Lottery is a type of gambling in which numbers are drawn to determine prizes. Prizes range from cash to goods or services. Financial lotteries are common, but other types exist, such as those used to award public-service positions or university placements. Often, participants in a lottery must pay to participate, and the money raised by the tickets is used for a variety of purposes, including providing a fair method for allocating limited resources.
While the casting of lots for making decisions and determining fates has long been a practice, the use of lotteries for material gain is more recent. The first public lottery to distribute prize money, for example, took place in 1466 in Bruges, Belgium, to fund municipal repairs. Its popularity grew, and by the 1740s, lotteries were commonly used in colonial America to finance public projects, such as roads, canals, and churches, as well as private enterprises like universities.
The Lottery, a story written by Shirley Jackson, uses various characterization methods to depict the evil nature of humankind. One such method is the setting in which the story takes place. The story opens in a seemingly idyllic and peaceful village, but it quickly becomes apparent that there is something very wrong with the community. The people of this village seem to have no sense of loyalty or morality, as evidenced by their behavior toward Tessie Hutchinson when she drew the unfortunate number that would result in her death.