“The Lottery,” by Shirley Jackson is a short story that has redefined the meaning of an actual lottery, which is known to be something people look forward to winning. This new meaning is evident when all the villagers stone Tessie, the winner of the lottery, to death. Four different symbols that are evident in the story is the setting of the story, incorporation of stones to complete the lottery, the black box, and the characters. In Jackson's short story "The Lottery", the symbolism used enhances the theme of the story. The theme is how the lack of compassion and emotion can be derived from old traditions and/or culture. Shirley Jackson begins her short story emphasizing the location of the lottery. “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full summer day; the flowers were blooming profusely and the grass was richly green”. (133). This description of the environment presents the connotation that the lottery is something wonderful, similar to the luminous day. The atmosphere of the town, including its small size, symbolizes Americans’ perspective about what is right and good about this country. Shirley reinforces this vivid description by including the other activates that took place in the town square, such as square dances, teenage clubs, and the Halloween program. This also symbolizes how people are oblivious to the negativity, if any aspect of positivity is present. During the author’s description of the environment where the lottery took place, she also provided reoccurring hints towards the stone, which confused the reader. In the end of the story, it is discovered that the stones were actually used to kill Tessie Hutchinson. Throughout the story, Shirley Jackson makes multiple connections to religion, which supports the authors foreshadowing of stoning. Along with being used as a form of murder, it was also a method of removing an outsider that interferes with group beliefs. The