The Lottery: Movie Analysis

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Apparently, no one knows quite what year “The Lottery” takes place. I assumed it took place in the 1930s, but the director of the short film assumed it took place in the 1960s, thirty years after my impression! When I was expecting the women to have their hair in victory rolls and the men wearing suits, I was surprised when I was greeted with short haircuts and overalls. In my mind, the lottery takes place outside of the sheriff’s office, even though the story states it takes place on a “clear and sunny day in the square.” After reading the ending, I began to imagine the setting as more of a dreary, wet day instead of the “clear and sunny” day the author makes it out to be. Again, I was thrown off-guard when the characters I had envisioned …show more content…
Tessie was once a loved member of the community, but as soon as she drew that slip of paper with the black dot on it, she was metaphorically cast out and subsequently stoned to death. Tessie really had no reason to die, other than she chose the happened to choose the wrong piece of paper. The video did deepen my understanding of the story. I couldn’t think of any other themes other than that following traditions without thought can be hazardous. When I watched the film, another theme jumped out at me, and that the villages that conduct the lotteries are rather ironic hypocrites. Before Tessie drew the paper with the black dot on it, she was part of the community, but when she pulled that random, unlucky slip of paper from the box, she was cast out. When I watched the movie, it replaced my images of the characters that I had conceived. Now, whenever I think of the characters from the story, I visualize the actors who played the characters from “The Lottery.” Instead of imagining Tessie with dark hair, I see her with the bright red hair her actress had for the movie. Though sometimes we don’t realize it, movies really change our perspective of the stories they are based of