Research Paper on:
'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson and Symbolism

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
follow traditions without ever giving them a second thought, following the culture blindly, never stopping to think of the consequences. As one individual states, "In Shirley Jacksons short story, The  Lottery, the main theme is how traditions that lose their meaning due to human forgetfulness can cause dreadful consequences to occur" (Anonymous The Lottery The_Lottery.shtml). With this particular focus as  a theme to Jacksons story we can readily imagine that there is a great deal of symbolism to be found in "The Lottery." The following paper examines some of the  symbolism present in Jacksons short story. Symbolism in "The Lottery" "The townspeople, the setting of the town, the slips of paper, the black box and the black dot,  and the stones, are all keys to understanding the symbolism in this story. They all portray a different sense of being and help enlighten the reader on all the aspects  of the story" (Perry blackbox.html). In understanding this we can, for example, see how many of the symbols "are not just objects, but symbolic of life and death" (Perry blackbox.html).  In better understanding this we first examine how all of the people in the story seem very reflective of the ideal American individual, offering the reader a look at  small town life where everything is simple and seemingly perfect and content. But, in reality they are nothing more than a symbolic representation of the ignorance and blindness that is  inherently possessed in the faithful citizen. And, it is this ignorance, this sense that the people are nothing more than sheep, that leads us to understand they are being led  to slaughter, to death. We can also see symbolism, which further argues this case, in the words of Old Man Warner, who states, "Theres always been a lottery" (Jackson