In Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery,” the villagers are portrayed as barbaric. Though they are nervous at the start, everyone participates in the stoning of Tessie. They are selfish people, interested only in themselves and saving their own lives; caring little, if at all, for the lives of others. The purpose of the story is to draw a parallel between the lottery created by the village and the nature of mankind itself. Jackson does this by using key elements in “The Lottery” to represent the true savage and sadistic nature of man; ultimately suggesting that man’s need for violence is stronger than our need for a communal bond. The village has a tradition of stoning a victim to death each year. There is only one villager that provides a reason as to why they conduct this ceremony. This is represented when Old Man Warner states “Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon” (Jackson 413). This concept seems lost on the rest of the villagers who fail to mention its purpose. Coulthard offers “it is not that the ancient custom of human sacrifice makes the villagers behave cruelly, but that their thinly veiled cruelty keeps the custom alive” (Coulthard 2). The original black box has been long gone, replaced by one that is thought to have “pieces of the [first] box” (Jackson 410). Also they have “forgotten the ritual” or as Griffin states “as time passed, the villagers began to take the ritual lightly” (Griffin 2). This alludes to the idea that the villagers do not understand the true nature of the ceremony. Griffin was referring to the disregard the village shows towards the procedure of the lottery. The community seems only sure of one thing; that the ceremony ends with a stoning sacrifice. Multiple changes to the original ritual have been made. The worry however, is not of the box which was “growing] shabbier” and “splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color,” but of the tradition itself (Jackson 410). More specifically, they fear losing their annual excused murder. “The villagers feel compelled to continue this horrifying tradition” simply because “there’s always been a lottery” (Griffin 2). It gives them an excuse to be as humans truly are, vicious and violent. Shirley creates relatable characters leading a modern and mundane life to drive home the idea of the barbarian within everyone. She paints a normal scene of the villagers “exchanging] bits of gossip” and talking about “planting and rain, tractors and taxes” before the lottery (Jackson 410). The mention of taxes proves the village to be civilized and in one form or another governed. With government comes authority, meaning once a year the village is allowed to participate in the organized murder of a fellow citizen. Mr. Summers says they should get started “so’s [they] can get back to work” (Jackson 411). This shows the village is a working society, much like any other modern town. There is no obvious difference between this town and one found in modern society, there is no reason for the villagers to act any more violent than the reader. Old Man Warner is “merely the most honest” character in “The Lottery” (Coulthard 2). He shows constant support towards the ritual. Old Man Warner audibly “snort[s]” when Mr. Adams mentions “that over in the north village they’re talking of giving up the lottery” (Jackson 413). He goes