The story begins with young children gathering in the town square. ... Some of the children are gathering stones from the surrounding are and forming a mound of them together. Soon the men and women arrive, bringing with them a less jovial tone. ... Jackson makes some use of foreshadowing early in the story by mentioning the pile of stones and the way the older characters distance themselves from it. ... Whenever the uneasiness begins to manifest itself in the form of people speaking out however, it is silenced by the voices of majority and tradition: Old Man Warner snorted. ...

• Word Count: 822
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Also the men gather and tell quiet jokes among themselves as they talk of weather and tractors. ... However, the purpose of this gathering in never revealed except to say that they are there to take part in the lottery. ... Even the current box is built from pieces of the old one. ...

• Word Count: 654
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

When the men and women arrived, they brought with them a less jovial tone. Jackson mentions the pile of stones at the beginning of the selection and how the older people distance themselves from it. ... The reader eventually learns that the gathering is part of a sick and twisted tradition in which the members of the village drew slips of paper from a box and who ever drew the slip with a black spot was stoned to death. ...

• Word Count: 746
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School