood? What do you feel?

warm, sunny beach= Whats the mood? What do you feel?

Setting as ForeshadowingAs readers, its not enough to just note where and when the story takes place. By identifying the setting and the mood it conjures, we can make better predictions about what may happen in the text. To do this, I should ask myself:What is the setting, and the mood it conjures, leading me to think might happen?What do I need to be aware of as I continue reading?

Setting as Foreshadowing: Lord of the Flies