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Tradition as Seen in Shirley Jackson's The Lottery

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In some cases, tradition changes from generation to generation. In others, tradition is and will always be the same; no matter what. This may be caused by generational differences and conflicts. In this village, tradition has not and seems as though it will not change as far as Old Man Warner is present. He acts as the face of the lottery in the village. Mr. Summers devotes his time to activities such as this, he has no children and his wife is harsh. Tessie Hutchinson is a member that stands out from the crowd in a way that she is different and almost a threat. Between the three generations of these characters, three psychological theories may explain their thought and behavior in the way that they perceive or handle this tradition as a whole. Although not clearly stated, these conflicts can be proved three ways psychologically between the characters. Tessie Hutchinson's carelessness of being late proves a theory based upon pressure. She is a mother, wife and friend in the village. She is a free spirit woman who is known to claim, "It isn't fair, it isn't right!  (Jackson, 578) Tessie defines the psychological cognitive theory. Largely focused on the ways in which we learn to model the behavior of others, the cognitive theory can be perceived in advertising operations and peer pressure situations. The assumption is that humans are logical beings that make the choices that make the most sense to them. It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems. When Tessie arrives late to town, she says that she "forgot the day." As she is younger of the three characters analyzed, she acts on the pressure of the whole day. When she shows up late, it proves to almost be that she knew what might come of the lottery. This may cause some conflict for her lack of responsibility compared to the other two characters. She is a persistent woman who demands that her husband's pick was unfair because he was not given enou

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