The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson Free Online Research Papers â€Å"The Lottery† is a true expression of Jackson’s genuine thoughts about human beings and their evil capabilities. December 14, 1916, Shirley Jackson was born. When she young she started writing in a journal in 1932. She went to college on and off for a couple of years, until she wrote and published her first book in 1941,†My life with R.H. Macy†. It wasn’t until further short stories were written she published, â€Å"The lottery† in 1948(Hrebik). Jackson was interested in revealing the evil within everyone on her stories. She wrote â€Å"The Lottery† knowing that numerous suggestions and implications would arise from her readers. â€Å"The Lottery† reveals Jacksons bold style of her unique writing. When the word â€Å"lottery† is mentioned, most would think of receiving a large check or a prize instead of receiving stones that knock you down until your beat to death. The conclusion of the story is most shocking because Shirley misleads the reader in the beginning, and she only gives is hints of what happens towards the closing stages. Jackson shows the importance and meaning of ancient vegetation rituals that the village in her story believed was part of their survival in order to ensure good fertile crops. In â€Å"The Lottery†, Old Man Warner states, â€Å"Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon† (Jackson 143). The germination of crops is essential for us to eat, even from back in the past till now in the present. The growers had to sow their seeds and then wait in hopes that it would grow properly. â€Å"from this hope brings ritual†. Some growers thought that the farming of crops symbolized the â€Å"life cycle†. The seeds that were sown symbolized death, but with a little water and sun the seeds that grow symbolize the rebirth.†Life brings death, and death recycles life† (Griffin 44). The ritual that the community performs every June was for a legit reason washing away the sins of the town and blessing the crops so that the town could eat. The death of Mrs. Hutchinson was for the benefit of the entire community; her family should feel proud. There are still those that think â€Å"The Lottery† should end and that it is not fair. Shirley also leaves the principle of stoning open to many views of readers. The villagers threw rocks at an innocent random person until death for the sake of blessing the town with a fertile crop. They don’t remember why they are doing this, but what they do know is that is it tradition and has been for many years. For many periods sacrifices for the purpose of pleasing a god were required according to the villagers. Throughout the different ages sacrificing human flesh for the sins committed started to also apply to the ritual of the farmer’s vegetation (Friedman 63-64).The stoning resembles an ancient tribe in past history, the vicious Aztecs of Mexico. The gods that the Aztec killed came back in a ghostly manner to create the Aztecs world, and the Aztecs feel duty-bound to pay back to the gods what they gave the Aztecs (Burdick 72). Shirley implies that the reason the town is sacrificing death to the gods is to receive blessing in return for their fruitful crops. à ¢â‚¬Å"One of the central challenges for any religion is to evolve and adjust ancient scriptures to modern life† (Kristof). Today’s society must take the old traditions, rituals and scriptures and alter them into the modern day. For example, the Bible states† a stubborn and rebellious son† shall be stoned to death (Deut 20:20-21). As most of the people today, we see these practices to be savage and unacceptable. The reason for our society to view this behavior today contributes to the shocking feedback Shirley received for the ending of her story. Jackson displays a good sense of irony in â€Å"The Lottery†. The use of irony is a recurrent theme in this story. No one would have expected Mrs. Hutchinson to be stoned to death. The style of Jacksons writing misleads the reader with the tone of the story starting off as a nice summer day which seems descent and friendly (Jackson 141). The people of the village do not panic or show much fear, nor do they delight in joyfulness. The town’s people seem to be in a state of neutral for the sake of being noticed too much. Mrs. Hutchinson declares to Mrs. Delacroix that she was cleaning before â€Å"The Lottery† and just forgot, when clearly she know it was time for â€Å"The Lottery† since the day of death would be hard to forget. Jackson also leads us to believe that the story is about winning something when it is actually about how they have lost the true meaning of â€Å"The lottery†. The young boys and girls simply huddle together by one another in stead of joining by their parents (Jackson 141). This might indicate that the children have a troubled sense of trust with the adults of the village. Mrs. Hutchinson mentions towards the narrowing of drawing in her family that her daughters should draw form the black box as well (Jackson 143). The title, the plot and climax of this story all contain bits of irony within them. After reviewing â€Å"The Lottery† and pointing out Jacksons illustrations of importance to Sacrifice, Tradition and Irony we have noted several conclusion. The meaning and understanding of ancient vegetation rituals that the community in her story believed was an element of their survival to ensure fertile crops. The difficulty with the town was that they had forgotten the true meaning of the ritual lottery that they performed every June. The town only knew that it was performed every year and had been for centuries. Shirley also allows the scrutiny of sacrificial stoning, open to many opinions of readers. â€Å"The Lottery† is entwined with much irony. Shirley shocks readers with her irony and unexpected vicious conclusion when they grab the biggest rocks and start throwing them at Mrs. Hutchinson. No one won anything. If they got the paper with the black spot they were doomed to death. The main theme in â€Å"The Lottery† was Jackson’s fine sense of iro ny, and how she misleads her readers to thinking the conclusion of her story was not what they expected. This is a bold and unique story that teaches many moral lessons many would not think to realize in â€Å"The Lottery†. Works Citied Burdick, Alan.†Empire of Blood.† Discover 2003:72. MAS Ultra-School Edition. Web.24 Feb.2010. Deuteronomy 20.20-21.†Bible: New International Version. N.p.1984.BibleGateway.com. Web.7 Feb.2010 Friedman, Lenemaja. Shirley Jackson. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1975. Print Griffin, Amy A.†Jackson’s: The Lottery.† The Explicator 58.1(1999):44. Literature Resources from Gale.Web.8 Feb. 2010. Jackson, Shirley. â€Å"The Lottery.† Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Edgar V. Robert. New York: Pearson Education, Inc, 2009. 141-145. Print Hrebik, Dale. â€Å"Shirley Jackson.† Dictionary of Literary Biography 234(2001):n.pag. Literary Resources from Gale.Web.8 Feb. 2010. Knox, Rose.†Savagery in a Modern Setting: Jackson’s Shocking Revelation of a Highly Evolved Society.† North Florida Community College. Madison, Florida. 12, February 2010. Kristof D, Nicholas.Stoning And Scripture: How can religions adapt to modern times?. New York Times 30 Apr. 2002: n.pag.The New York Times Historical Edition.Web. 24 Feb. 2010. hvickers62107@yahoo.com username: hvickers62107 Research Papers on The Lottery by Shirley JacksonThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsCapital PunishmentBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XMind TravelHip-Hop is ArtHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayGenetic EngineeringCanaanite Influence on the Early Israelite ReligionTrailblazing by Eric AndersonArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS) The Lottery by Shirley Jackson The Lottery by Shirley Jackson The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson, is about a small-minded village that savors on tradition. The town holds a lottery once a year where all the families gather around in a big crowd in the Village Square. The lottery is conducted by Mr. Summers, a man who often leads the town's activities such as square dances, Halloween parties, charities, etc. In the crowd, wives gabber about the daily gossip. Fathers chat about tractors, crops, and taxes, while the kids playfully gather small smooth stones, piling them in a clearing behind the crowd. Mr. Summers calls their attention to get the lottery started, and the scattered family members hurry about and find each other. Mr. Summers brings out an old black box that has been used for the lottery even before Old Man Warner (the oldest man in town) was born. Back in the days when the village was a lot smaller, pieces of wood chips were used to put in the box. However, since the village ws growing, they discove! red to use paper slips instead. Mr. Summers mixed up the paper slips in the box with his hand while reciting some long ritual that had been used ever since the lottery was founded. During the recital, kids looked innocently about, the voice of people talking was kept at a low whisper, but the majority held their tongue with heavy nervous thoughts on their mind. Finally, Mr. Summers started calling out each family's name that lived in the village, having the head of each family put their hand in the box and tightly grab a slip of paper which was not to be opned until each family had received their slips. Once the papers were distributed, the families opened their slips. An uproar of questions about whom had "gotten it" came swiftly through the crowd. In a matter of minutes, it was found that the Hutchinson family picked the plain white slip with the coal-black dot drawn in the center. A burst of objection came from Terri Hutchin

4 Scientific Ways To Convince Your Boss to Say Yes Every Time

4 Scientific Ways To Convince Your Boss to Say Yes Every Time As marketers, every month seems like the equivalent of a year in other industries. Marketing has  changed more in last few years than in the last 50 before them. Not only do we have to be awesome at being leaders, conversion experts, project managers, advertisers, copywriters, email wizards, and 48 other skills we have to build the skill of leading change. weve gotta kill the status quo before it kills us. and of course, we have to convince our bosses to go along with it all. This boils down to our ability to influence others. But, if youve ever read about the psychology of influencing others, it can be deflating. Doubly so when it comes to how to convince your boss or peers to try new stuff. 4 Ways To Convince Your Boss to Say Yes Every Time (Backed By Science)The Slightly Depressing Reality Of Influence One of the first principles of influence you come across is called the halo effect. In the 1920s, psychologist Edward Thorndike piloted a study of how military officers judge their subordinates. He found more physically attractive soldiers were were rated higher across the board on a four-point scale: intelligence, physique, leadership, and character. This means positive reactions to physical appearance were projected onto other areas of the soldiers. And as much as we hate to admit it, the rabbit hole goes deeper. This principle holds true in elections, as well. In a study called Beauty at the Ballot Box, researchers theorized that since physical attractiveness is a cue toward good health, we may be biologically programed to esteem it. Meaning were naturally inclined to favor attractive people. The halo effect is at work in our restaurants, as well. Another study called Beauty and the feast found that attractive servers earn roughly $1261 more per year than unattractive servers. And counterintuitively, Beauty matters more for female than male customers. Meaning pretty female waitresses get bigger tips from women. Oh yeah, and then theres this happy stat Pretty people earn 12% more money than average-looking humans. From politics to pot pies, something as shallow as looks play a major role in influencing others. However, when it comes to convincing your boss to say yes to that new process a fresh software tool obliterating makeshift marketing a flexible work-from-home policy we have more science-backed levers to pull than just our faces. 4 Ways To Convince Your Boss To Say Yes With The Power Of Science 🚀 In this post, Ill share the best research on ethical approaches to convince your boss to say yes to anything. No makeup required. Youll learn four tactics: How to position what youre asking for in concrete terms, How to align your change with team objectives, Why to conduct a trial run with a mini post-mortem conversation, And how to win by starting big, then going small. One of the most powerful changes we see is crushing the bug we call makeshift marketing. A major change to the marketing landscape is the volume of tools available. But, most of them dont play well together. This means marketers are awash in single-function tools that arent actually designed with marketers in mind. This makes your life more difficult and hurts your results. So, well walk through examples of leading change to combat it. Alright, saddle up. Its time to convince your boss to say yes every time. #1: Convince Your Boss To Say Yes Through Loss Aversion First up, lets talk opportunity cost. An opportunity cost is the benefit someone could have gained, but gave up, in favor of another action. When you choose one action over another, you lose the benefits of the alternative choice. With this first approach, we will capitalize on the principles of loss aversion and prospect theory. People fear loss more than they desire benefit. And this greatly influences the way they choose between options (aka: prospects). This means people will overweigh even the smallest opportunities for loss. A Nielsen Norman Group article summarizes it like this: When choosing among several alternatives, people avoid losses and optimize for sure wins because the pain of losing is greater than the satisfaction of an equivalent gain. For example, lets say you want to adopt a new marketing tool  like to replace a less effective one (or even multiple tools). Because there is a chance the new tool will cost more than its worth in hard cash  and  in lost productivity, your boss may be instantly loss averse. This will impact her choice between the prospects of status quo and potential loss. To capitalize on this understanding, simply structure your ask in two parts: If we do [thing you want] it will add [positive value]. If we dont do [thing you want] it will cost [negative value]. In this example, your ask might sound like: If we [adopt this new tool], it will give us a [55% lift in productivity per team member]. If we dont [adopt this new tool], we are actually losing [$1,255 per week in lost productivity]. The idea here is to highlight the gain as specifically as possible. Then showcase the loss of the alternative option - in this case changing nothing - as specifically as possible. This way, you can position the facts according to the emotional principles at play. Make loss aversion your friend and get to yes faster. #2: Convince Your Boss By Aligning Change With Team Goals Next, marketers have goals to hit. In fact, a recent study we conducted found that marketers who set goals are 429% more likely to be successful. To warm up your boss to a change, use this stat to your advantage. If you have goals, like driving  1,000 qualified leads every month Cash in on alignment theory. In essence, it posits that the most successful people understand their strengths and then arrange their lives in alignment with them. This theory works for individuals and is also portable for groups. Successful organizations tick using this principle. And the power of alignment is possible when strategy, goals, and purpose mutually reinforce one another. To put it to work with your boss, structure your ask for change like this: Our team is trying to achieve [goal]. But we have [failed] for the past [timeframe]. I think the best way we can do this right now is by [thing you want]  [based on prior success]. In keeping with our 1,000 qualified leads example, the ask might be: Our team is trying to achieve [1,000 qualified leads every month]. But weve [only reached 70% of that goal] for the [past three months]. I think the best way we can do this right now is by [focusing exclusively on driving traffic] [to our top-performing landing pages]. The change youre after is a shifted focus: driving more traffic. However, the goal youre trying to achieve is the same: 1,000 qualified leads. Its also super important to notice the last part of that statement based on prior success. If your team has had any related successes in the past, highlight them for leverage as proof.If your team has had any related successes in the past, highlight them for leverage as proof. In this example, it was top-performing landing pages. In their fantastic book, Switch, authors Chip and Dan Heath call these prior wins bright spots. Theyre extremely powerful because they showcase that positive results  are possible, because you have achieved them in the past. Youre team is capable of the results. So, youre aligning your methods accordingly. Bonus: This is also a great chance to sharpen your goal-setting strategy if it needs a little work. #3:Convince Your Boss With A Post-Mortem Post-mortems sound depressing but can I confess something? I think theyre awesome. A post-mortem is an analysis held after any project. Usually, its aim is to figure out: How on earth did things go so wrong?! However, I love them because theyre amazing chances to learn. Theyre even beneficial to hold on the heels of successful projects. No matter how well a project has gone, there are always things that can be improved.  They promote healthy self-reflection and can benefit your entire team. In this case, I want you to hold a mini post-mortem with your boss in advance of your ask. The reason is twofold. You can learn why similar changes have failed in the past. You can pre-empt legitimate objections your boss will have ahead of time. Why Have Other Things Failed? By learning why other initiatives have failed, you can learn what pitfalls to avoid. For instance, if youre proposing a move from spreadsheets to   - or a similar transition from a clunky way of doing things - how helpful would it be to learn that the last tool transition to be shot down actually had the support of your manager, but got squashed by the CFO? An easy way to phrase this question is, When was the last time we wanted to get budget for a new project, idea, or tool in our department? If the last attempt failed, you can follow with, Why do you think it failed? And is there any way it could have been approved? If it succeeded, even better! You can ask, Why was it successful? And how has it panned out? Overcoming Legitimate Objections Next, you can glean what legitimate objections your boss may have to your idea. Almost every boss Ive ever had loved to say, Yes! to great ideas. But so many of my attempts at leading a new change as the underling failed because I didnt understand their field of visibility. Field of visibility means their viewpoint informed by the things they know that I dont. Often, its the difference between someone standing on a balcony and someone in the crowd below. Company execs sit in meetings that you dont. They hear forecasts, plans, and upcoming constraints that you dont. They understand organizational dynamics you may have missed. They see your team from a broader perspective than you might. This means understanding their field of visibility is incredibly beneficial. With an informal post-mortem, you can dig into why a similar change failed. This will help you position your ask to overcome your bosss legitimate (or even illegitimate) objections. Whether its data  A project champion up the chain Or competitive research You can gain insight beforehand to have great answers to tough questions. #4: Convince Your Boss By Asking Big, Then Small Last, if youre a marketer, youve probably heard of the rule of reciprocity. Psychologist and mega best-selling author Robert Cialdini explains it in his book  Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion like this. He says, The rule says that we should try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided us [and] by virtue of the reciprocity rulewe are  obligated to the future repayment of favors, gifts, invitations, and the like. The idea is to do something for someone else  before you ask them to do something for you. When you do so, youre far more likely to get that coveted yes. But honestly, this principle might be effective, but its too manipulative for me to entertain actually doing this. Call me a boy scout, but that seems like a pretty sketchy move. And worse, an infringement on a healthy relationship. Now that Ive taken a stand on my moral high ground, Ill share with you a version of this rule Id happily endorse 😎 Cialdini also shares a specific application of this rule called bargaining, saying, Bargaining is frequently used in the negotiation process, which involves reciprocal concessions. That is, if Person A rebuffs a large request from Person B, and Person B then concedes by making a smaller request, Person A will feel obligated to reciprocate this concession with a concession of his or her own by agreeing to this lesser plea. In 1975, researchers on the Arizona State University campus cracked the code on exactly how this works. Their experiment was pretty slick. Half of the students in the test were asked, Will you chaperone juvenile-detention-center inmates on a day trip to the zoo? Only 17% of them said yes. The other half of the test subjects were asked a leading question first: Will you volunteer as a juvenile-detention-center counselor for two hours per week for the next two years? Everyone said no to the first question. However, almost 50% said yes to the second question about chaperoning the zoo visit! The angle for our marketing purposes is pretty obvious. Construct two versions of your ask.