Women are seen as more important or responsible than children, but as less important than men-even than male children who are barely old enough to accept the adult responsibility of drawing in the lottery. Dunbar has a grown son who could draw for her. Summers, who runs the lottery proceedings, asks whether Mrs. Dunbar asserts that a “wife draws for her husband,” but Mr. This reinforces the idea that he is both the leader and the representative of his family unit-the “head of household.” This idea is further emphasized by the discussion that occurs after Clyde Dunbar’s absence is noticed. The father is typically the one to draw the slip of paper on behalf of the rest of the family. This process reinforces the importance of the family structure within the town, and at the same time creates a hierarchy within that structure-one that emphasizes the importance of gender roles.
The members of the family with the marked slip of paper must then each select another piece of paper to see the individual singled out within that family. The ritual of the lottery itself is organized around the family unit, as, in the first round, one member of a family selects a folded square of paper.
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