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The short story The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson describes an annual tradition in a rural village, where the entire village participates in a lottery where one unlucky soul is selected from slips in a box and forcibly retired to the afterlife as they are stoned by the villagers. Such depravity is normally due to psychopathic tendencies, however this tradition is still maintained as a method to establish equality and increase the mental fortitude of the populace, as is established with the inclusion of rhetoric including symbolism and juxtaposition. 

Using symbolism, imagery and juxtaposition, Jackson conveys the fear the citizens have of their tradition, and their dedication towards conserving it . This is evidenced in the text by the lines “Mr. Graves, followed him, carrying a three legged stool, […] Mr Summers set the black box down on it. The villagers kept their distance, leaving a space between them and the stool.” (Jackson 2). Immediately, the atmosphere of death is established with “Mr. Graves” (Jackson 2) associating the box with the graves of the dead. Further developing this idea is the imagery of the distance between the village and the box, emphasising their reluctance to face it and their regrets. To cement the concept, Jackson then juxtaposed the names “Graves” and “Summers”(Jackson 2) as a means to represent the duality of the box: the benefits of maintaining the tradition, and the risk of losing your own life in a brutal manner. The author does so to demonstrate the importance of the ritual to the villagers, as well as their fear. By sending this message, Jackson also illustrates our desire to protect the things to which we connect importance, even if they harm us. 

Jackson also employs literary devices such as juxtaposition, repetition and imagery to highlight how the lottery balances the power dynamics of the community. In text, lines such as “Mr. Graves came around[…] greeted Mr. Summers gravely and selected a slip[…] from the box”,”men holding the small folded papers in their large hands, turning them over and over nervously” (Jackson 6) and “Mr Summers called his own name and then stepped forward precisely and selected a slip from the box”(Jackson 7) clearly demonstrate this idea. In these lines, we clearly see Mr Graves and Mr Summers, the only authority figures also subjected themselves to the lottery, which implies that part of the reason the lottery is there is to show that all people are equal before luck and to prevent the rise to power of any single individual. The section is also highlighted with the repetition of graves and gravely to demonstrate its importance. Finally, by using juxtaposition and imagery in the phrase “men holding the small folded papers in their large hands[…]nervously”(Jackson 6), the author emphasizes the power that fate has over each individual, no matter their differences. All of this shows us that the lottery is a microcosm of life and represents the inevitable tragedy it brings to us all. It teaches us that even if it happens every year, we can never be blindsided by ill fortune and we can only move on from it, whilst acknowledging that as individuals, there is little we can do to prevent it. However, this lottery is not an accurate representation: As a race, we have changed our fate with our own ingenuity. While fate may still have tremendous power over us, there is no need to sacrifice our own to emphasize this. Together, as a species we have achieved so much in spite of obstacles like tragedy, as humans are the most persistent creatures on our planet. The lottery is an ancient tradition that should be discarded, as even if life’s power is still present in our existence, the best way to learn about it is true experience, and not a set, repeating tragedy.