Lottery outline

When we later learn the significance of the slips of paper, it seems horribly arbitrary that they are simply made by a person the night before. In preparation for the lottery, Mr. Summers creates lists of the heads of families, heads of households in each family, and members of each household in each family.

In other towns there are so many people that the lottery must be conducted over two days, but in this village there are only three hundred people, so the lottery will be completed in time for the villagers to return home for noon dinner. This seemingly idyllic beginning establishes a setting at odds with the violent resolution of the story.

Mrs. Dunbar is the only woman to draw in the lottery, and the discussion of her role in the ritual proceedings emphasizes the theme of family structure and gender roles. Women are considered so inferior that even a teenaged son would replace a mother as the “head of household.”

The lottery is mentioned in the first paragraph, but not explained until the last lines. The children arrive in the village square first, enjoying their summer leisure time. Bobby Martin fills his pockets with stones, and other boys do the same.