The Dark Side Of The Lottery By Shirley Jackson Essay

The Dark Side of â€Å"The Lottery† Every year a town in the middle of nowhere has a tradition to annually hold a lottery. The whole town has to participate in this lottery . Whoever wins the lottery gets stoned to death. In the story, Tessie Hutchinson gets stoned after getting picked in the lottery. An analysis of â€Å"The Lottery† by Shirley Jackson through the historical and feminist lenses, suggests that the story is really about how the lottery is controlling lives by having male dominance in the town, a blind following that people follow , and using someone as a scapegoat to blame everything evil in the town. The separation of the males and female roles in the town has males taking more control in preparing the lottery than the females because the males work harder than females. In the beginning of the story, school has just ended and everyone talks and plays while also doing something else as well. The boys took charge of gathering all the stones that would be used to stone Tessie Hutchinson later on at the end of the story. The girls on the other hand, took no action of helping any of them find rocks. They would just talk and do nothing at all to be involved. In the story, it says: Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest and roundest stones; Bobby and Harry Jones and Dickie Delacroix-- the villagers pronounced this name Dellacroy--eventually made a great pile of stones in oneShow MoreRelated Shirley Jacksons The Lottery 946 Words   |  4 PagesShirley Jackson is said to be one of the most â€Å"brilliant and influential authors of the twentieth century.† â€Å"Her fiction writing is some of the most important to come out of the American literary canon.† (http://shirleyjackson.org/Reviews.html) Jackson wrote many short stories and even some books. They are more on the dark, witchlike side, however. Kelleher explains that Jackson stated in some interviews that she practiced magic. No one really knows if she was serious while practicing witchcraftRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson873 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Lottery† â€Å"The Lottery† was written in 1948 by Shirley Jackson. Mrs. Jackson, born in 1916, was known for her tales of horror and supernatural novels. She and her literary critic husband, Stanley Edgar Hyman lived in a little town called Bennington, Vermont. Mrs. Jackson was not accepted by the town. Her novels, especially â€Å"The Lottery†, revealed the dark side of human nature. Stephen King honored Shirley Jackson by dedicating his book Firestarter to her. â€Å"The Lottery† takes place on JuneRead MoreCompare And Contrast The Lottery By Shirley Jackson1012 Words   |  5 Pages Fiction Essay Young Goodman Brown vs. The Lottery Authors: Nathaniel Hawthrone and Shirley Jackson ENGL 102 Spring Zuidema October 16, 2017 Page Break Nyasia Midgette ENGL 102 October 9, 2017 Thesis Statement: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson and Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthrone stories, Shirley Jackson encourages her readers to question their beliefs, actions, and the world by creating struggle. PageRead MoreSymbolism in The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson Essay748 Words   |  3 PagesThe Lottery: Symbolism In her story â€Å"The Lottery†, Shirley Jackson manages to catch the readers’ attention and ultimately shock them with an unexpected ending; all of which help her emphasize her critique toward the dark side of human nature and the evil that resides, sometimes, in those who we less expect it from. Jackson uses symbolism throughout the story that helps her set the mood and also makes the readers wonder and analyze the senseless violence and cruelty in their own lives. It all startsRead More The Use of Symbolism in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson Essay938 Words   |  4 PagesThe Use of Symbolism in The Lottery by Shirley Jackson Within the first few lines of Shirley Jacksons The Lottery we are faced with such adjectives as clear, sunny, fresh and warmth. She goes on to paint a picture of small children just out of school for the summer, as the townspeople gather for the annual Lottery. This leads us to believe that the rest of the story is as cheery as the summer day initially described. We as the readers are virtually unaware of the horrible senseless eventsRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson931 Words   |  4 PagesIn 1948 Shirley Jackson composed the controversial short story â€Å"The Lottery.† Generally speaking, a title such as â€Å"The Lottery† is usually affiliated with an optimistic outlook. However, Jackson’s approach is quite unorthodox and will surely leave readers contemplating the intent of her content. The story exposes a crude, senseless lottery system in which random villagers are murdered amongst their peers. Essentially, the lottery system counteracts as a for m of population control, but negatives easilyRead Morehe Lottery by Shirley Jackson710 Words   |  3 PagesHitting the Lottery In the beginning of Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery,† June 27th is as normal as any other summer day in the small village. The morning was described as â€Å"clear and sunny† with â€Å"flowers blossoming profusely and the grass richly green† (Jackson, 1). The attitudes of the children are rather happy and normal as they begin to gather playing â€Å"boisterous[ly]† (Jackson, 1). By the end of the story, the beautiful, normal summer day as described in the beginning is a day that every memberRead MoreComparisonof â€Å"the Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas† and â€Å"the Lottery†,959 Words   |  4 PagesEssay I: Short Fiction In â€Å"The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas† and â€Å"The Lottery†, Ursula Le Guin and Shirley Jackson depict a seemingly perfect society built on dark secrets. In the story, â€Å"The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas†, Omelas is a utopian city of happiness and delight, whose inhabitants are smart and cultured. Everything about Omelas is pleasing, except for the secret of the city: the good fortune of Omelas requires that a single unfortunate child be kept in perpetual filth, darknessRead MoreThe Lottery By Shirley Jackson1438 Words   |  6 PagesWriter Shirley Jackson was born in 1916 in San Francisco, California. Among her early works was The Lottery.Do not be fooled by this name.The Lottery was the highly controversial and famous tale about a village that partakes in an annual death ritual. On June 26, 1948, subscribers to The New Yorker received a new issue of the magazine in the mail. There was nothing to outwardly indicate that it would be any different, or any more special, than any other issue. But inside was a story that editorsRead MoreThe Lottery, by Shirley Jackson1468 Words   |  6 Pagesfrowned upon for doing so. In Shirley Jacksons â€Å"The Lottery† she does exactly that by portraying themes like the inhumanity of violence and the tendency people have to follow traditions even when they do not agree with them. In a short biography about Jackson it says â€Å"The story was met with an avalanche of feedback, including hate mail and cancelled subscriptions. Many folks interpreted the story as an attack on the values of small towns America† (â€Å"The Shirley Jackson Page at American Literature†)

Sociology Identifying Social Problems Essay - 1671 Words

Identifying Social Problems The definition of a social problem varies greatly depending on whether an objectivist approach or a constructionist approach is taken. This is because sociologists that adopt these unique perspectives will differ in how they view the nature of a social problem. The objectivist definition of a social problem is perhaps more common sense because it suggests that the essence of social problems lies in objective social conditions and that some conditions are problems. [1] This definition focuses around the evaluation of conditions in society to decide whether they are harmful to either individuals or society, and then defining them as social problems. If a condition fails to meet a given†¦show more content†¦[4] This approach is quite unique as a social problem refers to the activities of individuals or groups, which make assertions towards some harmful condition. The constructionists will focus on and examine what the claimsmakers say about conditions, rather than the con ditions themselves. [5] This examination will often take the form of case studies, in which sociologists will look at how a particular public issue is constructed. Constructionism is also interested in problem identification, or its perception and definition. Of interest is how certain conditions come to be defined as problems by certain groups, as this usually reflects an issue of power that this group stands to lose or benefit from. Typification, or the characterization of a problems nature [6] is also important to sociologists. Typification will take the common forms of assuming a particular orientation for a problem, in order to provide a solution, as well as using typifying examples to capture public attention. Examples of this can be found later in this paper, in the discussion of Bests logical structure of claimsmaking as applied to child sexual abuse. While constructionists agree that social problems are a subjective phenomenon, there is a division among them over the natu re of constructionism, which manifests intoShow MoreRelatedSociology : Sociological And Scientific Study Of Human Behavior And Social Interaction1037 Words   |  5 Pageshave influenced the development of sociology, it is possible to misunderstand what sociology truly means. As humanity enters into the 21st century, the study of society has become more relevant than ever. In this day and age where everybody is part of a society, it is crucial to understand the social dynamics invisible to the naked eye. Sociology provides critical insight into what problems our world currently faces and what we can do to prevent further problems. Daily life can be examined using sociologicalRead MoreWhat is Sociology?1169 Words   |  5 Pages . 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First, we as a society have to continue to bring attention this on-going problem. Consensus Theorists apply focus on government agency lead education programs, treatment and services provided to victims (Macy, 2009). One of the education programs to educate society about on-going problem is the Sexual Assault Awareness Month (Macy, 2009). Sexual Assault Awareness Month was first observed in 2001 (Macy, 2009). In 2009, PresidentRead MoreThe Development of the Chicago Schools1684 Words   |  7 Pagesintroducing the Chicago School theory, also known as the, Theory of Social Disorganisation and the Ecological School Theory. The University of Chicago formed a department of Sociology in 1892 its focus related to issues in Criminology and Sociology, with interests in and towards Social Psychology along with Urban Sociology. The main focus of the Chicago school was that human behaviour was both formed and shaped by the environment. 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Youth at Risk

Question: Youth at Risk: Processes of individualisation and responsibilisation in the risk societyIn what ways does Peter Kelly suggest that risk discourses are a means of governing young people? Discuss what this governance entails and consider how we might think about the politics of this social regulation. Answer: According to Kelly, the crisis of youth as become a topic of discourse in the recent years, may it be politicians, intellectuals, bureaucrats or social commentators. The risk here points out towards the danger, harm, the youth is on the verge of today. The major point of concern in the discourses is about a safe and secure youth, it should be a secure transition from a normal childhood to a normal adulthood. Freeland (1991, 1992, 1996) constructs youth as a stage of life between childhood and adulthood. However, such discourses discuss all the aspects of behavior of youth right from psychology, physiology and stress experienced by the youth during adolescence. Withers and Batten (1995) argue that the psychological, physiological and social stresses and tensions experienced during adolescence mean that all youths are in some sense at risk (p. 1). However, Kelly throws light on the fact that such discourses on youth at risk also provides techniques and methods for governing the youth. Apart from that, such discourses also make youth more responsible towards their conduct and the consequences. Kelly quotes the views of Ulrich Beck that in the past few years, modernization has converted a secure industrial society to a risky industrialized society. One consequence of processes of reflexive modernization is the prominence of institutionally structured risk environments (Giddens, 1991). This is the result of various forms of autonomous changes and processes going on at various levels. This is called reflexive modernization and points out towards a major concern of control over time (Hope, 2014). In such an atmosphere, the monitoring of the temperament and behavior of youth gives rise to more discourses on this topic. Such rapid changes in the society lead to individualization. In this wind of individualism, the concept of self emerges where an individual wants to take all decisions for himself whether its his education, job or family. It is like self produced. With t he increasing individualization, risks of institutions are also increasing. The Foucaults theory of the Governmentality provides a link between the discourses of youth at risk and the practice of the government. The neo-liberalization is regarded as a problem in the smooth working of a welfare government. The Foucaults theory advocates moving away from liberalism in matters of ideology, polity and philosophy and shift focus to liberalism in the field of styles of thinking, typically associated with the governance and about methods and techniques, which facilitate the government (Hope, 2007). A liberal government is possible if the focus is shifted from a monolithic state to a state comprising of experts from various fields who play different roles in the working of a government. In the first half of the 20th century, the concept of social welfare emerged along with the concept of liberal government. This required the transformation in the relationship between the management of social welfare and political field. The social welfare concept could be materialized only by conferring certain responsibilities upon the political authorities who can balance between the individual freedom and the private enterprise (Meadmore and Symes, 1996). The social work and social insurance were the two areas, which constituted main parts of the changing government. Various techniques such as funding of schools by state, practices of child welfare, widows pension schemes, etc. were all adopted by the liberal welfare state in an effort to socialize the risk associated with the less modern ref lexive society. Social work led to interfere into the personal lives of people by a set of people called experts. Moreover, with this liberalization, came the problem of instability in the wages of workers. The result of such interference was that the major target within the structure of families was the diseased (mentally or physically) youth, who were considered as would be citizens and thus should be made perfect. Hence the concept of social welfare meant additional security, education and protection to the youth with their additional responsibility and social obligation in return for maintaining the character of liberalism in the states freedom. In this era of reflexive modernization, the traditional methods become less capable of handling this modernization (Tait, 1995). In this way, the risk associated with the control of the youth can be considered the initiation of such individualization processes. This indirectly leads to the ungoverned state. Thus, a range of problems come with a liberal welfare state. The literature available on governmentality does not define these problems as confined to party politics, ideology or philosophy, but rather defines in terms of problems associated with governable subjects. In the reflexive modernization, the truth struggles for. It becomes difficult to regard some particular claims of knowledge as being truthful. In such a scenario, the risk discourses mobilize the various processes like identification, measurement and interference and make the operation of government possible. Discourse of youth-at-risk, throw light on various truths like the future of a nation, risks involved with globalization is one of the aspects of the problems of the liberal government (Niesche, 2012). With the emergence of (neo) liberalization, there emerged the problem of the anti-competitive effect in the society rather than the anti-social effects. The central problematic of government is not the anti-social effects of the economic market, but the anti-competitive effects of society (Gordon, 1991, p. 42). Society is made up of individuals and does not have any independent existence, so the behavior of the individuals should be governed rather than society so as to facilitate the governing of a liberal welfare government. The emergence of liberal government enables the youth to come forward and participate in various actions of the government and resolve those issues, which were regarded as the responsibility of the government agencies till now. However, the main implication of such a system is that the youth should take responsibility of actions as well as the results of their actions. Youth refers to the stage of transition, becoming an adult, becoming mature and independent. Thus, it refers to the future stage. The youth is at a continuous risk of endangering its future by its actions and behaviors of the present. The discourses of youth at risk presents a picture of ideal adult and its comparison with the youths wrong behavior. It is thus used as a technique for making the youth responsible. Examples of discourses help in highlighting the truths about the raising of children and enable families to adopt methods of its own choice and risk of reflexiv e modernization is reduced. However, who do not adopt these are being perceived as at risk. Thus, transformed practices given by discourses enable the youth to become rational and responsible and also results in distinguishing among youth by identifying risky behaviors. References Hope, A. (2007). Risk Taking, Boundary Performance and Intentional School Internet Misuse.Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 28(1), pp.87-99. Hope, A. (2014). Schoolchildren, governmentality and national e-safety policy discourse.Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, pp.1-11. Meadmore, D. and Symes, C. (1996). Of Uniform Appearance: a symbol of school discipline and governmentality 1.Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 17(2), pp.209-225. Niesche, R. (2012). Deploying educational leadership as a form of governmentality.Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 35(1), pp.143-150. Tait, G. (1995). Shaping the Atà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ Risk Youth: risk, governmentality and the Finn Report.Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 16(1), pp.123-134.