A person’s free will is limited because of gender and traditions. The people of the town are taught from a young age to be a part of the tradition because of society. At the beginning of the story Jackson writes, “The boys run around and gather rocks. The girls talk to one another and the woman greeted one another and exchange bits of gossip as they went to join their husbands.” We can infer that when the adults of the town were younger they too had to do the same exact things the kids were doing. An example of this can be seen in today’s society through Christianity. We are born and brought up in a religious household that we soon pass on to our kids as well to keep the culture and tradition going. Furthermore, Jackson gives a more clear example of this when she writes, “Because so much of the ritual had been forgotten or discarded, Mr. Summers had been successful in having slips of paper substituted for the chips of wood that had been used for generations.” Knowing that Mr. Summers is the one in charge of running the lottery, shows that he is trying his best to hold onto the tradition, but it's fading away. Meaning that Mr. Summer’s free will is not as limited as to the rest of the people of the town because he runs everything and will not choose himself to win. This story suggests that we are not as free as we think we are. We see this in our day-to-day lives although we may not know it. We have many laws that prevent us from doing illegal activities such as speeding, drinking, driving, and selling narcotics. Connecting this back to ‘The Lottery” when Mr. Adams tells Old Man Warner, “Some places have quit lotteries already.” Suggesting that they should get rid of their lottery as well, but of course, Old Man Warner shuts his statement down by responding, “Pack of crazy fools, Listening to the young folks, nothing’s good enough for them. Next thing you know, they’ll be wanting to go back to living in caves, nobody works anymore, live that way for a while.” Showing that Old Man Warner believes that society would fall without the lottery. This takes away from the free will of Mr. Adams because he is forced in a way, to participate even though he shows that he does not want to. The consequence of Mr. Adams would have resulted in him being viewed differently in the eyes of society if he did not participate in the event. Leading him to become an outcast for not belonging to the tradition that has been there for years. Gender also has an impact on the individual's free will because women in this story are shown as inferior to men. Jackson sharply distinguishes female from male authority: when Mrs. Martin calls her son Bobby, “he ducked under his mother's grasping hand and ran, laughing, back to the pile of stones, but when his father spoke up sharply, Bobby came quickly and took his place between his father and his oldest brother'' This shows that women are not taken seriously while men are being taken seriously. As we dive deeper into the text Jackson writes, “Good fellow jack glad to see your mother’s got a man to do it.” This clearly shows how sexist the culture is. Which leads women to be a shadow behind the men in the story.
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Conditioning is the incentive that keeps the people of the village going. Jackson introduces Mr. Summers, the villager in charge of all social events. By putting the lottery on the same level as dances and clubs, readers understand how the people in this village have been conditioned to accept the lottery as just another social event. Just as they plan and look forward to other events in their community, the lottery functions as one more event that brings the villagers together. The people of the village just go by the tradition blindly because they were conditioned since childhood. An example of this can be seen when Little Davy picks a paper out, “Take a paper out of the box, Davy, Mr. Summers said. Davy put his hand into the box and laughed. Take just one paper, Mr. Summers said.” Davy, of course, had no idea that he would be picking out a paper that may have been killing him. This goes to show that the lottery is a sort of norm that has grown on everyone over time in the village through social conditioning. The people of the village are casually and enthusiastically turning on their friends and neighbors in a gruesome execution. The stones represent a weapon and death that is accessible to everyone in which Jackson states, “Someone gave Little Davy Hutchinson a few pebbles. “It Isn’t fair,” Tessie Hutchinson said. “A stone hit her on the side of the head.” This shows that her son was involved in the stoning. This means kids are conditioned to throw stones even if it is their own blood. Lastly, Jackson states, “Old Man Warner was saying, come on, come on everyone.” Showing that he has been conditioned for some time to continue with the tradition and not let it stop.
Due to being drawn in by society and being conditioned to follow a tradition blindly, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson shows how the free will of an individual is not as free as we think it is. There are many factors that play a role in our free will that stop us from becoming 100% free. As seen through the story the recurring theme is that individuals are “forced” to do what everyone else is doing because of societal pressure. Overall, the sense of belonging is left up to the person if he or she doesn't mind being viewed differently from the rest.
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