218. I think ancestors began the lottery, to have an event somewhat like a sacrifice or to punish a family in the village because of religious beliefs. Sort of like sinning or being unworthy. I think it has died out in other villages, because families were getting too depressed and upset about their family members being stoned, either to maximum pain or death. I also think villages started seeing that there was no point in stoning people, because it was just hurting their loved ones in their community. Also affecting the way people living in the villages thought about the members watching in amusement, and setting up the lottery. Lastly, I think the moral the author was trying to communicate with the readers was that winning isn’t always as great as you think. I think she was trying to say, you don’t need to win a lottery to be happy and love life. You should be grateful for what you have and not need more, but just be satisfied with what’s enough.
221 In The Lottery I think that the whole tradition of the lottery was created for a common traditional reason. They believed in gods. (ancient) This makes sense because the gods used to have sacrifices. I also believe that its died because not all people are psycho. I believe that the author wrote this to inform young readers of the true horror of some tribes and villages. For example The Mayans have made sacrifices in their tribe so I believe this is a very real reason the author wrote this. That’s what I think about The Lottery. My two higher level questions are: 1) What year was this brutal tradition introduced to villages? 2) Why does everyone follow this tradition and not see anything wrong with it?
222 I believe the ancestors began the lottery because they didn’t want to over populate. Killing one person every year could really keep the population down, if it was the right person. If they killed a child, it would do more for the village because that’s one person that cant have kids. If it was a mother she already has kids and wont make the population increase anymore. I think the other villages decided to stop the lottery because they thought stoning people annually wasn’t right. Maybe they actually thought it was wrong, or maybe they found no use or amusement in it. The point I think the author was trying to make in the story was life isn’t fair. The last words the woman, Tessie, said were, “It isn’t fair,” and she was going to die. To me, that sounds like life isn’t fair. Two questions I have: Why did all the tradition go into stoning one person annually? Explain. Why do you think they let the kids participate in killing someone? Explain
209 In my opinion I think they’re are several reasons the ancestors began the lottery. Possibly it was just a way of life and it was natural for them. Also it could be a sacrifice to the certain villages higher power. I defiantly think most villages stopped the Lottery because it is barbaric and a inhumane activity. In the story every one is able to stone the person who won the lottery there for being very gruesome. Also I assume that no one would like to be on the receiving end of this lottery. Getting stoned would be a painful and slow death as well. I think the author was trying to accomplish several thing with the story. In my opinion most likely how the lottery has evolved threw hundreds of years and that a “lottery” might not always be a good thing. She does this by in the story having a dramatic twist for an ending telling the reader what happens if you won the lottery, which is you would be stoned.
Question1: Why do you think this certain town decided to continue the lottery while other towns decided to stop? Explain.
Question 2: How would you feel if you were the one who would get stoned because you won the lottery?
#202 I think the ancestors started the lottery differently and it changed over time. In the story it says that they had to change some things that were used in the lottery. I don’t think anyone of the ancestors wanted to kill the person who won. Some of the villages stopped the lottery because for one thing you lose a person every time you play. I bet the villagers didn’t want to take the risk anymore. They finally saw it was not worth to lose a person over one lottery. The point I think the author was making was that to some people the lottery can be amazing but to others it can be disappointing. Some people need the lottery money for taxes, their homes, and their family. It is such a big chance that you won’t win though. The author changed that around though because to me she showed what it was like to some people who didn’t win. In her story if you did win you got stoned and that shows how depressing the lottery can be. In my opinion she was not saying the lottery is a bad thing but it can be a depressing things to a lot of people. How can the villagers not be guilty after killing a friend? Why would none of the villagers attempt to leave the town or to try and stop the lottery from going on?
The Lottery was a good story but ended in just craziness. The ancestors began the lottery. I think they had started it because they maybe wanted some sort of time where the town gets together. While the town gets together they have a drawing and some family has the chance to win something. Many villages had stopped the lottery. I believe that they did that because of upset throughout villages. These upsets were caused from the drawing of another families name. Or even other families would hurt the family that won. The point I saw through this short story was just because you don’t win doesn’t mean that you need to hurt others. Just like when The Hutchinson’s got picked a member from the village was upset she threw a stone at the family.
Describe why the town was so upset and what one of the villagers reaction was to the situation. Explain.
Explain your opinion about the stoning of the woman.
218. -221: I said the same thing, I too thought they stoned people because of ancient reasons to sacrifice people. That makes complete sense to me, because like you said ancient civilizations did the same thing. So why wouldn't that be the same reason for villages? Nice post.
Question2. I think they continued the barbaric tradition because at the time they saw nothing wrong with it and was all they knew. Even the kids were able to participate in the stoning.
218 from 212 I dont believe that beliefs of a certain religion would cause someone to stone that woman because she won. Your response was nice but maybe you would want to look that over. Some religouns may have done that, but before the drawing I would think that the person would have said something.
218. -222: Hmm, I never looked at it like that way. Maybe the moral was life isn't fair, I never would of thought about it like that. That seems like a logical moral though. True that though, how could kids participate in something like that? Craziness right there! :D That's villages for you though.
The Lottery was an extremely surprising story. I think the ancestors begun the lottery to keep the village from growing too large.Or maybe it was just some kind of game to them. The lottery could have also been a religious ceremony. I think it died out in other villages because they realized that it was cruel, violent, and inhumane. The villages that didn’t preform this ceremony were more civilized and kind. I believe that the author wrote this piece to show what the world was like in those days. It was cruel but it could have happened. There were stonings in biblical days, why not in those day? The Lottery shocked me but it was also a very entertaining story.
How are the time period of The Lottery and biblical times similar and different? How many people do you think have died because of the lottery?
Dear 222 From 202 First of all good job. You question 2 is a great one. I'm not sure what the answer is but the thing that I don't get is why a little boy or girl would want to kill his friends or even one of his parents. It is sad that the kids have to go through that at that age.
222 @202 I think the reason the villagers don't feel guilty for killing a friend is thats how they learned. For example some people eat meat because thats how they grew up while other people think its bad. The people that eat the meat don't feel guilty because thats how they grew up.
#201 There are many ways that these questions about The Lottery by Shirley Jackson could have been answered. So this is how I answered them. The first question was why do I think that the ancestors started the lottery. I think that the ancestors started the lottery for religious reasons. It says in the story that it takes place in a village, and most times, people are very religious. The second question was why did some villages stop the lottery. I believe that they stopped the lottery because it’s completely ridiculous to do that to your family and friends. Why would you purposefully hurt people that you care about? The third question was what point was the author trying to make. Personally, I think that Shirley Jackson was trying to show that you can’t trust everyone. All of Tessie Hutchinson’s friends and family stoned her to death because of tradition. My two higher level questions are as follows. 1. Why is this tradition so important? 2.Why do they continue to do the tradition? Explain.
222 from 212 I dont exactly think that anybody knew they were going to kill someone. So therefore they wouldn't care if kids were attending. I think that any kids ere actually involved in the killings. Just their parents.
#217 The ancestors could have started the lottery for many reasons. Maybe they did it for a god. They were probably scared that a god would get angry if they didn’t make a sacrifice. Another reason they could’ve started it is because there were too many people in their village. They could’ve not had enough jobs/money to support everyone, so they did that to lessen the population. I think some villages stopped doing the lottery for two reasons. One, because they have too many people getting stoned, so there was less of a population. Two, because not many people were coming into the village. When they stoned someone, it’s one less person in the village. So, the more people they stoned, the less people would be in the village. I think that the point the author was trying to make was that winning the lottery isn’t always a good thing. In the story, the “winner” got stoned, probably to death. In our day the lottery is for a lot of money, and everyone wants to win that. In the story, the “winner” got stoned, and I don’t think anyone wants to win that lottery. Two questions I have are, with only 300+ people, why would they do that? The other question is, why would everyone be so excited about the lottery, when someone was about to get stoned?
I think that the ancestors started the lottery because they didn't want anymore mouths to feed. I think that the ancestors could of stated because of the religion they have and it could have been sacrifice. In the story it doesn't say exactly why they do the lottery and it confused me how they were excited about it. In the other villages I think it died out because its messed up. The characters in the story the characters are in disgusted or look down upon the other villages that they don't do the lottery anymore. Mr. Summers said that the other villages don't do it anymore. I don't know exactly what the moral of the story was. I think that the story was written just for entertainment. It could have written for the reader to learn about the way people used to treat each other. Maybe the moral was to expect the unexpected.
1. Was the lottery for sacrifice. 2.Describe what you thought of when you read the ending
221 222, what i meant by they were "Psycho" is compared to today. In modern days, people can't go around killing people because of a lottery. Do you know what i mean??
To:209 From:202 To answer your second question if it was me who got stoned because I won the lottery it would feel horrible. for one thing I would probably die but to kill a person our age is not right. I would never want to be a part of a lottery like that.
There are many things that could started the lottery, but I believe that it was started to decrease surplus poulation. The lottery could have also been started because the ancestors were barbaric. It has probably died out in other villages because they may have realized just how wrong and distaseful that killing truly is. I personaly believe that the other was trying to make a point that lotteries and killing is wrong. With death being in the story, it only proves that lotteris, in a way, are wrong. That a family would kill a family goes against human rights and responsibilities. The whole town gathering for that event is cleary wrong. That is why I believe that death is in the story. I think that lotteries are even wrong without death, but this makes lotteries look even worse. All in all, this story goes against humans and is a clearly wrong way of life.
Why would a whole town gather just for the sake of dying or killing a person? Why would the family of the person getting killed also join in murdering them?
218. -202: I like your analogy on the lottery, because that's true. The lottery can be pretty disappointing to someone continually trying to win, and to lose repeatedly. The way the author changed the meaning of winning the lottery, showed you'll win and lose some. Can't have it all, and maybe sometimes it's better to not win. It's clearly shown in her story haha.
My opinion of the stoning of Tessie was that it was inhumane. The fact that they would stone a woman for no reason is unacceptable. Even her children were involved in the stoning! How would you feel if you killed your mother? It was shocking!
Blogger #228 I believe that the ancestors started the lottery in order to live well. In the story, Old Man Warner said after hearing that a village mite give up the lottery, he said “Next thing you know, they`ll be wanting to go back to living in caves.”. Although, it is possible that they started it for different reasons that I can`t think of. I believe that the villages that stopped doing the lottery because they thought it inhumane. I say this because it is inhumane to do that every year. If I was them, I would do it. Finally, my answer to the last question is this, I don`t know. The story confused me in the middle of it when Ms.Hutchinson was excited, to her being frantic. I`ve heard that the story deals with ethic problems, but I don`t know what that would be.
Question 1: What do you think was going through the author`s mind while she was writing the ending? Explain you reasoning.
Question 2: At any time did you guess the lottery`s true intent? Did you at least think that it was something bad? Explain.
210 Okay, I really can’t think of any reason that ancestors might have started “The Lottery”. It really doesn't make much sense to me at all. If I had to think of one reason it would probably be population. Just maybe they had to kill one person a year to make sure that they had enough food and other necessities for everyone else. Their ancestors just decided to pick the person randomly would be my best guess! Next, I think that some of the villages have cut out the lottery because of pretty obvious reasons. Stoning random people, drawing a paper from a box. It all seems pretty darn depressing to me. But, I’m sure the villages had other reasons for ending the lottery. In the story, it took some time to prepare for the lottery, maybe people just got too busy. To end, I think the author chose to write about this topic especially because The term “Lottery” makes you think about money or prizes. In the story, winning the lottery was not as great, at all. I think is was to show that the winning is not always as great as you might think.
Explain the traditions in “The Lottery”and if you would or would not continue with them. Why?
Why do you think they chose the method of stoning to kill the lottery winner? Explain.
to 218 from 213 I thought that it was for sacrifice also. I also agree with what you said about that the other villages stopped because they didn't want to lose people.
The short story “The Lottery” was very weird and unusual to me! In my opinion I think the ancestors started the lottery maybe for entertainment. Probably back then people didn’t have much to do, so they decided to come up with the lottery. In the story they talk about getting prepared and exited for the day of the lottery. To them that was a really exiting moment, so that was the way the people entertained themselves most likely.It could have also been one of their traditions. Maybe the ancestors were raised that way and it went on for generations! I think the lottery has died in other villages because it isn’t fair at all. In the story people didn’t have the choice to opt out of the lottery. They had to be in it, even little kids and babies ad to participate. Other villages might have found this to be pointless and cruel to innocent people. That may be one of the reasons they stopped doing the lottery. The author’s point of view wasn’t very clear to me. I think the point she was trying to get at is describing the traditions the villagers had in the small village of New England. She was trying to tell the reader how the people lived in that village and how important the lottery was to them! My two questions are: 1) Compare and contrast the lottery from back then to the the lottery today. 2) What is your perspective on this tradition? Do you think they did it for entertainment? Explain.
I think that the ancestors started the lottery because none of them got along. They came up with an intense way to kill each other to solve their problem. Soon the lottery just became a ritual. The lottery used to excite people.”’It’s not the way it used to be.’ Old Man Warner said clearly. ‘People ain’t the way they used to be.’” In my opinion the lottery died out in other towns because the younger generations didn’t like having their friends and family stoned so they stopped participating. Sooner or later they just stopped doing The Lottery. I think that the moral of the story is that lottery’s aren’t as good as they’re perceived to be.
My 2 higher level questions are... 1) If you were to write the story yourself knowing what she meant by it, how would you write it? 2)Why do you think that this town doesn't abandon the tradition? explain your reasoning 203
222 @202 I totally agree with you on the 'why would a kid want to stone his friends or family' I think its because they never learned it was wrong, it's just what they do. Thats just my opinion though.
216 tells 222: I agree that they would not want to over populate the village, but why would they only kill one person a year? It does not make since, because people can just have another kid to replace that kid, or even have more kids, and their kids can have kids and so on. I don’t understand how killing one person would effect the whole village population. To answer your questions, I think the tradition went on because they wanted the Gods to “choose” someone “not great” in the village to stone. The other question, I think they let kids participate in the killing because the adults wanted them to get used to the fact of killing someone for when they are older.
#241, I never thought about the lottery as a way for population control. That's definitely one way to do it. I loved your paragraph, you did really good. #201
I believe that the town sees nothing wrong because it is hat they know. I also very much so agree with your opinion but I think the author wrote it for all ages.
222 @209 I guess that makes sense. They want to continue the tradition so they let the kids participate so as they get older they know its just how the village works and don't question it. Good response!
The short story “The Lottery” is a terrifying story, it shocked me to find out that the lottery was not about money. The people in the village get excited to find out who gets beat with stones. I thnk the ancestors began the lottery to prova a point, and to make traditions. I also think the lottery died out from other villages because they were beating them to death which caused them to lose population. The point the author was trying to make was to let us know that there are crazy people in this world and they do crazy things, I also think she was just trying to scare us. “The paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. This is telling us that The Lottery was not in use for a while, and they started to use it once every year. It has been going on for a very long time. The Lottery shocked me in so many ways but this story did leave me with some questions... 1.) Why do people of the lottery get excited for the time of the Lottery? 2.) Why dont they stop the Lottery just like the other villages?
218. -221: The person getting stoned would of said something? Even if they did, that wouldn't have done anything. Tessie spoke up and said how it wasn't fair, but that did nothing. I also believe they would do it because of religious beliefs, Aztecs, Mayans and other early civilizations had human sacrifices because of their religious beliefs. Still like today, people do different things in church or respecting what they believe because of their religion.
Blogger #228 Blogger 221, To answer your second question, I believe that the lottery has been around so long, that no one wants to go against tradition.
216 The ancestors began the lottery either because they thought someone was a bad person in society, or because they wanted something from their Gods. I think this because in the past villages always looked up to the Gods if they needed food or water. Also, in the story hard workers always seemed to past it seemed like, and the people who don’t really do much got stoned. I think the stoning in other villages died out because they realized how meaningless it was to stone people. Also, families were probably getting on the government or leaders about loosing family or friends. In the story people got stoned to death, and it would be hard to loose a family member or close friend. I think the author was trying to make a point that nowadays we get it good. People don’t get stoned to death for no reason. Also I think it meant how close families should be to each other. In the story, someone would loose a family member once a year, and it tells that you never know when someone could pass away at any time and you will never see them again, therefore make the best of life. Questions: Can you relate to the story in any way? If so how? If someone you knew got stoned to death, how would it impact your life?
#217 to 210 I totally agree with you on the part about ending the lottery because the stoning random people is pretty darn depressing. Just stoning people because they, by chance, picked the wrong piece of paper is pretty stupid
I think they continue the tradition because it's part of their history. It's something they wouldn't know how to live without. Even though it has had a few modifications, like the pieces of paper instead of the wooden chips. It's still the same general sort of thing that they are used to.
to 221 from 213 I think that this story must have taken place a long time ago. Maybe in BC because much after that I don't think they did that anymore. I think that Everyone in the village follows the tradition because everyone else does.
The ancestors could have started the lottery because it was an activity they wanted to involve to possibly lower the population. People could have grown up with it and have never seen anything wrong with it. The fact that it’s a tradition would make people not want to disagree with it. Some villages might have stopped carrying out that tradition because they noticed that it was cruel and vile. That the actions they were making were horrible. The author may have been saying that there are better things than just winning money. That you have certain values that keep you happy. Like family and friends and the fact that money can’t buy you happiness.
Dear 222 I think that the kids participated in the stoning because the adults wanted to train the kids at an early age to participate so that the tradition would have a more likely possibility to be continued. From 203
Dear 222 I think that the kids participated in the stoning because the adults wanted to train the kids at an early age to participate so that the tradition would have a more likely possibility to be continued. From 203
228 Blogger 222, to answer your second question, I believe that they let the kids stone the people also so that they could get used to stoning the people at a young age.
My perspective on this tradition is that it is vile and cruel. I think that they do it to decrease population so that the town doesn't need to provide for so many people. I do also agree with your opinion.
222 @216 Well, maybe the population wasn't a big enough issue so they didn't need to kill more than one person a year, but they still felt that one person dead mattered enough.
208 I think the ancestors started the lottery because is was entertaining and a way to get rid of people because the village was low on food.The reason I think it was a form of entertainment to the villager is because Mrs hutchinson hurried to come see the stone of a person.I think Other villages stopped doing the lottery because they had enough food to survive and found other ways of getting entertainment than doing the lottery. I think the author of the story tried to show that you shouldn’t laugh at the problems of others because that may happen to. Mrs hutchin came running to watch the cruel stoning of another but winded up getting stoned her self.
What went through Mr summer mind as he was running the lottery. How do you think the hutchinsion are going be after Tessie died
218. -226: I like your questions, especially the first one. The lottery from then to today, is totally different. With the exceptions of a couple similarities. The winner in lotteries today win large amounts of money, it's pretty sad to lose that. Although in the lottery then, to win this lottery wasn't all that an exciting moment. It was more like a scary, upsetting thing. Who wants to be stoned to death? Not me I'll tell you that. xD.
I think the ancestors began the lottery to keep the population lower. In the beginning of the story it mentioned that the population was three hundred and climbing. So i think they don’t want to many people. I think it died out in other villages because the population was getting to low. I think the author’s moral of the story is to watch the population because there are too many people on the world. I also think that the author may have been trying to point out that not all the time will something good come from winning. It could just simply making the family have an easier life by not having to pay for the person that dies.
my two questions are: if you continue having “the lottery” and all the girls die what would the villagers do?
Do the children participate in the killing of their parents?
216 tells 228: Why would the village like killing people, and have one less possibly valuable person to be gone? I don’t get how you like the fact of how they stone someone once a year. To answer your questions, I think the author was trying to make a point around you that the people around you are valuable and you don’t have to just give them up. I think the lottery could have happened because the village wanted something from their “gods.”
Dear 202 If I were the one who won the lottery I would try to run away. First of all I wouldn't even take place in a lottery like that, because if my friend were to win I wouldn't be able to throw rocks at them.
The short story “The Lottery” is a terrifying story, it shocked me to find out that the lottery was not about money. The people in the village get excited to find out who gets beat with stones. I thnk the ancestors began the lottery to prova a point, and to make traditions. I also think the lottery died out from other villages because they were beating them to death which caused them to lose population. The point the author was trying to make was to let us know that there are crazy people in this world and they do crazy things, I also think she was just trying to scare us. “The paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. This is telling us that The Lottery was not in use for a while, and they started to use it once every year. It has been going on for a very long time. The Lottery shocked me in so many ways but this story did leave me with some questions... 1.) Why do people of the lottery get excited for the time of the Lottery? 2.) Why dont they stop the Lottery just like the other villages?
#226-#218 I disagree with you on the first part of your blog. The people couldn't really decide if they wanted to participate in the lottery or not. So I don't think religion had anything to do with the whole situation. On the other hand I agree with you on the rest of it! Great job!
218 -217: To answer your second question, think of little kids harassing one kid. They think it's pretty funny, so just imagine throwing rocks at someone. They'd think that's hilarious, so I think that's how it was seen here. That's actually pretty grusome, just imagine how much blood that would cause to come gushing out, not the prettiest sight. But I mean that would be kind of funny to see someone get rocks thrown at them haha, but pretty mean aswell.
The ancestors started the lottery so they could sacrifice for there belief in a certain religion. Some villages have stopped doing the lottery because it took to long to set up and do the whole thing. Also people where getting really sad when there family members were getting hurt. The point the author was trying to get at is winning the lottery is not always a good thing. I want to know what time period this story took place in.
#224 I believe that ancestors started the lottery because they thought that their land was not big enough for the amount of people they had. The lottery would help bring down the population so that the town would not get to big. To many mouths to feed off of the land, which was to small. This would not work either so the ancestors stoned people through the lottery. Towns would stop the lottery because they thought that they could hold more people than years before when they had the lottery. Other towns would have to stop the lottery because they thought it was cruel or rude. The author wanted the point of the story to show that the lottery was cruel and pointless and still very real. Cruel because Mrs. Hutchinson probably did not deserve to be stoned. Pointless because its only one person, if I were mayor and we were stoning because of my first thought, then I would stone more people.
Explain how they decided who to stone? Why was the town excited to want to stone if they had the chance to be the person who got stoned?
219 As stated in the short story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, the village that this story took place in is full of tradition. The people in this village want to keep the tradition going by doing whatever they can to make sure that happens. This may seem a little far-fetched but I honestly believe that the ancestors started the lottery as a service to the Heavens. In the story it says “....when the first people settled down to make a village here.” (Paragraph 5 on handout) which means it could be interpreted that the “first people” were of those who sacrificed. Usually, the people would sacrifice at least one victim to the Heavens in return for food, good wealth or fortune. The main village is really the only village that still carries this tradition. This gory tradition has died out in other villages because the story took place in the semi-modern era. No sacrifice was needed at that time to get something they didn’t already have. People don’t go around sacrificing other people in the new era. This story had a brutal and unexpected ending for a reason. Some may think that the moral was to live it up while you can because you never know when someone might choose your dying day. That would be too simple. There’s more to this despairing story than that. Jackson was trying to prove that you cannot trust anyone. One day, just any random day, your closest friends and neighbors just may turn on you. She was trying to state that you should never trust anyone too much because in this case, Mrs. Hutchinson trusted her friends but ironically died from that trust.
Questions: 1.) Why do you believe Shirley Jackson had such an abrupt halt to the story instead of easing into the conclusion?
2.) I understand that tradition is important in this village, but out of all traditions, why was this tradition carried on for so long?
Life isn’t fair and you can really see that in this story. This whole story isn’t fair which makes your beliefs on this story reasonable. The way you described kids dying was somewhat brutal but logical in his situation. Overall, I liked the thoughts you have on this story. Answers: 1.) The tradition of stoning one person annually, in my opinion, was as an offering to the Heavens, whether it was for fortune, good wealth or food. 2.) The kids were allowed to participate in the killings of innocent people as either a way to prepare them for the future or as a metaphor of the bad behaviors of children at early ages.
I am not exactly sure but I believe that this short story took place in the 1940’s. That is just based on the time this was written. I’m sorry, but I have to disagree with the thought that the tradition stopped due to the amount of preparation the killings took. Even in the 1940’s, killing people as a “sacrifice” was not a justice at all. I believe the author wrote this because you shouldn’t trust anyone, not that winning the lottery was bad. Other than that, I like the ideas you had behind your reasons.
205 I believe the ancestors began the lottery because they didn’t want to over populate. Killing one person every year could really keep the population down, if it was the right person. If they killed a child, it would do more for the village because that’s one person that cant have kids. If it was a mother she already has kids and wont make the population increase anymore. I think the other villages decided to stop the lottery because they thought stoning people annually wasn’t right. Maybe they actually thought it was wrong, or maybe they found no use or amusement in it. The point I think the author was trying to make in the story was life isn’t fair. The last words the woman, Tessie, said were, “It isn’t fair,” and she was going to die. To me, that sounds like life isn’t fair. Two questions I have: Why did all the tradition go into stoning one person annually? Explain. Why do you think they let the kids participate in killing someone? Explain
205 @202 I think the reason the villagers don't feel guilty for killing a friend is thats how they learned. For example some people eat meat because thats how they grew up while other people think its bad. The people that eat the meat don't feel guilty because thats how they grew up.
205 @202 I totally agree with you on the 'why would a kid want to stone his friends or family' I think its because they never learned it was wrong, it's just what they do. Thats just my opinion though.
205 @216 Well, maybe the population wasn't a big enough issue so they didn't need to kill more than one person a year, but they still felt that one person dead mattered enough.
In The Lottery, my thoughts were that the ancestors started this tradition to help decrease population, but when I reread the story, I saw that one of the old men was saying that the crop was going to be good this year. Now my thoughts are that maybe stoning those people, is part of a sacrificial ceremony, so they could get a good crop that year. Also, I think the lottery is there so those people could die for the villages sins. I think it has died out in other villages because the people were realizing that it is wrong to do this with human beings. Also, I think that every one was afraid that they would be chosen to be stoned. I thought the moral that the author was trying to make was that this story relates to the world because the lottery is just pointless violence that didn't effect any of the villagers. They just went along doing what they do everyday. This happens all the time in life. Even though its still a tragedy that people die, we brush it off with out a second thought, unless they were in our family of course. To sum it up, the moral I thought the story had was that this is just a dramatization of what happens all the time, everywhere in the world, but people were horrified about it in this story, when they brush it off when it actually does happen.
Question 1. Why do you think that the children are involved, even though their life is already so short? Question 2. Why do you think that this certain village is keeping the tradition, even though many other villages are stopping it?
#515 Dear #218, I think you’re right about the sacrificing part, but not about the punishing part. I don’t see why the ancestors would want to punish any of the families after them.
log # 204 - The main idea that the author had was, gambling is bad. The old man said he was in the lottery for 77 times and never got hurt. Sooner or later though his card is gonna be drawn. Most of the other villages probably stopped the lottery because they realized that killing people was wrong. I also think that the ancestors started the lottery because they thought it would add fun to their lives. The old man also said, that the villages that wanted to shut down the lottery, would become cave men again. What he meant by that, was they would live boring lives again. The sense of irony that I got from the story was the lady who complained that it wasn’t fair, is the one who got stoned to death. When we hear the word lottery we all start thinking its a good thing. Millions of dollars today doesn’t sound too bad right? You have to buy the ticket though and if u don’t win, then you are just paying the person that did. My questions are, did the villagers absolutely have to participate in the lottery. Also why did the little kid have to pick a ticket.
86 comments:
218. I think ancestors began the lottery, to have an event somewhat like a sacrifice or to punish a family in the village because of religious beliefs. Sort of like sinning or being unworthy. I think it has died out in other villages, because families were getting too depressed and upset about their family members being stoned, either to maximum pain or death. I also think villages started seeing that there was no point in stoning people, because it was just hurting their loved ones in their community. Also affecting the way people living in the villages thought about the members watching in amusement, and setting up the lottery. Lastly, I think the moral the author was trying to communicate with the readers was that winning isn’t always as great as you think. I think she was trying to say, you don’t need to win a lottery to be happy and love life. You should be grateful for what you have and not need more, but just be satisfied with what’s enough.
221
In The Lottery I think that the whole tradition of the lottery was created for a common traditional reason. They believed in gods. (ancient) This makes sense because the gods used to have sacrifices. I also believe that its died because not all people are psycho. I believe that the author wrote this to inform young readers of the true horror of some tribes and villages. For example The Mayans have made sacrifices in their tribe so I believe this is a very real reason the author wrote this. That’s what I think about The Lottery.
My two higher level questions are:
1) What year was this brutal tradition introduced to villages?
2) Why does everyone follow this tradition and not see anything wrong with it?
222
I believe the ancestors began the lottery because they didn’t want to over populate. Killing one person every year could really keep the population down, if it was the right person. If they killed a child, it would do more for the village because that’s one person that cant have kids. If it was a mother she already has kids and wont make the population increase anymore. I think the other villages decided to stop the lottery because they thought stoning people annually wasn’t right. Maybe they actually thought it was wrong, or maybe they found no use or amusement in it. The point I think the author was trying to make in the story was life isn’t fair. The last words the woman, Tessie, said were, “It isn’t fair,” and she was going to die. To me, that sounds like life isn’t fair.
Two questions I have:
Why did all the tradition go into stoning one person annually? Explain.
Why do you think they let the kids participate in killing someone? Explain
209 In my opinion I think they’re are several reasons the ancestors began the lottery. Possibly it was just a way of life and it was natural for them. Also it could be a sacrifice to the certain villages higher power. I defiantly think most villages stopped the Lottery because it is barbaric and a inhumane activity. In the story every one is able to stone the person who won the lottery there for being very gruesome. Also I assume that no one would like to be on the receiving end of this lottery. Getting stoned would be a painful and slow death as well. I think the author was trying to accomplish several thing with the story. In my opinion most likely how the lottery has evolved threw hundreds of years and that a “lottery” might not always be a good thing. She does this by in the story having a dramatic twist for an ending telling the reader what happens if you won the lottery, which is you would be stoned.
Question1: Why do you think this certain town decided to continue the lottery while other towns decided to stop? Explain.
Question 2: How would you feel if you were the one who would get stoned because you won the lottery?
#202
I think the ancestors started the lottery differently and it changed over time. In the story it says that they had to change some things that were used in the lottery. I don’t think anyone of the ancestors wanted to kill the person who won. Some of the villages stopped the lottery because for one thing you lose a person every time you play. I bet the villagers didn’t want to take the risk anymore. They finally saw it was not worth to lose a person over one lottery. The point I think the author was making was that to some people the lottery can be amazing but to others it can be disappointing. Some people need the lottery money for taxes, their homes, and their family. It is such a big chance that you won’t win though. The author changed that around though because to me she showed what it was like to some people who didn’t win. In her story if you did win you got stoned and that shows how depressing the lottery can be. In my opinion she was not saying the lottery is a bad thing but it can be a depressing things to a lot of people.
How can the villagers not be guilty after killing a friend? Why would none of the villagers attempt to leave the town or to try and stop the lottery from going on?
The Lottery Jan. 6,2011 Blog #212
The Lottery was a good story but ended in just craziness. The ancestors began the lottery. I think they had started it because they maybe wanted some sort of time where the town gets together. While the town gets together they have a drawing and some family has the chance to win something. Many villages had stopped the lottery. I believe that they did that because of upset throughout villages. These upsets were caused from the drawing of another families name. Or even other families would hurt the family that won. The point I saw through this short story was just because you don’t win doesn’t mean that you need to hurt others. Just like when The Hutchinson’s got picked a member from the village was upset she threw a stone at the family.
Describe why the town was so upset and what one of the villagers reaction was to the situation. Explain.
Explain your opinion about the stoning of the woman.
218. -221: I said the same thing, I too thought they stoned people because of ancient reasons to sacrifice people. That makes complete sense to me, because like you said ancient civilizations did the same thing. So why wouldn't that be the same reason for villages? Nice post.
222
@221
Just because they kill people doesn't make them psycho. For example, Mayans and Aztecs had sacrifices and they were not psycho people.
209 @ 221
Question2. I think they continued the barbaric tradition because at the time they saw nothing wrong with it and was all they knew. Even the kids were able to participate in the stoning.
218 from 212
I dont believe that beliefs of a certain religion would cause someone to stone that woman because she won. Your response was nice but maybe you would want to look that over. Some religouns may have done that, but before the drawing I would think that the person would have said something.
218. -222: Hmm, I never looked at it like that way. Maybe the moral was life isn't fair, I never would of thought about it like that. That seems like a logical moral though. True that though, how could kids participate in something like that? Craziness right there! :D That's villages for you though.
214
The Lottery was an extremely surprising story. I think the ancestors begun the lottery to keep the village from growing too large.Or maybe it was just some kind of game to them. The lottery could have also been a religious ceremony. I think it died out in other villages because they realized that it was cruel, violent, and inhumane. The villages that didn’t preform this ceremony were more civilized and kind. I believe that the author wrote this piece to show what the world was like in those days. It was cruel but it could have happened. There were stonings in biblical days, why not in those day? The Lottery shocked me but it was also a very entertaining story.
How are the time period of The Lottery and biblical times similar and different?
How many people do you think have died because of the lottery?
221
218 I also agree with you because not only did ancient civilizations do this, but some did it because of religion. Nice Post
Dear 222
From 202
First of all good job. You question 2 is a great one. I'm not sure what the answer is but the thing that I don't get is why a little boy or girl would want to kill his friends or even one of his parents. It is sad that the kids have to go through that at that age.
209@222
I think they let the kids participate in the lotterys to continue the tradition. Also that was probably a past tradition to let kids participate.
222
@202
I think the reason the villagers don't feel guilty for killing a friend is thats how they learned. For example some people eat meat because thats how they grew up while other people think its bad. The people that eat the meat don't feel guilty because thats how they grew up.
#201
There are many ways that these questions about The Lottery by Shirley Jackson could have been answered. So this is how I answered them. The first question was why do I think that the ancestors started the lottery. I think that the ancestors started the lottery for religious reasons. It says in the story that it takes place in a village, and most times, people are very religious. The second question was why did some villages stop the lottery. I believe that they stopped the lottery because it’s completely ridiculous to do that to your family and friends. Why would you purposefully hurt people that you care about? The third question was what point was the author trying to make. Personally, I think that Shirley Jackson was trying to show that you can’t trust everyone. All of Tessie Hutchinson’s friends and family stoned her to death because of tradition.
My two higher level questions are as follows. 1. Why is this tradition so important? 2.Why do they continue to do the tradition? Explain.
222 from 212
I dont exactly think that anybody knew they were going to kill someone. So therefore they wouldn't care if kids were attending. I think that any kids ere actually involved in the killings. Just their parents.
221
212, I completely agree. This story had a crazy ending that i never saw coming.
#217
The ancestors could have started the lottery for many reasons. Maybe they did it for a god. They were probably scared that a god would get angry if they didn’t make a sacrifice. Another reason they could’ve started it is because there were too many people in their village. They could’ve not had enough jobs/money to support everyone, so they did that to lessen the population.
I think some villages stopped doing the lottery for two reasons. One, because they have too many people getting stoned, so there was less of a population. Two, because not many people were coming into the village. When they stoned someone, it’s one less person in the village. So, the more people they stoned, the less people would be in the village.
I think that the point the author was trying to make was that winning the lottery isn’t always a good thing. In the story, the “winner” got stoned, probably to death. In our day the lottery is for a lot of money, and everyone wants to win that. In the story, the “winner” got stoned, and I don’t think anyone wants to win that lottery.
Two questions I have are, with only 300+ people, why would they do that? The other question is, why would everyone be so excited about the lottery, when someone was about to get stoned?
213
I think that the ancestors started the lottery because they didn't want anymore mouths to feed. I think that the ancestors could of stated because of the religion they have and it could have been sacrifice. In the story it doesn't say exactly why they do the lottery and it confused me how they were excited about it. In the other villages I think it died out because its messed up. The characters in the story the characters are in disgusted or look down upon the other villages that they don't do the lottery anymore. Mr. Summers said that the other villages don't do it anymore. I don't know exactly what the moral of the story was. I think that the story was written just for entertainment. It could have written for the reader to learn about the way people used to treat each other. Maybe the moral was to expect the unexpected.
1. Was the lottery for sacrifice.
2.Describe what you thought of when you read the ending
221
222, what i meant by they were "Psycho" is compared to today. In modern days, people can't go around killing people because of a lottery. Do you know what i mean??
222
@218
I'm glad I could share my opinion with you and that you agree and found a different way to interpret the story. :D
To:209
From:202
To answer your second question if it was me who got stoned because I won the lottery it would feel horrible. for one thing I would probably die but to kill a person our age is not right. I would never want to be a part of a lottery like that.
#225
There are many things that could started the lottery, but I believe that it was started to decrease surplus poulation. The lottery could have also been started because the ancestors were barbaric. It has probably died out in other villages because they may have realized just how wrong and distaseful that killing truly is. I personaly believe that the other was trying to make a point that lotteries and killing is wrong. With death being in the story, it only proves that lotteris, in a way, are wrong. That a family would kill a family goes against human rights and responsibilities. The whole town gathering for that event is cleary wrong. That is why I believe that death is in the story. I think that lotteries are even wrong without death, but this makes lotteries look even worse. All in all, this story goes against humans and is a clearly wrong way of life.
Why would a whole town gather just for the sake of dying or killing a person?
Why would the family of the person getting killed also join in murdering them?
218. -202: I like your analogy on the lottery, because that's true. The lottery can be pretty disappointing to someone continually trying to win, and to lose repeatedly. The way the author changed the meaning of winning the lottery, showed you'll win and lose some. Can't have it all, and maybe sometimes it's better to not win. It's clearly shown in her story haha.
To:222
From:202
I get where your going with my question. It's because they don't know any better. I never thought of that. Thanks for your answer.
214
Dear 212,
My opinion of the stoning of Tessie was that it was inhumane. The fact that they would stone a woman for no reason is unacceptable. Even her children were involved in the stoning! How would you feel if you killed your mother? It was shocking!
222
@212
Actually in the story it says, ""And someone gave little Davy Hutchinson few pebbles." so the kids do actually participate in the killings.
Blogger #228
I believe that the ancestors started the lottery in order to live well. In the story, Old Man Warner said after hearing that a village mite give up the lottery, he said “Next thing you know, they`ll be wanting to go back to living in caves.”. Although, it is possible that they started it for different reasons that I can`t think of. I believe that the villages that stopped doing the lottery because they thought it inhumane. I say this because it is inhumane to do that every year. If I was them, I would do it. Finally, my answer to the last question is this, I don`t know. The story confused me in the middle of it when Ms.Hutchinson was excited, to her being frantic. I`ve heard that the story deals with ethic problems, but I don`t know what that would be.
Question 1: What do you think was going through the author`s mind while she was writing the ending? Explain you reasoning.
Question 2: At any time did you guess the lottery`s true intent? Did you at least think that it was something bad? Explain.
210
Okay, I really can’t think of any reason that ancestors might have started “The Lottery”. It really doesn't make much sense to me at all. If I had to think of one reason it would probably be population. Just maybe they had to kill one person a year to make sure that they had enough food and other necessities for everyone else. Their ancestors just decided to pick the person randomly would be my best guess! Next, I think that some of the villages have cut out the lottery because of pretty obvious reasons. Stoning random people, drawing a paper from a box. It all seems pretty darn depressing to me. But, I’m sure the villages had other reasons for ending the lottery. In the story, it took some time to prepare for the lottery, maybe people just got too busy. To end, I think the author chose to write about this topic especially because The term “Lottery” makes you think about money or prizes. In the story, winning the lottery was not as great, at all. I think is was to show that the winning is not always as great as you might think.
Explain the traditions in “The Lottery”and if you would or would not continue with them. Why?
Why do you think they chose the method of stoning to kill the lottery winner? Explain.
to 218
from 213
I thought that it was for sacrifice also. I also agree with what you said about that the other villages stopped because they didn't want to lose people.
#226
The short story “The Lottery” was very weird and unusual to me! In my opinion I think the ancestors started the lottery maybe for entertainment. Probably back then people didn’t have much to do, so they decided to come up with the lottery. In the story they talk about getting prepared and exited for the day of the lottery. To them that was a really exiting moment, so that was the way the people entertained themselves most likely.It could have also been one of their traditions. Maybe the ancestors were raised that way and it went on for generations! I think the lottery has died in other villages because it isn’t fair at all. In the story people didn’t have the choice to opt out of the lottery. They had to be in it, even little kids and babies ad to participate. Other villages might have found this to be pointless and cruel to innocent people. That may be one of the reasons they stopped doing the lottery. The author’s point of view wasn’t very clear to me. I think the point she was trying to get at is describing the traditions the villagers had in the small village of New England. She was trying to tell the reader how the people lived in that village and how important the lottery was to them!
My two questions are:
1) Compare and contrast the lottery from back then to the the lottery today.
2) What is your perspective on this tradition? Do you think they did it for entertainment? Explain.
The Lottery
I think that the ancestors started the lottery because none of them got along. They came up with an intense way to kill each other to solve their problem. Soon the lottery just became a ritual. The lottery used to excite people.”’It’s not the way it used to be.’ Old Man Warner said clearly. ‘People ain’t the way they used to be.’” In my opinion the lottery died out in other towns because the younger generations didn’t like having their friends and family stoned so they stopped participating. Sooner or later they just stopped doing The Lottery. I think that the moral of the story is that lottery’s aren’t as good as they’re perceived to be.
My 2 higher level questions are...
1) If you were to write the story yourself knowing what she meant by it, how would you write it?
2)Why do you think that this town doesn't abandon the tradition? explain your reasoning
203
222
@202
I totally agree with you on the 'why would a kid want to stone his friends or family' I think its because they never learned it was wrong, it's just what they do. Thats just my opinion though.
216 tells 222:
I agree that they would not want to over populate the village, but why would they only kill one person a year? It does not make since, because people can just have another kid to replace that kid, or even have more kids, and their kids can have kids and so on. I don’t understand how killing one person would effect the whole village population. To answer your questions, I think the tradition went on because they wanted the Gods to “choose” someone “not great” in the village to stone. The other question, I think they let kids participate in the killing because the adults wanted them to get used to the fact of killing someone for when they are older.
#241,
I never thought about the lottery as a way for population control. That's definitely one way to do it. I loved your paragraph, you did really good.
#201
225 to 221
I believe that the town sees nothing wrong because it is hat they know. I also very much so agree with your opinion but I think the author wrote it for all ages.
222
@209
I guess that makes sense. They want to continue the tradition so they let the kids participate so as they get older they know its just how the village works and don't question it. Good response!
212
The short story “The Lottery” is a terrifying story, it shocked me to find out that the lottery was not about money. The people in the village get excited to find out who gets beat with stones. I thnk the ancestors began the lottery to prova a point, and to make traditions. I also think the lottery died out from other villages because they were beating them to death which caused them to lose population. The point the author was trying to make was to let us know that there are crazy people in this world and they do crazy things, I also think she was just trying to scare us. “The paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. This is telling us that The Lottery was not in use for a while, and they started to use it once every year. It has been going on for a very long time. The Lottery shocked me in so many ways but this story did leave me with some questions... 1.) Why do people of the lottery get excited for the time of the Lottery? 2.) Why dont they stop the Lottery just like the other villages?
218. -221: The person getting stoned would of said something? Even if they did, that wouldn't have done anything. Tessie spoke up and said how it wasn't fair, but that did nothing. I also believe they would do it because of religious beliefs, Aztecs, Mayans and other early civilizations had human sacrifices because of their religious beliefs. Still like today, people do different things in church or respecting what they believe because of their religion.
222
@221
Oh okay. I understand now you were comparing it to now. Okay :) Thank you for explaining.
214 from 212
If my mom was being killed I would feel so heartbroken. I understand what your getting at. Nice post!
To:218
From:202
I agree with you when the story says its better not to win. It's true though you can't have it all. Thanks for your response.
Blogger #228
Blogger 221, To answer your second question, I believe that the lottery has been around so long, that no one wants to go against tradition.
216
The ancestors began the lottery either because they thought someone was a bad person in society, or because they wanted something from their Gods. I think this because in the past villages always looked up to the Gods if they needed food or water. Also, in the story hard workers always seemed to past it seemed like, and the people who don’t really do much got stoned. I think the stoning in other villages died out because they realized how meaningless it was to stone people. Also, families were probably getting on the government or leaders about loosing family or friends. In the story people got stoned to death, and it would be hard to loose a family member or close friend. I think the author was trying to make a point that nowadays we get it good. People don’t get stoned to death for no reason. Also I think it meant how close families should be to each other. In the story, someone would loose a family member once a year, and it tells that you never know when someone could pass away at any time and you will never see them again, therefore make the best of life.
Questions: Can you relate to the story in any way? If so how?
If someone you knew got stoned to death, how would it impact your life?
#217 to 210
I totally agree with you on the part about ending the lottery because the stoning random people is pretty darn depressing. Just stoning people because they, by chance, picked the wrong piece of paper is pretty stupid
214
Dear 201,
I think they continue the tradition because it's part of their history. It's something they wouldn't know how to live without. Even though it has had a few modifications, like the pieces of paper instead of the wooden chips. It's still the same general sort of thing that they are used to.
209 to 202
I defiantly agree with you.I would feel exactly the same. To be stoned would be horrible!
to 221
from 213
I think that this story must have taken place a long time ago. Maybe in BC because much after that I don't think they did that anymore. I think that Everyone in the village follows the tradition because everyone else does.
#215
The ancestors could have started the lottery because it was an activity they wanted to involve to possibly lower the population. People could have grown up with it and have never seen anything wrong with it. The fact that it’s a tradition would make people not want to disagree with it. Some villages might have stopped carrying out that tradition because they noticed that it was cruel and vile. That the actions they were making were horrible. The author may have been saying that there are better things than just winning money. That you have certain values that keep you happy. Like family and friends and the fact that money can’t buy you happiness.
Dear 222
I think that the kids participated in the stoning because the adults wanted to train the kids at an early age to participate so that the tradition would have a more likely possibility to be continued.
From 203
Dear 222
I think that the kids participated in the stoning because the adults wanted to train the kids at an early age to participate so that the tradition would have a more likely possibility to be continued.
From 203
228
Blogger 222, to answer your second question, I believe that they let the kids stone the people also so that they could get used to stoning the people at a young age.
225 to 226
My perspective on this tradition is that it is vile and cruel. I think that they do it to decrease population so that the town doesn't need to provide for so many people. I do also agree with your opinion.
222
@216
Well, maybe the population wasn't a big enough issue so they didn't need to kill more than one person a year, but they still felt that one person dead mattered enough.
208 I think the ancestors started the lottery because is was entertaining and a way to get rid of people because the village was low on food.The reason I think it was a form of entertainment to the villager is because Mrs hutchinson hurried to come see the stone of a person.I think Other villages stopped doing the lottery because they had enough food to survive and found other ways of getting entertainment than doing the lottery. I think the author of the story tried to show that you shouldn’t laugh at the problems of others because that may happen to. Mrs hutchin came running to watch the cruel stoning of another but winded up getting stoned her self.
What went through Mr summer mind as he was running the lottery.
How do you think the hutchinsion are going be after Tessie died
218. -226: I like your questions, especially the first one. The lottery from then to today, is totally different. With the exceptions of a couple similarities. The winner in lotteries today win large amounts of money, it's pretty sad to lose that. Although in the lottery then, to win this lottery wasn't all that an exciting moment. It was more like a scary, upsetting thing. Who wants to be stoned to death? Not me I'll tell you that. xD.
#217 to 216
I agree on why you said other villages stopped the lottery. I think that it is meaningless to stone random people.
#220
I think the ancestors began the lottery to keep the population lower. In the beginning of the story it mentioned that the population was three hundred and climbing. So i think they don’t want to many people. I think it died out in other villages because the population was getting to low. I think the author’s moral of the story is to watch the population because there are too many people on the world. I also think that the author may have been trying to point out that not all the time will something good come from winning. It could just simply making the family have an easier life by not having to pay for the person that dies.
my two questions are: if you continue having “the lottery” and all the girls die what would the villagers do?
Do the children participate in the killing of their parents?
216 tells 228:
Why would the village like killing people, and have one less possibly valuable person to be gone? I don’t get how you like the fact of how they stone someone once a year. To answer your questions, I think the author was trying to make a point around you that the people around you are valuable and you don’t have to just give them up. I think the lottery could have happened because the village wanted something from their “gods.”
Dear 202
If I were the one who won the lottery I would try to run away. First of all I wouldn't even take place in a lottery like that, because if my friend were to win I wouldn't be able to throw rocks at them.
203
211
The short story “The Lottery” is a terrifying story, it shocked me to find out that the lottery was not about money. The people in the village get excited to find out who gets beat with stones. I thnk the ancestors began the lottery to prova a point, and to make traditions. I also think the lottery died out from other villages because they were beating them to death which caused them to lose population. The point the author was trying to make was to let us know that there are crazy people in this world and they do crazy things, I also think she was just trying to scare us. “The paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. This is telling us that The Lottery was not in use for a while, and they started to use it once every year. It has been going on for a very long time. The Lottery shocked me in so many ways but this story did leave me with some questions... 1.) Why do people of the lottery get excited for the time of the Lottery? 2.) Why dont they stop the Lottery just like the other villages?
#226-#218
I disagree with you on the first part of your blog. The people couldn't really decide if they wanted to participate in the lottery or not. So I don't think religion had anything to do with the whole situation. On the other hand I agree with you on the rest of it! Great job!
222
@203
I agree completely with what you said about its to train their kids at an early age. :) good post.
218 -217: To answer your second question, think of little kids harassing one kid. They think it's pretty funny, so just imagine throwing rocks at someone. They'd think that's hilarious, so I think that's how it was seen here. That's actually pretty grusome, just imagine how much blood that would cause to come gushing out, not the prettiest sight. But I mean that would be kind of funny to see someone get rocks thrown at them haha, but pretty mean aswell.
#208,
Wow, that's a good concept. If that's true, then this village has serious problems. You did a really good job
#201
222
@228
Thats what a lot of people are saying and I think you are right 100%! It makes sense! (: Good post.
#206
The ancestors started the lottery so they could sacrifice for there belief in a certain religion. Some villages have stopped doing the lottery because it took to long to set up and do the whole thing. Also people where getting really sad when there family members were getting hurt. The point the author was trying to get at is winning the lottery is not always a good thing. I want to know what time period this story took place in.
#224
I believe that ancestors started the lottery because they thought that their land was not big enough for the amount of people they had. The lottery would help bring down the population so that the town would not get to big. To many mouths to feed off of the land, which was to small. This would not work either so the ancestors stoned people through the lottery. Towns would stop the lottery because they thought that they could hold more people than years before when they had the lottery. Other towns would have to stop the lottery because they thought it was cruel or rude. The author wanted the point of the story to show that the lottery was cruel and pointless and still very real. Cruel because Mrs. Hutchinson probably did not deserve to be stoned. Pointless because its only one person, if I were mayor and we were stoning because of my first thought, then I would stone more people.
Explain how they decided who to stone?
Why was the town excited to want to stone if they had the chance to be the person who got stoned?
219
As stated in the short story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, the village that this story took place in is full of tradition. The people in this village want to keep the tradition going by doing whatever they can to make sure that happens. This may seem a little far-fetched but I honestly believe that the ancestors started the lottery as a service to the Heavens. In the story it says “....when the first people settled down to make a village here.” (Paragraph 5 on handout) which means it could be interpreted that the “first people” were of those who sacrificed. Usually, the people would sacrifice at least one victim to the Heavens in return for food, good wealth or fortune. The main village is really the only village that still carries this tradition. This gory tradition has died out in other villages because the story took place in the semi-modern era. No sacrifice was needed at that time to get something they didn’t already have. People don’t go around sacrificing other people in the new era. This story had a brutal and unexpected ending for a reason. Some may think that the moral was to live it up while you can because you never know when someone might choose your dying day. That would be too simple. There’s more to this despairing story than that. Jackson was trying to prove that you cannot trust anyone. One day, just any random day, your closest friends and neighbors just may turn on you. She was trying to state that you should never trust anyone too much because in this case, Mrs. Hutchinson trusted her friends but ironically died from that trust.
Questions:
1.) Why do you believe Shirley Jackson had such an abrupt halt to the story instead of easing into the conclusion?
2.) I understand that tradition is important in this village, but out of all traditions, why was this tradition carried on for so long?
@222
Life isn’t fair and you can really see that in this story. This whole story isn’t fair which makes your beliefs on this story reasonable. The way you described kids dying was somewhat brutal but logical in his situation. Overall, I liked the thoughts you have on this story.
Answers:
1.) The tradition of stoning one person annually, in my opinion, was as an offering to the Heavens, whether it was for fortune, good wealth or food.
2.) The kids were allowed to participate in the killings of innocent people as either a way to prepare them for the future or as a metaphor of the bad behaviors of children at early ages.
--219
@206
I am not exactly sure but I believe that this short story took place in the 1940’s. That is just based on the time this was written. I’m sorry, but I have to disagree with the thought that the tradition stopped due to the amount of preparation the killings took. Even in the 1940’s, killing people as a “sacrifice” was not a justice at all. I believe the author wrote this because you shouldn’t trust anyone, not that winning the lottery was bad. Other than that, I like the ideas you had behind your reasons.
--219
205
I believe the ancestors began the lottery because they didn’t want to over populate. Killing one person every year could really keep the population down, if it was the right person. If they killed a child, it would do more for the village because that’s one person that cant have kids. If it was a mother she already has kids and wont make the population increase anymore. I think the other villages decided to stop the lottery because they thought stoning people annually wasn’t right. Maybe they actually thought it was wrong, or maybe they found no use or amusement in it. The point I think the author was trying to make in the story was life isn’t fair. The last words the woman, Tessie, said were, “It isn’t fair,” and she was going to die. To me, that sounds like life isn’t fair.
Two questions I have:
Why did all the tradition go into stoning one person annually? Explain.
Why do you think they let the kids participate in killing someone? Explain
222
@221
Just because they kill people doesn't make them psycho. For example, Mayans and Aztecs had sacrifices and they were not psycho people.
205
@202
I think the reason the villagers don't feel guilty for killing a friend is thats how they learned. For example some people eat meat because thats how they grew up while other people think its bad. The people that eat the meat don't feel guilty because thats how they grew up.
205
@218
I'm glad I could share my opinion with you and that you agree and found a different way to interpret the story. :D
205
@212
Actually in the story it says, ""And someone gave little Davy Hutchinson few pebbles." so the kids do actually participate in the killings.
205
@202
I totally agree with you on the 'why would a kid want to stone his friends or family' I think its because they never learned it was wrong, it's just what they do. Thats just my opinion though.
205
@221
Oh okay. I understand now you were comparing it to now. Okay :) Thank you for explaining.
205
@216
Well, maybe the population wasn't a big enough issue so they didn't need to kill more than one person a year, but they still felt that one person dead mattered enough.
205
@203
I agree completely with what you said about its to train their kids at an early age. :) good post
205
@228
Thats what a lot of people are saying and I think you are right 100%! It makes sense! (: Good post.
#515
In The Lottery, my thoughts were that the ancestors started this tradition to help decrease population, but when I reread the story, I saw that one of the old men was saying that the crop was going to be good this year. Now my thoughts are that maybe stoning those people, is part of a sacrificial ceremony, so they could get a good crop that year. Also, I think the lottery is there so those people could die for the villages sins. I think it has died out in other villages because the people were realizing that it is wrong to do this with human beings. Also, I think that every one was afraid that they would be chosen to be stoned. I thought the moral that the author was trying to make was that this story relates to the world because the lottery is just pointless violence that didn't effect any of the villagers. They just went along doing what they do everyday. This happens all the time in life. Even though its still a tragedy that people die, we brush it off with out a second thought, unless they were in our family of course. To sum it up, the moral I thought the story had was that this is just a dramatization of what happens all the time, everywhere in the world, but people were horrified about it in this story, when they brush it off when it actually does happen.
Question 1. Why do you think that the children are involved, even though their life is already so short?
Question 2. Why do you think that this certain village is keeping the tradition, even though many other villages are stopping it?
#515
Dear #218,
I think you’re right about the sacrificing part, but not about the punishing part. I don’t see why the ancestors would want to punish any of the families after them.
log # 204 - The main idea that the author had was, gambling is bad. The old man said he was in the lottery for 77 times and never got hurt. Sooner or later though his card is gonna be drawn. Most of the other villages probably stopped the lottery because they realized that killing people was wrong. I also think that the ancestors started the lottery because they thought it would add fun to their lives. The old man also said, that the villages that wanted to shut down the lottery, would become cave men again. What he meant by that, was they would live boring lives again. The sense of irony that I got from the story was the lady who complained that it wasn’t fair, is the one who got stoned to death. When we hear the word lottery we all start thinking its a good thing. Millions of dollars today doesn’t sound too bad right? You have to buy the ticket though and if u don’t win, then you are just paying the person that did. My questions are, did the villagers absolutely have to participate in the lottery. Also why did the little kid have to pick a ticket.
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