"The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson is a short story that was first published in 1948 and has since become a classic of modern American literature. It is a tale of horror and violence that explores the dark side of human nature and the destructive power of tradition.
At first glance, "The Lottery" seems like a simple tale of a small town holding an annual tradition of drawing names to determine the winner of a cash prize. However, as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that the tradition is actually a lottery to determine who will be stoned to death. This shocking twist reveals the disturbing and violent nature of the tradition, as well as the willingness of the town's residents to blindly follow it without questioning its morality.
One of the key themes of "The Lottery" is the destructive power of tradition. The town's residents have been holding the lottery for generations, and it has become an integral part of their culture. Despite the fact that the tradition is violent and ultimately deadly, they continue to participate in it year after year, seemingly without questioning its purpose or the harm it causes. This reflects the idea that tradition can be a powerful force that shapes our actions and beliefs, even when it is deeply flawed or harmful.
Another important theme in "The Lottery" is the idea of conformity and the dangers of blindly following the crowd. The town's residents seem to be fully aware of the brutality of the tradition, yet they continue to participate in it without dissent. This reflects the idea that people are often more willing to go along with the crowd and follow societal norms, even when those norms are questionable or harmful. The story also suggests that this tendency to conform can have dangerous consequences, as it leads to the town's residents accepting and participating in a tradition that involves stoning one of their own to death.
Overall, "The Lottery" is a powerful and thought-provoking story that explores the dark side of human nature and the dangers of blindly following tradition. Its themes of conformity and the destructive power of tradition are still relevant today, and it serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of blindly following the crowd and the importance of questioning the values and beliefs of our society.
What Is Agenda
Media primes news by repeating the news and giving it more importance like, for example, Nuclear Deal. For example, if they always report on the G7 and Toronto in the same story, people are more likely to always see these two objects as connected. President and Monica Lewinsky an intern , created a media frenzy and became sensational news for years. Public policymakers usually make decisions or announcements based on the influence of the news and the public. Each of the objects on an agenda has a lot of attributes containing cognitive components such as information that describes characteristics of the object, and an affective component including tones positive, negative, neutral of the characteristics on agenda. This means that the political story has ample amounts of coverage and is highly accessible to the audience. Una Extensión de la Perspectiva de los Efectos de la Agenda Setting.
Retrieved 30 October 2014. The two levels include: Observational analysis The first level of agenda-setting involves researchers studying the different media outlets and their objectives. Salience refers to its impotence relative to other objects. The International Encyclopedia of Media Events: 1—14. Priming Priming is the process by which the salience of an issue depends on the news outlet's standards or values. Related: 12 effective marketing strategies to grow your business Factors that impact agenda-setting There are several external influences that can impact agenda-setting. Kim and Lee Kim and Lee According to Kim and Lee, Several studies provide evidence that the Internet-community, particularly bloggers, can push their own agenda into public agenda, then media agenda, and, eventually, into policy agenda.
Agenda Setting Theory (Definition, Examples, & Criticisms)
Studies suggest that as of 2016, a significant segment of Americans claimed to have used social media to get news and current events. Three types of agenda-setting: Policy-makers, Media and Audience. One particular experiment, carried out by Jessica Feezell, posits that individuals who are exposed to political information on Facebook show higher levels of issue salience consistent with the issues shared in comparison to those who are not shown political information. Also, framing is when these interpretive cues correspond with or activate individuals' pre-existing cognitive schema Kim et al. Another theory called Second Level Agenda Setting has been constructed by extending this theory. Some industries want to impact audiences in a certain way to solicit their attention. From the perspective of agenda-setting, the analysis of the relationship between traditional media and new virtual spaces has witnessed growing momentum.
Their stance on the event may impact how audiences judge the situation and respond to it. This process of agenda-setting further occurs on three levels, each of which can affect how the public interprets information. International Journal of Communication. Both seem to examine which attributes or aspects of an issue are emphasized in the media Kim et al. Another contribution of agenda-setting is to show the power of media. The concept of accessibility is the foundation of a memory-based model Scheufele, 2000.
According to a study conducted by Lang and Lang, the media coverage at first belittled the watergate scandal and the President's involvement. Additionally, roughly 77% of the human race lives in Asia and Africa- regions from which little participation and interest are witnessed in international sports events. Related: Your Guide to a Career in Communications With Job Titles How does agenda-setting work? This repeated coverage may encourage people to watch the game, which may increase viewers for advertisers, which can bring in more revenue for TV stations. The culture of public problems. These levels include: 1. In the 1970s and 80s, when, the newspapers and television outlets had a lot of control over what was considered the important topics of the day. For example, running daily stories about an upcoming sporting event, like the Super Bowl.
American Political Science Review. Since the study of Effects of Mass Communication also declared the limited effect of media. Accessibility can be defined as "how much" or "how recently" a person has been exposed to certain issues Kim et al. Whereas, the first level studies what audiences think. By focusing on these attributes, they divert public attention from more important information that might encourage the public to vote differently. By utilizing social media, activists have an effective platform for setting agenda in society.
The tone of a story may also influence how people view a subject, such as including positive or negative messaging or visuals. The third level suggests the media can also tell people what and how to associate the issues and attributes they present, called the network agenda-setting model. Using this strategy, the more the media mentions two issues together, the more likely the public may associate them as interconnected. International Journal of Communication. Subsequently, one may also ask, why is agenda setting theory important? Industry There are several industries that use agenda-setting to ensure that the public views issues as important that align with their interests.
First-level agenda setting The first level of agenda-setting typically involves object salience, meaning it focuses on the impotence of one object over others. The first level of agenda setting is focuses on the list of important issues that comprises the agenda as decided by some entity such as the media. The study of agenda-setting describes the way media attempts to influence viewers, and establish a hierarchy of news prevalence. Media provides information which is the most relevant food for thought, portraits the major issues of the society and reflects people minds. This is to say that the more attention the mainstream media gives to certain events, the more likely the public is to consider the issue important.
