The Monkey's Paw "The Monkey's Paw" is considered to be a mysterious short story, about Mr. and Mrs. White and their only son, Herbert who got a hold of a cursed monkey's paw. The author W. W. Jacobs used imagery in the beginning of the story to describe the setting of the White's house, "The night was cold and wet, but in the small parlor of Laburnum Villa the blinds were drawn and the fire burned brightly." (1) The use of imagery in this quote helped the reader to use their senses to describe the atmosphere of the Villa. Then suddenly there was a knock at the door and Mr. White answered. It was Sergeant-Major Morris, a family friend who came back from India and told many stories. One of the stories Sergeant-Major Morris told was an old folklore about …show more content…
In the passage Sergeant- Major Morris said "Better where you are" (17) and "Well, it's just a bit of what you might call magic, perhaps." (21) This foreshadow that the monkey's paw is cursed and could manipulate any wish. Then Sergeant-Major Morris pulled out a small monkey's paw out of his pocket and thrown the mummified monkey's paw into the burning fire. Then Mr. White rescued the monkey's paw, because he was curious if it actually worked or if it was just a hoax. Sergeant-Major Morris then states "if you keep it, don't blame me for what happens. Pitch it on the fire again like a sensible man." (42) Again Jacobs foreshadowed the dangers of wishing on the monkey paw. After Sergeant-Major Morris leaves, Herbert told his father that he is full of nonsense and he should wish so the family would become rich or famous. Then Mr. White uses his first wish, to wish for 200 pounds. The next morning the White family had a turn of events for the worst, they found out that Herbert was fatally injured at work. Later on in the day a stranger who was dressed nicely came to the house and gave the family 200 pounds. The first wish was the only tragic wish that was granted. Days passed after they