The Lottery...Where you get to stone your momma.

This story is messed up. From the beginning, I got the feeling that this wasn't the typical lottery. I picked up on the fact that piles of stones and pockets full of stones were mentioned a great amount of times. The townspeople where way too on edge to be in a drawing to win some money.
I definitely liked that the story has that surprise ending. It really points out the flawed thinking of society today. The fact that people would place tradition and superstition as more important than life is just absurd. The fact that the narrator shows no emotion also adds to the horror of the story. It is just a great message overall. I'm very impressed that the author thought of writing the story in this way and about this topic.

How embarrassing.

So after reading the questions at the end of "A Rose for Emily," I got the impression that the ending was supposed to be a big surprise. As I mentioned in my previous blog, I saw details throughout the story that made it pretty obvious. As soon as I read that her house smelled of nastiness, I knew that her dad's corpse was in there. Maybe it is because I have watched crime shows in the past that have had a similar ending, but I was not surprised by the ending. It also could have been because I was told it was creepy. One part of it that did creep me out a bit was the fact that the people were creeping around her house after she died. I don't understand why everyone was so interested in the creepy lady's life. Just let her be.
I would like to mention, however, that the author of this story was messed up. Who writes a story about that?!?! Of all the things a person could write about, why would they pick that. Oh well. It made for a good AP Lit read. I'm also sure that he did get the tone across that he wanted. It is definitely one of the a story with a creepy tone.

A Rose for Emily

This story was full or foreshadowing. It talks of her stench, and focuses on her father's death. These two details were the biggest hints for me. Why else would there be a bad stench from a house in which the daughter did not want to give her father's corpse away? The effect of this foreshadowing is that it gives creates a disgusted feeling throughout the story. Each detail that point towards the ending of the story shows how disturbing Emily's actions are. It creates a very eerie tone that would not be present if the foreshadowing did not occur.
The foreshadowing is almost necessary for the piece's full effect. It is what keeps the story flowing. The details that are essential for setting up the ending are what foreshadow that ending. It is almost like the foreshadowing is a byproduct of the story itself.