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Outline
THESIS: The two short stories, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson and “The Rocking Horse
Winner” by D.H. Lawrence, have many similar qualities and various differences throughout each
story. Jackson and Lawrence use conflict, theme, and tone to show that bad decisions can lead to
deadly consequences.
I. Both short stories utilize symbolism and conflict in their story. This element is evident in
the death of a character in each of the stories.
a. In the story “The Rocking Horse Winner,” as readers understand at the beginning,
the protagonist suffers from severe poverty.
b. Opposingly, in “The Lottery,” the conflict of the story is confusing and not clear-
cut. The readers cannot fully understand the conflict between the townspeople and
society until the end, when the antagonist is stoned to death.
II. The themes of both stories have very dark and death-ridden elements.
a. In “The Rocking Horse Winner,” the reader finds Paul’s death. However, the other
characters in the story express sympathy and sorrow about his passing.
b. The theme in “The Lottery” is much darker and more cynical. Although not
evident at the beginning of the story, the collection of rocks by the children was
found at the end to be a vicious tradition leading to a death sentence by the lottery
“winner.”
III. The tone expressed by each of these short stories shares a very similar expression at the
end.
a. Although sympathetic and emotional throughout the story of “The Rocking Horse
Winner,” the ending symbolizes death and darkness.
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“The Lottery” vs. “The Rocking Horse Winner”
At pivotal moments, everyone will face difficult decisions that could lead to adverse
outcomes. “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is a short story about a drawing that takes place in a
village. The setting seems to be happy, fun, and exciting. What is about to happen to one villager
could never have been predicted. “The Rocking Horse Winner” by D.H. Lawrence is a short
story about a woman consumed by monetary gains. Her children did not love her, and she was
not fond of them either. The façade she played had others fooled. The secrets behind closed
doors were unknown to all, including this woman. Jackson and Lawrence use conflict, theme,
characterization, and tone to show that bad decisions can lead to deadly consequences.
Admittedly, in both short stories, each character struggles with love or lack of it. Paul
loves his mother so much that he drives himself to death trying to appease her, and make her
happy. Lawrence highlights Paul’s struggle for the love of his mother. His mother seemed only to
love money. Paul used his luck at the horse races to try and win his mother's love by giving her
the money he won. Consequently, after receiving the five thousand pounds, his mother became
less and less emotional about Paul’s winnings. Paul thought his luck would be enough to provide
a financial gain, leading to the acceptance and love he so yearned for from his mother.
It is true that Jackson highlights the struggle of love within a community. The village that
Tessie lives in lacks love for one another. One villager that was friendly with Tessie before the
lottery grabbed a stone so large, she had to pick it up with both hands (Jackson, 1948) when the
lottery was over and called out, “come one,” and “hurry up” (Jackson, 1948) in excitement to
stone Tessie Hutchinson to death. It is the murderous tradition valued and accepted by the
villagers that is understood to take precedence over human life.
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Certainly, Jackson tries to prove that it is not the tradition that the villagers love. “The
original paraphernalias for the lottery have been lost long ago” (Jackson, 1948). The original
black drawing box has not been used since before the eldest villager was even born (Jackson,
1948). The villagers loved the violence that took place every 26th of June. They were in love with
the viciousness and brutality they were able to exert through the throwing of stones. The façade
was the friendly banter and chatter before the lottery began. There was no love for thy neighbor
in that village (Mark 12:31, Holy Bible, NIV, 2018). The villagers chose murder, violence, and
death over loving their neighbors.
There is no doubt that in each story, we find the theme of death. The antagonist in each
story receives a fatal ending. However, the specific conflict of each death was very different.
Tessie Hutchinson discovered her fate at the end of a village-wide lottery that takes place every
year on the morning of June 26th (Jackson, 1948). After her name was drawn from the well-
known black box (Jackson, 1948), Tessie was stoned to death by the villagers. Paul came to his
demise in a very different fashion.
Granted, Paul was struggling with the whispers coming from the springs of the still
swaying rocking horse (Lawrence, 1949) inside the house and the unhappiness of his family.
Paul relied on the rocking of his horse to lead him to “where the luck is” (Lawrence, 1949). It
would be his fight to stop both of these situations from continuing to take place that would
ultimately take Paul’s life.
No one disputes the fact that Paul’s death was unanticipated. He was a son to the
beautiful woman and only wished to help her with the financial issues experienced within the
household. Once he discovered the meaning of luck, Paul claimed that he was a lucky person,
that God told him so, and that he needed to be taken to where the luck was (Lawrence, 1949).
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When his mother refused this request, he began to ride his rocking horse. Paul was then
introduced to horse racing, where he began to win some money that he tried to give to his mother
(Lawrence, 1949). However, his mother was never satisfied with the money he had won. The
more money the family needed, the louder the house would whisper, “There must be more
money! There must be more money!” (Lawrence, 1949). When his luck had run out, and Paul
could no longer guess the winning horse, he jumped on his rocking horse and rode and rode until
his untimely expiry.
Of course, there is a sense of the unknown in both of these short pieces. The reader of
“The Lottery” is interested to learn what the lottery winner will receive as they read the short
story. Only to find that the collecting of the smoothest and roundest stone and boisterous play
(Jackson, 1948). The fate of one villager would be known in just a few short hours. Although the
ending in Jackson’s story is unforeseen and unknown, we see this same theme throughout the
story written by Lawrence. The tone in “The Lottery” is a beautiful June morning. The villagers
gather and converse. The village children broke into a boisterous play (Jackson, 1948). This all
took place for the yearly lottery. Everyone in the village seemed in high spirits and was excited
about the lottery, discussing the results. As a reader of this story, you would believe the lottery
winner received some prize. When Bill Hutchinson, Tessie’s husband, draws the winning lottery
ticket, Tessie's response shows a clear understanding that the prize to be one is not one of fun and
happiness.
Of course, the tone in “The Rocking Horse Winner” starts by describing a beautiful
woman who started with all the advantages, yet she had no luck (Lawrence, 1949). Her children
did not love her; they looked at her coldly, and her heart would go hard when she looked at them
(Lawrence, 1949). The woman's son, Paul, longed for the love of his mother. He began betting
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on the horse races (Lawrence, 1949). After winning five thousand pounds and giving it to his
mother to no avail of love or gratitude, he started rocking on his horse once again (Lawrence,
1949). He rode his horse with such force that it led to his death (Lawrence, 1949).
A reader learns through the themes of these short stories that the ending cannot always be
predicted. When beginning each story, the tone leads the reader down one direction. Admittedly,
the theme of death was quickly learned, and the dark consequences of the antagonist's decisions
became apparent. Characterization allows the reader to develop a complete understanding and
connection to the characters and their journeys throughout the stories. Lastly, the struggles and
conflicts experienced by each character develops an empathetic relationship with the reader.
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References
Holy Bible: New International Version. (2018). Zondervan.
Jackson, S. (1948). The lottery. In G. Johnson & T.R. Arp (Eds.), Perrine’s Literature: Structure,
Sound and Sense (13th ed.). (p. 264–271). Boston: Cengage.
Lawrence, D. H. (1949). The rocking horse winner. In G. Johnson & T.R. Arp (Eds.), Perrine’s
Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense (13th ed.). (p. 297-310). Boston: Cengage.
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