“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson illustrates the adverse effects traditions can have on society. Jackson reflects through historical allusions that blindly following tradition is detrimental to the advancement of society. Utilizing the ancient laws and traditions of the Aztecs and Babylonians, a connection can be established to “The Lottery” by the limiting of resources, deaths and family against family that both societies exhibit.
Throughout history, civilizations believed in the use of sacrifices to appease their gods and have bountiful harvests, such as the ritual sacrifices used by the ancient Aztecs. The offerings took place in their temples numerous times a month in their 18-month year; ultimately, lowering their numbers and limiting their abled bodied workers. With an estimated number from “thousands per year …[to] 20,000 per year” of ritual sacrifices, the Aztecs were reducing their number of workers, like the villagers were doing in “The Lottery”. While the numbers for the Aztecs were higher, the amount of villagers was remarkably lower, creating a harsher impact on the work load when one person was killed. In addition to lowering their numbers, the Aztecs as well as the villagers, believed their actions were justified. Under the direction of their priests, battles that Through the use of sacrificing their people and condemning them under unjust laws, civilizations such as the Aztecs and Babylonians have turned family members against one another and caused the death and suffering of innocents. Jackson alludes to these atrocities in “The Lottery” by illustrating how blindly following tradition is detrimental to the advancement of society, which she emphasizes by allowing the reader to feel Tessie’s pain when she is betrayed by her family, using her desperate
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