“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is the story of a town that is caught up in its old ways and traditions. The story is set in a small town on a beautiful, mid-summers day. People of the town gather as if it is just another summer day, “The lottery was conducted—as were the square dances, the teenage club, the Halloween program…” As the people gather, they see friends and family and talk about random, everyday things. The children play, the parents start conversations. All of the noise stops when
of the author, no doubt- which point at the cultural coexistence of modernity and tradition with which we are concerned. Of course, these indications are linked to the authorial intent of the novel which we find can be similar to subtly providing the pieces to a puzzle. Therefore, in their own right, these indications serve the purpose of making us ‘see’. In a sense, there is almost no way for us to discuss tradition and modernity with respect to the novel without in some way tackling the pivotal
Samoa is a small island nation found in the southern Pacific Ocean, although, what they lack in size is compensated by their rich, Polynesian-based culture. Music is a powerful force in Samoan culture, and shapes their identity with the use of resonant lyrics sung in their native tongue, song, and dance used to parallel their everyday lives and beliefs. Storytelling is as big of an element to Samoan music and dance as any rhythm produced by their instrumentation, and if it is not directly addressed
1. A comparison between Culture and Tradition.. What is culture? E. B. Tylor, an anthropologist states culture as "that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.” It is also defined as set of traditions, customs and values of a particular time. It is a “state of mind.” It is the way we behave, react to certain things, the way we perceive and interpret our values and beliefs. In its varied
long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box. (5) The villagers are extremely resistant to change, although as seen in other passages, the lottery is not without its detractors. There had been, also, a ritual salute, which the official of the lottery had
When Faulkner describes the house as a “big, squarish frame house…in the heavily lightsome style of the seventies” (516), it resembles the old traditions of the south. Rather than progressing with time itself, the house stands, still trapped in a traditional time period. For example, in an article called “What is Tradition” written by Nelson H. H. Graburn, he says “Societies into two types: those that believe that every generation recreates the past and that time is a series of cycles
in Newport Beach for as long as one can remember. Though both sides could not be more different, we have found harmony in the uniting bonds of kinship. We come together for various reasons throughout the year, but each holiday has its own uniform traditions. Uncle Joey’s birthday may go by and we forget to call, but there has not been an Easter in years where we did not gather at Grandpa Sam’s for morning brunch and Christmas Eve has never slipped by without us all shuffling to Oma and Papa’s for hours
“characters who prefer dwelling in a fantasy world” (Wang). The characters have such a fascination of past events that they are not able to focus on the best choices for the present. Williams was able to portray tradition in different ways in the play. The most obvious theme of tradition is how Amanda is obsessed with the gentleman caller custom. She lives in her fantasy world of when she was young, beautiful, and popular. She enjoys reliving the times when she had numerous gentleman callers wooing
Abstract: For this presentation the topic chosen was Flunk Day. Coe College has many grand and unique traditions, but none quite like Flunk Day. This day is one of Coe’s oldest traditions and arguably the most recognized. In this paper I will explain it’s rich history which includes the purpose, evolution, and current significance it holds to Coe College. Flunk day at Coe College is more than just a day to skip class and drink liquor. Sure, looking from the outside in it may look like this. But
common thread in shaping identity across all cultures is the role of spiritual tradition. Through the characters in The Last Report on Miracles at the Little No Horse, Louise Erdrich confronts individual and communal responses to that reality. Since tradition is symbolic, not material, one can not physically hold on to their tradition. In other words, an individual makes the conscious decision to allow or disallow tradition to shape their own identity. Pauline Puyat is the product of cultural conflict