"The Lottery"

1.) Jackson is crazy. This is a sick, twisted, demented tradition; and for her to not only think of it, but be able to illustrate it in such a blasé manner is frightening. It is almost as if she is smiling while she is writing, waiting for the ending. With that said, I really liked the story, and would really enjoy listening to a conversation between her and the writers of “SAW”, two twisted groups of people.

2.) The story of “The Lottery” begins with a pleasant description of a town of which everyone could relate. The town is assembling for an annual tradition; a tradition Jackson does not reveal until the end of the story. Initially the author describes the assembly as if it is a normal town meeting, with the children and adults all conversing about their daily interests. Here, the children are collecting and hoarding stones, again, we do not know for what. This comfort is interrupted when Jackson introduces a black box to the story which contains the reason for their assembly.
When the box is introduced to the story, the happy-go-lucky attitudes previously displayed by the townspeople have become ‘hesitant’ and ‘reluctant’. Although we do not know what is in the box, we sense that its contents strike fear into the people. Because of this change in attitude and the mysteriousness of the old black box, we know that whatever it contains will greatly change the people of the town.
The title, “The Lottery” suggests that the discomfort of the people continues because they all are involved in this assembly and have no control of what happens to them. When the ceremony is underway, and every head of household is called up to pick their piece of paper, the nervousness begins to increase. The reader now knows that the contents of this paper possess the fate of one or multiple people in the audience. Everyone is trying to act nonchalantly but their anxiety is displayed by their turning of the papers in their hands and magnified with a collective “long pause, a breathless pause” before the papers were opened. It is here when Old Man Warren makes a very odd claim; he states “this is my seventy-seventh lottery”. Considering that this tradition has been carried on for many years, you can suspect that the only way to not take part in the lottery would be either to leave the community, or die.
After Mr. Hutchinson was found to have had “it”, everyone is quite relieved when they discover that they are not the ones. When Tessie Hutchinson exclaims that the lottery was not fair and receives the response that “All of us took the same chance” the reader is ensured that the lottery is not one of luck but rather of misfortune. The tension builds when the final lottery is selected by the Hutchinsons. The collected stones from the beginning of the story are now used to stone Mrs. Hutchinson.
These people carry out a tradition where they kill one of their own, simply because it is tradition. Jackson shows that these people and many people in general, will turn their back on you to follow a crowd. She shows that these people, like many others, have no problem inflicting harm or singling one person out as long as it is not them.

Fitzgerald

1.) Until the end of this story, I honestly thought that it was one of the worst stories that I have ever read. I was simply bored throughout this piece until Bernice finally cut her hair and their was some conflict introduced. It was pretty cool that Bernice cut Marjorie's hair; she finally stood up for herself. I was getting annoyed at the fact that she was becoming Marjorie's little experiement; her puppet. Marjorie got what she deserved and I hope that she is laughed at at the dance. I think that Bernice leaving the hair for Warren to find was a solid move. I kinda wish I were there to see Marjorie's reaction. I think Marjorie and Bernice would be a good fight; UFC style. I take Bernice.

2.) Bernice, a quiet girl, who is pretty but lacks striking features and the confidence to dance with multiple boys at a dance while her cousin Marjorie, craves for attention and does not understand why her cousin does not. Marjorie bases how she dresses, dances, and what she says on the response of others. Her entire identity and life is based on the desire to receive constant reassurance from peers. Marjorie proceeds to teach Bernice how she should act in a social setting. She criticizes her clothes, dance, speech, and hair. With Bernice’s quick transformation, Fitzgerald is showing that her identity, like Marjorie’s, is really not hers anymore, but rather a mold of what the people surrounding them deems an acceptable identity for her. The increased attention she receives supports the notion that in this story, identity is not something a person chooses on their own but is rather a clone of the identities’ of the surrounding members of society.
In this story, identity is an adjustable thing rather than a static one. Bernice’s identity changes throughout the story from a quiet nervous girl, to the center of attention, to a strong and defiant young woman. This all occurs during one vacation with Marjorie shaping Bernice’s identity the entire time. Although Marjorie parades her overconfidence in herself, when Warren begins to show Bernice more attention, Marjorie’s attitude changes from secure to troubled. Her shy cousin is taking her identity from her. How the characters identify themselves throughout the story is quite fickle.
After being coerced into having her hair bobbed, Bernice realizes that her cousin is extremely selfish and manipulative. In response to Marjorie’s boastful braiding of her own hair while displaying her satisfaction with Bernice’s inability to do the same, Bernice cuts the braids of Marjorie’s hair while she sleeps. Previous to her visit with her cousin, Bernice would have never thought about retaliation. However, Marjorie had the ability to change her once, giving her confidence and poise; and Bernice’s new found self-assurance enabled her to change her identity yet again and stand up for herself rather than for what others said she should.

Updike, "A & P", and Conformity

1.) Like many of you, I have had jobs where I would have loved to simply walk out but was scared of the repercussions. I think that Updike does a great job of taking a normal, everyday situation, and showing how it can be life changing. I really enjoyed his writing style and descriptive illustrations of every detail he noticed in the store. Sammy obviously had been working there too long. All in all I can really relate to this story and think Updike did a great job of describing the experience in a way we all could connect.

2.) Updike’s “A & P” begins with Sammy, a 19 year old cahier seeing three girls, a sight obviously uncommon in his grocery store setting. While observing, aside from the intricate description of their physical appearances, he assesses the girls and their lives solely on how they walk throughout the store and interact with one another. He is able to distinguish the leader from the “sheep”. He admires the leader and seems envious of her confidence and poise. He then begins to assess the other customers and their actions and also tags them as “sheep” in response to their predictable actions and behavior in the store. Although criticizing these “sheep” knowing they are oblivious to his observations, he begins to realize that he himself is one of them, simply going through the motions of everyday life.
Updike’s repeated references to the actions of the customers paralleling that of herded animals shows his disgust in society’s acceptance of conformity. In defiance of this mindset; after his life eye opening encounter with the girls, the narrator seizes the opportunity presented by his manager to quit his job and separate himself from the store and the constraints it was putting on him. At the conclusion of the story Sammy is alone again and acknowledges that his journey ahead will be difficult; but at least he will pave his own path and not follow others down one already lined.
Updike uses a typical setting where everyone can relate, however, not necessarily describing a grocery store but life in general. Updike believes we do things because it is instilled in our minds that we should. Sammy transforms from a follower into a leader. Updike criticizes his observations of our “sheepish”, conformed human behavior with Sammy defying not only his manager but society; and encourages the reader to be a leader rather than follow in the footsteps of one.