Plot and central idea in Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery"

Shirley Jackson's, "The Lottery" concerns a small town's annual lottery drawing and the grim circumstances that ensue. In this short but disturbingly profound piece of work, Shirley Jackson communicates to the reader the theme of scapegoatism along with its implications concerning traditions. In the village where this lottery takes place, we find many familiar elements: a post office, a grocery store, schools and a coal mine. In this village, Mr. Summers owns the coal mine, …

…left to hope that the villagers were swift with their proceedings. In this story, Shirley Jackson illustrates how traditions are passed down to our children, who tend to do what they are told without asking or knowing why. By the time we are mature enough to question morality, as long as it "isn't fair" or "it isn't right" to us, we are more willing to accept the condition of our surroundings rather than promote change.