Analyze the ritual described in this story. Of what significance is it that many of the customs formerly associated with this ritual have been forgotten? Why is Old Man Warner such a key character? What do you think the author is saying here about human nature? Social structures? Community standards? Family values? Beliefs?
Men, women, and small children separate into their groups like holy rollers on Sunday after Mass. Much like any other community these people gossiped, and spoke of taxes like any normal human being would. In reading this story, the reader may want to disassociate him or herself with the notion that humans could possibly be so cold; that they could be so robotic in their motions through this world that they are not sure what is going on anymore. "Just doing our job" is the common response. A small community hell bent on ritual murder; they aren't really sure why they do it but they know that they must continue doing so.
The customs set out by the village's forefathers have been long forgotten, all but the carnage at the end. It is very important to start the children stoning very y
It seems to me that the purpose of the lottery is to solidify the line or difference between the worker class and the upper class. Even Old Man Warner himself states, "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon." Warner is the only one with a clue of why they continue this tradition. Warner is the oldest inhabitant of the village; He more than anyone else would not be able to function without the lottery. Without the lottery we might as well all "go back to living in caves and eating chickweed and acorns."
Let's make believe that the government got wind of what was going on in this little fictional town. My guess is they would put them on trial for the murders of a civilian every year. And it would look and sound, most likely, like the trials at Nuremberg. Mr. Summers, Mr. Graves, and so on would deny that it happened at all. And then eventually state that they were 'just following orders.' And by order I mean tradition. The idea of passing the tradition of the lottery could represent the passing down of religion, in the Judeo-Christian sense, and the winner, victim or scapegoat would be equivalent to Jesus Christ being cruci
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