The Hunger Games (Ch 1) vs The Lottery: Purpose of Lottery

The Hunger Games (Ch 1) vs The Lottery: Purpose of Lottery

Abstract 

This essay is about the lotteries in both The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and The Lottery by Shirley Jackson. As a common object/event that occurs in both books, we can compare and contrast how they are performed and how they affect the people who are picked. The illusion behind which the lotteries are hidden are first explored, then the reality of the brutality and harshness of the lotteries, and finally how the lottery affects the community based on the reaction and actions of the people in that community. Through the actions and words of the characters in the novel, we are able to see how the lottery can shape daily lives and the perspective the people view the town in. The acceptance of the tradition in both books are also evidence to the theme of blind conformity, which is evident in both stories. In summary, this paper examines the purpose of the lotteries in two revered stories and how it affects both the characters and the plot. 

Essay

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and The Lottery by Shirley Jackson are both works of dystopian literature that utilize a common action to develop the story’s theme of brutality and killing. In both works, the lottery plays a big role in the course of the story as well as the characters’ lives. In The Hunger Games, the 12 districts of the post-apocalyptic world of Panem each have to send 2 kids between ages 12-18 to participate in a televised death match. In The Lottery, the town’s residents are required to participate in an annual summer ritual where each family draws a slip of black paper, and if that family draws it, each member draws, and whichever member of the town ends up with the black paper is stoned to death by everyone else, ensuring a good harvest in the fall. The stories, though published many years apart and different in overall plotline, both explore the true purpose and the reality of the lotteries behind the carefully crafted facade the authors present at sight to the readers.

In both books/stories, the lottery is described and portrayed as something different from what it actually is. In The Lottery, the lottery used to “ensure a good harvest” is seen as a ceremony, a ritual, a tradition that the members of the community must adhere to. Many older members of the community are used to it by now, having grown up with it their entire lives. Even the kids take it as a fun way to throw stones. Nobody except for the protagonist, Tessie, really understands what’s going on. The town’s way of presenting the lottery to the town and their way of sugarcoating the truth has brainwashed all the residents. “Used to be a saying about 'Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon.'” (Jackson, pg. 6). In this quote, Old Man Warner is talking about an old saying he learned when he was younger. Old Man Warner is the perfect example of a conformer, one who believes in the lies and truly wants to continue the lotteries. In The Hunger Games, the lottery is set up as a form of entertainment. Little kids in the districts who are young may not even know what the lottery is for. Some people think that the Hunger Games are fun, like going to a carnival. It’s entertaining to watch, definitely not barbaric and cruel to the children. Unlike in The Lottery, though, the residents here aren’t choosing to believe in the Hunger Games, they have to because basically all teens have a chance of getting chosen. “The Treaty of Treason gave us the new laws to guarantee peace and, as our yearly reminder that the Dark Days must never be repeated, it gave us the Hunger Games.” (Collins, Ch 1). In both books, the characters are forced to participate in the lotteries, there isn’t a choice. The lies have already created a seemingly perfect world where the lottery is, if not beneficial, neutral to the citizens when it is actually detrimental.

The reality of the lotteries in both stories are also brutal. Apart from just being not as it seems, they also hold a violent nature and a tendency to end up in death for one or more people. For example, in The Hunger Games, the annual games are also used for population control, oppression, and ensuring the fact that the tyrannic Capitol stays in power. “How little chance we would stand of surviving another rebellion” (Collins, Ch. 1). The Games are used to show the citizens that they are weak and powerless against the great Capitol and the President, as they lack both the resources and the people. The violent nature of the games in which 23 teens have to die are a reminder to subdue the people of the districts, tell them “this is what the Capitol can do”. In The Lottery, the twist in the plot is all it takes for the whole story of the lottery to come tumbling out. Instead of receiving an award or bounty for receiving the paper with the black dot, the person is punished instead. They also aren’t just given a menial task or endurable punishment; instead, they are stoned to death by their own community members. “Tessie Hutchinson was in the center of a cleared space by now ....A stone hit her on the side of the head.” (Jackson, pg. 10). The truth of the lotteries are harsh, and each ends up bringing devastating consequences to those who are picked: the contestants of the Hunger Games either die or are traumatized forever, while those picked in The Lottery are immediately sent to death. The sarcasm is that in most lotteries in real life, winning is lucky, it means that oh, you won a million dollars! However, no. In these books, it means death, reversing the roles of luck and fate. 

The involvement of the characters in the books also show the impact of the lotteries on the rest of the community, even those who aren’t picked. Those who are picked can also have many different reactions depending on their support or disagreement of the purpose of the lottery. In The Lottery, Tessies is the unlucky victim, the only one who understands the true nature of the lottery and wants it to come to a stop. She protests right before she dies, but the rest of the town are so absorbed in completing their portion of the lottery that nobody pauses to listen to their ideas and conclusion. “"It isn't fair, it isn't right," Mrs. Hutchinson screamed and then they were upon her.” (Jackson, pg. 10). Mrs. Hutchinson, or Tessies, knew how the lottery really didn’t affect the crops and only caused someone to die for a useless cause, but the townspeople only believed what they were trained to hear, and they weren’t used to hearing someone object so, they all ignored Tessie. This shows how the on-watchers are all ready to kill, violent, and willing to conform no matter the situation.  In The Hunger Games, Primrose Everdeen is the unlucky victim, the one whose name gets picked. Out of love, though, her sister, Katniss, volunteers to take her place, showing her rebellious personality and sense of family, willingness to sacrifice anything to protect them. “The other kids make way immediately, allowing me a straight path to the stage.” (Collins, Ch. 1). All the other people are silent and numb, only grateful that they weren’t picked. They show support for the Capitol to survive, because they don’t want to risk themselves trying to obtain justice, which is what the people in District 11 are doing. As seen in both books, everybody but the protagonists are willing to conform to the violent tradition to save their skin, even though it doesn’t actually help. They are silent supporters, because even though they don’t openly state their love for the lottery, they do not act against it and simply go along, playing as dolls. As for those who are smart enough to realize what the lotteries really do and want to speak out, their voices are outnumbered and consequently often unheard.

Both The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and The Lottery by Shirley Jackson delve into the truth of two major events that occur in the novels and the reality of what a long-held tradition can do to a society. At the start, the lotteries are presented in a covert form, the lottery in the Hunger Games being emphasized as a form of entertainment and the lottery in The Lottery being listed as a ceremony for ensuring a good harvest for the community in autumn. As the plot goes on, though, the reality begins to unravel: The Hunger Games is really just a televised deathmatch used to maintain the Capitol’s power, the the lottery in The Lottery is really just an excuse for the citizens to participate in killing someone, as the death of a person can’t really affect the crops. Both lotteries are seen to have an impact on society because no one is willing to speak up now, they are all too scared or enjoy the lottery itself. Overall, both books are an example of what blind conformity can do to even the most developed civilization and the reality of what may lie behind the brightest curtain. 

References: 

1. Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. The Hunger Games Trilogy 

Jackson, Shirley. The Lottery. Shirley Jackson - The Lottery