The narrator in Shirley Jackson’s famous short story “The Lottery” is an objective, third-person limited narrator. This type of narrator provides an outside perspective, focusing on the actions and dialogue of the characters without providing access to their thoughts and feelings. The narrator describes the setting and events in a detached, matter-of-fact way, which heightens the disturbing nature of the lottery ritual.
Key Features of the Narrator
Some key features of the third-person limited narrator in “The Lottery” include:
- The narrator is unnamed and external to the story.
- The perspective sticks closely to what the villagers are doing and saying.
- The narrator provides no insight into characters’ motivations or thoughts.
- The narrator maintains emotional distance, even during the violent conclusion.
- The narrator focuses on the sights, sounds, and physical actions within the town.
This detached, observational style serves to enhance the disturbing atmosphere in the story and highlight the villagers’ ritualized conformity.
Lack of Access to Character Thoughts
One of the defining features of a third-person limited point of view is that the reader is not privy to the inner thoughts and emotions of the characters. We only know what the narrator chooses to tell us through external observation.
For example, when Tessie Hutchinson protests the unfairness of the lottery process, the narrator provides no insight into what Tessie or the other villagers are thinking and feeling. This heightens the sense that the characters are trapped in roles dictated by social custom and tradition, without concern for individual desires.
The narrator reports the dialogue and actions in a neutral way that is more journalistic than empathetic. We learn that “the children had stones already, and someone gave little Davy Hutchinson a few pebbles” but do not get Davy’s reaction to being given stones to kill his own mother.
Focus on Visual and Auditory Details
Rather than internal thoughts, the narrator focuses heavily on sights, sounds, and physical details to convey the story:
- “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day.”
- “The people of the village began to gather in the square, between the post office and the bank, around ten o’clock.”
- “Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones.”
Imagery like this establishes the setting and documents the sequence of events leading up to the violent conclusion. The vivid descriptions add to the sense of ordinary life unfolding, making the horrific lottery ritual feel even more disturbing in contrast.
Maintains Emotional Distance
Even during the intense final scene when Tessie Hutchinson is stoned to death by friends and family, the narrator maintains a detached perspective, never indicating moral judgment or sympathetic emotion. The brutal actions are described plainly:
“Tessie Hutchinson was in the center of a cleared space by now, and she held her hands out desperately as the villagers moved in on her. ‘It isn’t fair,’ she said. A stone hit her on the side of the head.”
The refusal to condemn or look away reinforces the impersonal, inhuman nature of the deadly ritual. The narrator’s impartial tone allows readers to supply their own emotional responses.
Conclusion
The unnamed, third-person limited narrator in “The Lottery” takes an observational role that reports events, dialogue, and physical details without interpreting them. Lacking access to characters’ inner lives, motivations go unexplained and emotional reactions unexplored.
This cold, detached perspective creates an unsettling, matter-of-fact tone that highlights the horror of the lottery ritual. Through the narrator’s neutrality, Shirley Jackson forces readers to confront the reality of mob cruelty and meaningless violence. The narrator provides the facts while leaving judgments about conformity, tradition, and human nature up to the reader.
Analysis of Key Passages
Looking closely at a few key passages can provide deeper insight into how Shirley Jackson uses the third-person limited narrator to maximum chilling effect:
Passage 1 Analysis
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.
This passage occurs early in the story before the actual lottery begins. On the surface, Jackson is simply describing the children gathering stones in preparation for the event. But the vivid sensory details like “the feeling of liberty sat uneasily on most of them” hint that something more sinister is coming.
The juxtaposition of innocent classroom talk and schoolboy antics with the stones in their pockets creates an ominous, foreboding mood. Jackson uses the innocent setting of children at play to emphasize how the lottery has become an accepted, generational tradition, passed down from parent to child through years of conditioning.
Passage 2 Analysis
Although the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the original black box, they still remembered to use stones. The pile of stones the boys had made earlier was ready; there were stones on the ground with the blowing scraps of paper that had come out of the box. Mrs. Delacroix selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands and turned to Mrs. Dunbar. “Come on,” she said. “Hurry up.”
In this excerpt, the contrast between the forgotten ritual origins and the instinctive reach for stones again generates a sinister atmosphere. The “blowing scraps of paper” seem harmless, yet they signal impending violence.
The description of Mrs. Delacroix hefting an enormous stone “with both hands” demonstrates how the participants have become frighteningly adept at this yearly custom. Her impatient urging shows the casual, thoughtless attitude toward killing. Jackson uses this nonchalant approach to murder to indict the evils of mindless conformity and tradition.
Passage 3 Analysis
Tessie Hutchinson was in the center of a cleared space by now, and she held her hands out desperately as the villagers moved in on her. “It isn’t fair,” she said. A stone hit her on the side of the head. Old Man Warner was saying, “Come on, come on, everyone.” Steve Adams was in the front of the crowd of villagers, with Mrs. Graves beside him. “It isn’t fair, it isn’t right,” Mrs. Hutchinson screamed, and then they were upon her.
The chilling detachment of the narrator is on full display in this climactic passage. As Tessie Hutchinson is stoned by her friends and neighbors, the perspective remains an impassive catalog of actions.
The interjection of dialogue heightens the horror. Tessie’s desperate protest “It isn’t fair!” shows she hoped the ritual might somehow spare her, while Old Man Warner’s impatient “Come on, come on” underscores the communal bloodlust.
Jackson’s refusal to provide any condemnation, sympathy, or commentary on Tessie’s brutal murder again implicates the reader, forcing us to confront the inhumanity of what is unfolding. The cold recounting of violence shocks the conscience in a way overt moralizing could not.
Use of Setting
In addition to the detached perspective, Shirley Jackson uses the setting of a quaint, bucolic village to heighten the impact of the story. The shocking violence that occurs seems even more chilling against the peaceful, rustic background described.
Some key ways Jackson uses setting include:
- Describing the picturesque town square, with flowers and shops creating a pleasant scene
- Starting the action in the morning of a “clear and sunny” summer day
- Noting the tranquil piles of stones and kids playing as the lottery begins
- Mentioning everyday details like “tractor and truck repairs” and “village square dances”
The juxtaposition of pastoral charm interrupted by chaotic persecution creates an intensely unsettling atmosphere. Jackson lulls the reader into thinking this is just another sleepy village before shattering that illusion.
The familiar, pleasant setting also emphasizes how average people are capable of great evil through mob mentality and blind adherence to tradition. The horror of the lottery is heightened by its occurrence in an ordinary community, not a dark totalitarian state.
Comparison to Other Jackson Stories
Shirley Jackson frequently employs an uninvolved, impartial third-person narrator in her short fiction. This allows her to maintain taut suspense and communicate underlying evil lurking beneath the surface.
For example, in “The Possibility of Evil” the narrator is an observer detailing the small-town gossip about the reclusive Miss Strangeworth and her poison pen letters. When the shocking truth is revealed, the effect is more powerful coming from the detached narrator.
Similarly, in “Charles” the narrator objectively recounts the trouble-making antics of kindergartner Laurie without judgment. The escalation to injury and death lands harder because the initial perspective is so innocuous.
The narrator in “The Lottery” fits squarely with Jackson’s technique of using a disinterested observer to tell tales of horror erupting from ordinary settings and people. Like much of her fiction, the story indicts the lingering darkness in human nature.
| Story Title | Narrator Type |
|---|---|
| The Lottery | Third-person limited |
| The Possibility of Evil | Third-person objective |
| Charles | Third-person limited |
Discussion Questions
The narrator’s perspective shapes every story and impacts how events unfold. Here are some questions for further analysis of the narrator in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”:
- How would the story change if Jackson used an omniscient narrator who provided insight into characters’ thoughts and motivations?
- Why do you think Jackson chose to maintain emotional distance even during Mrs. Hutchinson’s death? How does this affect the reading experience?
- Can you think of moments where the narrator seems unreliable or untrustworthy? Is there evidence of bias?
- How does the narrator’s focus on sights and sounds without internal access aid in the development of suspense and horror?
- Does the narrator’s refusal to judge the events encourage readers to be more critical and analytical?
Examining how and why an author chooses a certain narrative perspective can reveal deeper meanings in the text. Shirley Jackson’s use of a neutral, detached observer for “The Lottery” heightens the disturbance of the story’s violence by contrasting it with ordinary village life. The narrator implicates the reader in recognizing and judging the evils of blind conformity. Discussing the narrator’s effect on the reading experience allows for insightful interpretation.
Conclusion
In “The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson employs a third-person limited narrator who objectively observes and documents the deadly ritual without any internal access to character motivations. This detached perspective creates an unsettling, matter-of-fact tone that callously recounts violence against individuals by collective groups.
Through vivid sensory details contrasted with emotional distance, Jackson forces readers to supply their own judgments about the evil of blindly following traditions. The narrator’s refusal to condemn the stoning implicates the reader in recognizing the simmering darkness in human nature when pushed by mob mentality and unchecked conformity.
The narrator’s outsider viewpoint on the thoughts and rituals of the townspeople provides dramatic irony and intensifies the horrific climax of the story. Jackson uses the perspective to shocking effect, ultimately crafting a narrative that provokes timeless questions about the individual versus the collective, traditions versus progress, and the dangerous psychology of crowds.