Ironies in The Lottery.docVIP

Ironies in The Lottery 　　Abstract 　　Shirley Jackson is a prestigious writer in the twentieth century. Different from other female writers who are romantic and tender， and who tend to convince readers with soft words and mild tones， she writes stories which are often violent and bloody. She is willing to shock readers with impressive and unforgettable scenes， and she likes to use ironic pictures to insinuate her criticisms. The short story， “The Lottery” is a typical example of her use of irony. Previous researches on the story have mainly focused on people in the village who are bound by tradition or on the analysis of South America in the light of cultural study. This paper intends to analyze the story from the angle of the use of irony in the story， through which the author artfully punches on the indifferent people， capitalism， and religion. 　　Key words： Shirley Jackson； The lottery； Ironies and ironic figures 　　Shirley Jackson （December 14， 1916 – August 8， 1965）， a famous American writer in her time， is well-known for a number of wonderful stories including “The Road through the Wall”， “Hangsaman”， “The Bird’s Nest”and so on. “The Lottery”， the title story of the anthology The Lottery and Other Stories， is the most eminent. This story was first published on June 26th， 1948 in New Yorker. At the beginning， readers’ first responses to the story were negative to the degree that many subscribers even canceled their subscription of the magazine. In her biography of Jackson， Lenemaja Friedman reports that when the story is published “no New Yorker story had ever received” a similar response by readers， hundreds of whom send letters that are marred by “bewilderment， speculation， and old-fashioned abuse” （Friedman， p. 63）. Kyla Ward also notes that “The New Yorker was besieged with letters” for weeks afterwards， some protesting about the “violent and pointless story， some praising the brilliant moral allegory， but most demanding to know what it meant” （Ward）. The st