A lottery is a game of chance in which tokens (or tickets) are sold for a prize. The winner is selected by random drawing, either manually or through computerized means. Lottery games are generally based on numbers or symbols, and are used to raise money for various purposes such as building projects, sports teams, and public works. Prizes range from cash to goods, services, and even houses and cars. In the United States, state-run lotteries are legal and most offer multiple types of games.
The earliest state-sponsored lotteries appeared in the Low Countries in the first half of the fifteenth century and raised money to build town fortifications, as well as help the poor. They may have been the first to use the word lottery, which appears in English in 1569.
During the seventeenth century, the lottery became popular in England, and it was introduced to America by King James I in 1612. In the late twentieth century, several states began lotteries in an attempt to raise funds for public works without raising taxes.
In the short story The Lottery, Shirley Jackson demonstrates that the practice of the lottery is not beneficial to the people in her small rural village. The characters in the story are portrayed as being caught up in tradition and following it blindly. They do not question the lottery arrangements or protest their beliefs, and this shows that tradition can be dangerous and evil. Moreover, it shows that we can be blinded by our need for belonging and acceptance.
