Short Story Adaptation

PLOT

First of all, the short story I would like to change into a movie would be The Lottery. Even though this story horrified me, the message of blind acceptance scared me- a lot; I think that this story is a perfect example which would quickly cause an audience to understand this horror. In the story, the plot is just a snippet of what occurs on the day of the lottery. The exposition explains the lottery, the rising action is the choosing of the names, the climax is Mrs. Hutchinson being chosen for the stoning, and the falling action is the stoning. In the movie, I personally think that the story would have to be amplified a bit. I think it would aid the storyline and allow the audience a better view into the village if there were more to the story. For instance, I think the movie version would have to have the after effects of Mrs. Hutchinson's stoning. However, the continuation of the story would change the meaning; the original short story gives no insight to the future of Mrs. Hutchinson or the ritual, so obviously this would effect the meaning of the work because of newly created endings and details.

Point Of View

In the short story, the point of view is third person. Not only is this point of view third person, but the voice is reflected as detached, objective, and uncaring. There is no emotion, (except in dialogue) and the narrator simply states it as it is. In the movie version, I would create more dialogue between the characters. Obviously, much of the narration would have to be cut out because I am under the impression that the majority of people prefer to watch movies without the overriding, annoying, monotonous voice of some random man. I think that there would have to be a little of this in the movie, but the majority would be through dialogue. Using more dialogue would then cause the movie to have more emotion, because actors add emotion and actions to, well, act. This might cause the  meaning to become somewhat less horrifying, but I believe the basic meaning would remain strong.

Characterization

There are two types of characterization : direct and indirect. The original short story uses indirect characterization. The characters are described through dialogue, actions, interactions with other people, and appearances. I believe that this would remain the same throughout the movie version as well. I don't find is particularly appealing to listen to a narrator directly say things about each character. It is important the the audience learn for themselves the differing characteristics about each individual and their complexities. Since the characterization of the individuals would not be changing from the short story to the movie, I don't see the meaning changing much. The only thing I could maybe for-see would be the dialogue between characters becoming more important, their actions, and their appearances because their would be less involving the narrator's description.

Setting

In the short story, there is much said about the setting as a way to introduce the story. We know the action occurs between 10 a.m. and noon on June 27, a sunny day, in a New England village; however, the setting never leaves this location. Additionally, the time of this story happens very quickly. Because of the lack of scenery changes and time, this might be a difficult obstacle to overcome to make this story into a film. I think though, that if the plot expands upon the day's events, then there wouldn't be as much of a problem of setting and timing. The scenes could change from Mr. Summers' coal mine and his morning activities to prepare, include the lottery, and then continue onto after the stoning. This would allow the movie to change scenery and time, keeping the audience involved. Of course, changing the scenery does change the story's meaning because of the introduction of new material, especially since my movie would adapt the plot somewhat too. However, the core meaning of the story- the horror in blindly accepting and following traditions- would remain.

Theme

I believe that the themes found in the short story are too important. The themes I picked up on were: the reluctance of people to reject outdated traditions and following the crowd can have disastrous consequences. I am sure that there are several more, but these are the two I find to be the most important. In creating a movie from "The Lottery," I would attempt to keep these important messages as close to the original meaning as possible. As I have talked about altering different things (i.e. point of view, plot, setting), I do not think that I have remarked upon any changes that would diminish these themes. I think that the changes I suggested are pertinent to hold the attention span of an audience long enough to receive the message. I know that my version of the movie would keep the main storyline the same, thus causing the themes to remain the same as well. I think that this story is an excellent illustration of these essential life lessons, and I would not want to be the one responsible for making unnecessary, drastic changes.