As the daily Covid-19 case count soars to new heights here in the United States (even as we are told by our federal government that it is important we all get back to work and send our children back to school), I find myself thinking of Shirley Jackson’s short story, “The Lottery” (1948).

In this insidiously morbid story, Jackson skillfully conveys a dystopian reality in which a woman, Tessie, is stoned to death after ‘winning’ the town lottery. The stoning of the woman reflects ancient traditi...