Student Notes: "The Lottery"

1. Describe the following characters:Tessie HutchinsonClyde DunbarMr. Summers 2. Read the opening paragraph again. What literary technique does the author use to make it seem like a regular, ordinary day? 3. Exposition can best be defined as - 4. Which of the following two sentences demonstrates foreshadowing?"The children assembled first, of course. School was recently over for the summer, and the feeling of liberty sat uneasily on most of them. They tended to gather together quietly for a while before they broke into boisterous play, and their talk was still of the classroom and the teacher, of books and reprimands. Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest and roundest stones. Bobby and Harry Jones and Dickie Delacroix-- the villagers pronounced this name "Dellacroy"--eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square and guarded it against the raids of the other boys. The girls stood aside, talking among themselves, looking over their shoulders at the boys, and the very small children rolled in the dust or clung to the hands of their older brothers or sisters." 5. Using the context clues in the following sentence. What does the word “shabbier” mean?“The black box grew shabbier each year: by now it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color, and in some places faded or stained.” 6. What does Old Man Warner’s character represent in the text? 7. What is the author's main purpose for describing the ritual of conducting the lottery? 8. What is the best way to describe the conflict of the story? 9. What are the theme(s) of the story? 10. How does the detail “And someone gave little Davy Hutchinson a few pebbles" contribute to the text? 11. What is the climax (emotional high point) of the story? 12. From what point of view is the story told? 13. Define literary terms.ironyverbal ironysituational ironydramatic irony 14. Identify the type of irony from the following:--The whole idea of a lottery is to win something, and the reader is led to believe that the winner will receive some prize, when in actuality they will be stoned to death by the rest of the villagers. What type of irony is this?--Tessie's best friend, Mrs. Delacroix, says, "Be a good sport, Tessie."--The characters in society's lack in morals do not allow them to realize that people and especially children should not kill people as a tradition as our society is aware that it is completely wrong and immoral. 15. Which object in the story symbolizes death?