A lottery is a method of raising money for a cause, by selling tickets with numbers on them. The numbers are drawn at random and the ticket holders who have those numbers win a prize. Generally, the more numbers you have on your ticket, the higher your chances are of winning. People can buy tickets in gas stations and convenience stores, as well as at some supermarkets like Stop and Shop.
The practice of making decisions and determining fates by lot has a long history, with examples in the Old Testament (the Lord instructed Moses to take a census of the people of Israel and divide the land among them by lot), in Roman emperors’ giving away property and slaves, and in European fairs and dinner entertainments where guests were given pieces of wood with symbols on them which they could carry home. Lotteries were brought to the United States by British colonists, and became popular as a means of collecting “voluntary taxes.” They were used to fund a number of projects including paving streets and constructing wharves, and they helped build Harvard, Yale, and other American colleges.
Shirley Jackson’s short story The Lottery raises many issues about human nature. First, it reveals the danger of blindly following traditions, despite how cruel and violent they are. Especially, when those traditions are backed up by the authority figures in the community. This is exemplified by Old Man Warner in the story who tells Tessie Hutchison that the lottery in June will make corn grow heavier and implying there is a link between this and human sacrifice.