Article Contributed by Toby Durlin
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“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is a compelling story that provides insight into humanity’s tendency to adhere to tradition. For those who haven’t read it (I highly recommend checking it out), the narrative unfolds in a small town holding its annual event, the lottery.

We are presented with descriptions of the townspeople gathering, and children playing a game to see who can find the largest and roundest rocks, which they pile up. Eventually, everyone gathers in the town square, where a local businessman, Mr. Summers, appears with a black box. As he approaches, tension fills the air, with some townspeople murmuring about how many communities have stopped holding the lottery. However, the oldest man in town, Old Man Warner, steps forward to criticize the younger generation, saying they do not appreciate tradition.

Mr. Summers takes a quick roll call to ensure everyone is present before beginning the lottery. Heads of households come forward to draw their slips, and no one can look at their slips until everyone has drawn. They check their slips, and the Hutchinson family is declared the “winners.” Instead of celebrating, the family’s demeanor is grim.

Tess Hutchinson, the wife, starts to argue that the lottery was unfair, claiming her husband didn’t receive enough time to prepare. Her protests go unheard, and a second round begins. Every family member, including her husband, Tess, and their three children, must draw a slip. Ultimately, Tess draws the marked slip, but her protests are ignored as the townspeople return to their earlier piles of stones, with one even handing a stone to Davy, their youngest son. In a tragic conclusion, they surround Tess and stone her to death.

This story was published in The New Yorker in 1948 and met with considerable outrage. Many readers drew parallels to the draft, the Red Scare, and various significant events throughout history. However, what does this story represent in America today?

A good place to start is by examining the townspeople as a collective. In the story, it is mentioned that no one remembers why the lottery takes place every year, only that it always has. The only hint of its origins comes from Old Man Warner who cites an old saying: “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon,” suggesting that it may have been a ritual to bless the corn crop, a tradition that has become outdated.

In my view, the townspeople represent several things, including MAGA supporters and, more broadly, any party-line voter—those who vote based solely on the party a candidate represents. The townspeople blindly follow tradition because it is what they have always done, just as many people vote along party lines without examining the actual policies.

Tess is also an intriguing character.

She arrives on lottery day smiling and joking, showing nervousness like everyone else while initially content to participate until her name is called. She does not object until she personally experiences the consequences of the lottery. This reflects the apathy that many Americans show towards politics. Issues often go unnoticed until a major scandal occurs, and while media outlets do a good job of drawing attention to pressing matters, many of these topics could have been addressed earlier if people protested against problematic policies from the start.

Old Man Warner represents individuals in America who react to buzzwords.

The mention of other towns stopping the lottery is reminiscent of policies like price gouging, which are often demonized under labels such as socialism or communism due to the propaganda many grew up with.

Lastly, Mr. Summers bears a striking resemblance to President Donald Trump. He oversees the lottery each year and continually seeks ways to improve its efficiency, such as replacing wooden chips with paper slips to speed up the process. His motivation for running the lottery doesn’t stem from a commitment to tradition but rather from a desire to finish quickly so everyone can return to work. Likely the wealthiest man in town, as the owner of the coal plant, he is well aware of what the winning slip feels like.

In running the lottery, he aims to enhance its efficiency for his own financial gain, minimizing risk and maximizing profit. This does not mean that President Trump has succeeded at making the economy more efficient; rather, his ultimate goal seems to be enriching himself and his wealthy allies, while pretending to be a champion of the people, much like Mr. Summers does when he interacts with townspeople during the drawing of tickets.

What does it mean that a story 77 years old still draws parallels today?

We need to change the way we view politics. Social media has helped younger generations to become more politically aware, the apathy is fading, but party-line voting needs to end. We need to vote on politicians based on the policies they support, we need to look at policies and think “Will this benefit me?” Not “This sounds like communism.”

Doing these things is how America can be a town that has ceased to do the lottery, how we can stop handing young children rocks and indoctrinating them into the insanity of political apathy and party-line voting.