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Mrs. Dunbar is Clyde Dunbar’s wife and the mother of two sons. Her husband has a broken leg and therefore cannot attend the lottery, meaning that she, as the only other adult in her family, must draw for him. She accepts this responsibility hesitantly, as drawing the family slip is a burden many in town would rather avoid as it carries the weight of life and death. During the cycle of drawing slips, Mrs. Dunbar is anxious, telling her older son that she wants everyone to move as quickly as possible. She instructs her son to run to tell Clyde the results of the lottery as soon as possible.
The characterization of Mrs. Dunbar may suggest that she is less willing to participate in the lottery than the other townspeople. She expresses nervousness and fear to her son when she says she hopes that everyone will be quick in drawing their slips to get it over with. Later, when the more zealous Mrs. Delacroix picks up a massive stone to throw at Tessie, Mrs. Dunbar struggles to lift two smaller stones, telling Mrs. Delacroix to go ahead without her. There’s a possibility that she’s attempting to avoid the necessity of participating in the stoning by feigning physical weakness. In doing so, she does not contribute to the murder but also doesn’t take on the responsibility of actively speaking out against the majority. However, Mrs. Dunbar’s potential dislike of the lottery is written so subtly that it’s difficult to tell whether she genuinely doesn’t want to participate in the killing. Those living in a brainwashed community must act with extreme caution for fear of being in disharmony with the group, which in turn makes it challenging for dissenting members to discover each other. Thus, these communities never change, even when there are many potential insurgents in their midst, as no one can be sure of another’s stance.
