A Reading of Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” by Peter Kosenko using Marxist Criticism

Since its publication, the story The Lottery has sparked a firestorm of controversy. As people try

to figure out what the story means, it gets on their nerves. This literary analysis will concentrate on a

Marxist critique of the story.

The story has Marxist undertones, according to Kosenko (1985). The story, he believes,

represents an anti-capitalist attack. The town’s ideology and social order are under attack in the story.

The symbol of the black dot drawn on lottery paper, according to one Marxist interpretation of the

story, represents evil, which is associated with business, which is associated with capitalism.

Mr. Summers, who draws the dot, works in the coal industry, for example. Because Mr.

Summers also administers the lottery, he represents the powerful class in capitalism that controls the

town both politically and economically (Kosenko, 1985).

Furthermore, the lottery’s location in the town square, between the post office and the bank,

represents the government’s political and economic power, as well as the power of those in power, such

as Mr. Graves and Mr. Summers. The average person has no chance against the capitalist system.

The lottery is a long-standing tradition that symbolizes capitalism’s rigidity. The lottery has been

a part of the town’s culture for so long that no one knows where it came from, but it is still practiced

every year. When some people suggest that other towns have abandoned the ritual, the Old Man

corrects them, stating that the ritual must continue because it is a tradition.

The old man represents people in a capitalist society who prefer to maintain the status quo.

They are afraid of changing their ways in order to continue benefiting at the expense of the majority.
The people are duped by the lottery into believing that the society is democratic, so they will not

criticize the ruling class.

People are led to believe that the lottery is democratic and that everyone has an equal chance

of winning. Summers may be aware of the paper with the black dot, in which case he and his family are

safe from being stoned at the lottery. As a result, the lottery can be described as an election for the

powerful but a random selection for the general public.

The story also depicts the social order in a capitalist society in which a small number of powerful

individuals control the majority of the population. Mr. Summers, the postmaster, and Mr. Martin, the

grocer, are three powerful people in the lottery, for example. Because of their positions, these three

people have a lot of power in the small town.

To illustrate this point, when the lottery is chosen, it is asked whether the Watsons or the

Dunbar’s selected it. In the town, the two families mentioned are not powerful. Why didn’t they ask if it

was in the Graves or the summers? This demonstrates that the powerful control the lottery and have no

chance of being stoned.

Furthermore, women have a low status in this society. They have no power, and only the men in

their families have the authority to choose the lottery for their families; if the man of the family is

absent, his son takes his place. People with no power, just as in a capitalist society, have no say in the

affairs of the society, which are left in the hands of the powerful few.

Finally, the story’s author appears to be criticizing a society that oppresses the weak and relies

on antiquated practices to keep a discriminatory social order in place. The lottery aids the powerful in

maintaining control of the town; in other words, capitalism continues to allow Mr. Summers and his ilk

to remain in power.