Winning the Lottery

Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" concerns itself with concepts of magic and superstition and their place in society. In the story, a close knit town gathers in the local square for the town lottery. The villagers act as if it is another casual day as a fellow neighbor is selected for the lottery, and then publicly stoned to death. This display of a superstitious ritual has been around since the beginning of human history. The Mayans sacrificed lives and body parts B.C.E, and they have been a part of numerous societies since. Today, as we become more civilized and gain institutions which protect brutal acts like death or loss of limb, we don't still perform sacrifices as part of our ritual. That being said, our society is littered with examples of superstition. We watch baseball players who have a specific way they get ready for an at bat, we expect a kiss if we wind up under the misteltoe on Christmas; even prayer is an example of a superstitious ritual with the hopes that things will get better, and prayer has always been very prominent through modern and historical societies.