Despite the long odds against winning, lottery players continue to buy tickets each week and contribute billions to the national economy. They are disproportionately lower-income, less educated, nonwhite and male. The lottery is not a game of chance in the strict sense; it is an exchange of money or property for a chance to receive a prize. Its popularity in the 1980s was fueled by widening economic inequality and a newfound materialism that asserted anyone could get rich by hard work or luck. Popular anti-tax movements led lawmakers to look for alternatives to raising taxes, and the lottery was an obvious choice.

Shirley Jackson published the story in 1948, shortly after World War II, in a society that was still grappling with its aftermath. Understanding the historical and social context can help readers understand its themes and symbolism.

The story opens with a black box in the center of the town square. The narrator describes it as old, and suggests that it might contain some of the original lottery paraphernalia. The villagers begin to gather around it, and as they do, they start hurling stones at Tessie.

The villagers have the right to do what they do, but it is not very wise. The rules of probability dictate that the chances of winning are not increased by playing more frequently or by purchasing a larger number of tickets. Each ticket has an independent probability that is not affected by the number of other tickets purchased for a particular drawing.