As the eldest man in the community created by Shirley
Jackson in her short story, "The Lottery," Old Man Warner can remember best the earlier
lotteries when he was a boy. For example, the black box from which the lottery names are
drawn is a replacement for the original, which
... now resting on the stool had been put into
use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was
born.
There is even talk in
other towns of abolishing the lottery, to which Old Man Warner
responds,
"There's always been a
lottery... Pack of young
fools!"
Old Man Warner does
not believe in change, and he thinks that the old traditions are best--not a wholly
unusual response for people who can remember older, simpler times of the past. He does
not approve of the sympathy voiced by some of the villagers, such as when a girl
whispers, "I hope it's not Nancy." Old Man Warner still believes in the ancient purpose
of the lottery--to insure good crops--and he is near the front of the crowd when it's
time to use the stones they have been gathering.
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