Originally printed in the June 26, 1948 issue of The New Yorker, Shirley Jackson's “The Lottery” sparked controversy from the start. Magazine subscriptions were immediately canceled due to outrage over the brutal underlying message. Ms. Jackson demolished virtually every institution that American citizens cared about. Jackson believes that we should not simply blindly follow authority or blindly participate in traditions that we may not fully understand. “Any human institution which is allowed to continue unchallenged and unconsidered until it becomes a destructive rather than a constructive force in the lives of men…” “The Lottery” explains this in a way you need to know underlying message to understand the concept. presented to you. Ms. Jackson has many insightful remarks in her short story "The Lottery" if you are equipped to understand the underlying message. As with most stories, you really can't take "The Lottery" at face value. You have to delve into the story to unravel Ms. Jackson's seemingly horrific story. In “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, Ms. Jackson allegorizes and satirizes American society, its beliefs, traditions, and their innate fear of change through her use of symbolism. The United States of America was founded on the concept of religious freedom. The first people left their homelands to seek religious freedom and escape the terror of the English Church. To date, “seventy-seven percent of Americans are Christian” (Newport). Jackson directly attacks Christianity with the “three-legged stool.” Jackson specifically mentions that the stool has three legs; these three legs are said to represent the Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, one of ...... middle of paper ...... York Times Book Review. August 28, 1988. GeneralOneFile.http://galegroup.com>.Jackson, Shirley. “The Lottery”. August 23, 2011. Classic Short Stories.http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/lotry.html.Judd, Orrin C. "Shirley Jackson's Lottery Review." Judd Brothers Good books and recommended reading. April 3, 2003. http://brothersjudd.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/reviews.detail/book_id/396>. Shmoop Editorial Team. “The Lottery” Shmoop University, Inc., November 11, 2008. Web. May 3, 2012. http://shmoop.com. Martin, Gary. “The blind leading the blind.” » April 2009. http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/67150.html.Newport, Frank. “At Easter, a Smaller Percentage of Americans Are Christian,” April 10, 2009. http://www.gallup.com/poll/117409/easter-smaller-percentage-americans-christian.aspx