In the 74 years since its publication , Shirley Jackson ’s “ The Lottery”has become not only her most illustrious work , but also one of the most famous short stories in the history of the music genre . When the scary tale of ritual murder first appeared in a June 1948 issue ofThe New Yorker , however , it was more notorious than famous . Subscriptions were canceled and so much hate mail poured in that Jackson was force to spring for a with child mail service bureau box .
The backlash had no bearing on the success of the story itself , which was reissue oftentimes enough that Jackson pop out to care it might forever overshadow the rest of her employment . So , as Ruth Franklin writes in her biographyShirley Mahalia Jackson : A Rather Haunted Life , Jackson was n’t throb when Folkways Records asked her to tape “ The Lottery ” in 1959 ( the same year her novelThe Haunting of Hill Househit ledge ) . But she consent . Instead of trek to New York City for the session , she chose Vermont ’s Bennington College — where her husband , Stanley Edgar Hyman , teach literature — and had her teenage son Laurence spearhead the transcription session .
For the B complex - side of the disk , theWe Have Always Lived in the Castleauthor recited another unsettling story of hers : “ The Daemon Lover , ” whichfollowsa Bridget whose ostler conk out to show up for their wedding party . Folkways Records unfreeze the book in 1960 ; and , according to Franklin ’s book , it ’s the only audio recording of Shirley Jackson ’s voice that remains today .
It ’s still available topurchaseon certificate of deposit or as a digital download from Folkways , which wasboughtby the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 . But the companionship has also made both fib innocent to hear to on YouTube . Press toy below to hear Jackson ’s eerie recitations of “ The Lottery ” and “ The Daemon Lover . ”
