In Shirley Jackson’s, “The Lottery,”
the theme of tribal natures in smaller communities is extremely evident.
“The people had done
it so many times that they only half listened to the directions.”
“There’s always been a lottery.”
“Some places have
already quit lotteries,” Mrs. Adams said.
“Nothing but trouble
in that,” Old Man Warner said stoutly.
These few
statements in the story are blatant cues that this is normal and traditional behavior
for the community. There is little room left to argue the possibility of
quitting the lottery with Old Man Warner constantly calling anyone who quits
the lottery a “pack of young fools.”
Tribal
natures are usually linked to celebrations in this day and age. Events such as
parades, seasonal festivals or contests are common in many smaller communities.
I know that the small town I’m from has a Settler’s Day celebration every July
where nearly everyone from the town gathers along the main drag to watch the
parade, the rodeo is the next night, and there are various contests all through
the weekend. During the wintertime we have Winterfest. Children compete to be
the designer of the years logo, games are put on, and a bonfire usually happens
at least one night. Although these are very different from a yearly stoning,
they are still traditions that nobody would dream of taking away or changing
too much that bring a community together at least a couple times a year.
