This implies that refraining from following or believing in a custom should be a free choice. In this story by Shirley Jackson, the annual lottery drawing ceremony is forced on the villagers. Everyone must participate and register their names in the black box. This unjust tradition cannot be contested by anyone. Another recurring theme is that of being forced to blindly follow a tradition with which one may not agree. It is absolutely unfair to impose on humanity the belief of a custom and even more so of a cruel one