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Monkey's Paw Theme

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The “Monkey’s Paw” is a short story of a close knitted family’s relationship being torn apart by a magical monkey’s paw that can grant any wish. The effects of the wishes are drastic and symbolic. W.W. Jacobs uses the monkey’s paw in “The Monkey’s Paw” as an important symbol for fate and how it is meant to be left alone, and to separate human desire from reality. The main theme of the “Monkey's Paw” is fate, and how if fate is tampered with, it will reciprocate, essentially in the form of “an eye for an eye”. In the “Monkey’s Paw,” a magical monkey’s paw will grant three wishes of any kind to three different people. Yet, when the wish is granted, something disastrous takes place soon after. Sgt. Major Morris hints to the grim nature …show more content…

The beginning of the “Monkey's Paw” displays a very serene and unperturbed environment, portraying a happy, close-knitted family enjoying each other's company. The chemistry and closeness of the family are acknowledged in the beginning of the story by these quotes: “Father and son were at chess” and “white-haired old lady knitting placidly by the fire.” (Jacobs 15) They're enjoying each other's company, and are bonding together. This is a quiet, peaceful environment. There is no present conflict at the moment. This all changes the moment the first wish is made. Mr. White’s wish caused the death of his son. The immediate effect of the wish on Mr. and Mrs. White, “sometimes they hardly exchanged a word, for now, they had nothing to talk about, and their days were long to weariness.” (Jacobs 21) What had once been a close-knitted, happy family, has been reduced to a grieving, solemn, and depressing relationship between a husband and wife who lost a son and barely talk to each other anymore. A wish that was supposed to make Mr. and Mrs. White happy, made them spiral into a state of confusion and depression.
The Monkey’s Paw is shown to be a symbol of the nature of fate, and how fate is not to be forcefully changed. The monkey's paw also bridges the gap between human greed and reality. Fate is an exchange. Fate requires giving something to receive something, not the other way around. An abuse

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W.W. Jacobs uses foreshadowing and other literary techniques to create tones of mystery, tension, suspense, and surprise in each part of his work “The Monkey’s Paw”. The first example of mystery is presented in part one when the soldier says, “The first man had his three wishes, yes… I don’t know what the first two were, but the third was for death. That’s how I got the paw.” This leaves the reader questioning several points; why did the man before him wish for death?

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526 Words | 3 Pages

This passage is important to the significance of The Monkey’s Paw by W.W. Jacobs because it is a big climatic moment in the text. This is shown through the dialogue used throughout this passage, the tone that Jacobs establishes, and again, the climatic moment shown. The significance of the short story is shown in this passage through the interesting dialogue Jacobs includes. The use of dialogue is important because it allows the reader to understand the characters and their feelings more.

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764 Words | 4 Pages

The person responsible for the misfortune to the White family in the Monkey's paw is Mr. White. The Monkey’s Paw is a short story by W.W. Jacobs is a story about a paw that grants three people three wishes. The family gets the paw but the catch is that each wish comes at a cost. The family's first son causes their son's death.

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625 Words | 3 Pages

“The Monkey’s Paw” is about a family comes into possession of a magical paw that will grant wishes, but at a cost. They wished for some money to test it out but they’re son

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530 Words | 3 Pages

The cause-and-effect relationship in “The Monkeys Paw” is an amazing example as to how much an occurrence can affect the story line and the suspense within it. In the story the mother and father are one of the major reasons why the suspense is there, because they made wishes in the story the paw (which is also a cause of the suspense) had

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541 Words | 3 Pages

If you had the opportunity, would you make a wish that you believed would modify your life for the better? What if you were advised that it wouldn’t end as well as you assumed? A book by W.W. Jacobs titled “The Monkey’s Paw”, entertains us with the story of a family who suffers the loss of their son after a wish is made on a monkey’s paw the family attained from a friend. Numerous examples from the text will justify that Sergeant Major Morris is the most responsible for the death of the family’s son, Herbert. The first example that shows Sergeant Major Morris is responsible for the death is found on page 34.

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2073 Words | 9 Pages

Death by the Hands of One’s Loved Ones Whether it be an item, image, idea, or concept, motifs are frequently present within works of literature to create an even greater effect on the reader. Two of which include “The Monkey’s Paw” written by W. W. Jacobs and “The Scarlet Ibis” written by James Hurst. In Jacobs’s short story, the White family is introduced to a monkey’s paw, an item with the capability of granting three owners three wishes, by their friend, Sergeant-Major Morris. The family consists of three members: Mr. White, Mrs. White, and their son, Herbert White.

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273 Words | 2 Pages

Creepy and foreboding are two moods that prevails in the short story "The Monkey's Paw. " The story begins with cold evening, most of the story takes place in night. The house is an out-of-the-way place. The exposition of the monkey's paw adds the touch of horror to the story, but it is the paw's magical powers that draws the reader's attention into the tale.

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726 Words | 3 Pages

Thesis: In The Monkey's Paw by W.W Jacobs, the realistic essence of the monkey's paw made it fundamentally creepy. Point 1: The monkey's paw is a symbol for inclination for greed, exposing our superior wants as people, even the most humble. Point 2: Consequences for the actions of those using the paw develops the image of regret and fear. Point 3:

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430 Words | 2 Pages

#1 about “The Monkey's Paw” The cause is that Morris said If you keep it, don't blame me for what happens. Sargent-Major Morris was the when Mr. White the paw, that night he gave it to him because he wanted it for it's power, Morris told Mr. White that the last wish will be evil. The fear in the charters words what they say it is like they

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401 Words | 2 Pages

"The Monkey's Paw" is a short story by W.W. Jacobs tells the story of a family who comes into possession of a cursed monkey's paw that grants wishes, but with deadly consequences. The story's tone is somewhat ominous, evoking a sense of dread as the characters unfold the dark forces unleashed by the paw. Through his use of great imagery and foreshadowing Jacobs creates a really suspenseful atmosphere that grips readers from beginning to the end of the story. The tone in the "The Monkey's Paw" is established from the beginning of the story. Jacobs uses vivid and evocative language to describe the setting and characters, creating a sense of unease.

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1566 Words | 7 Pages

Arthur St. John Adcock is an English novelist and poet as well as a journalist. He mentions that “the uncanny grimness of ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ by a pathos that is wrought to a pitch of almost painful intensity when the knock comes on the door at night and the heart-broken mother, after struggling desperately with the bolts, flings the door open and there is nothing there” (Adcock 3). The family makes an avoidable mistake by wishing with the monkey’s paw, but when they finally realize that, it is already too late. Their first innocent wish flips their lives upside down and they bring themselves irreversible pain and sorrow through a few words. Carl Mowery, a professor at several universities with a doctorate in rhetoric and composition, gives a great statement about the story as a whole.

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546 Words | 3 Pages

Two stories and two magical wishes. The Monkey’s Paw and the Story of an Hour share several similarities throughout the passage. In the beginning of each passage, the author creates a sense of mystery and curiosity for the readers. As each passage reveals the characters in the story, the reader begins to relate the characters role from each story and how they act towards the conflict in the text. These different events, conflicts, or plot in both stories connect with death and wishes.

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582 Words | 3 Pages

The conflict in the story is not only the monkey’s paw but was somewhat Mr. White’s attitude. If he never was that greedy the story would have changed he would have agreed with Morris and burned the monkey’s paw but he didn’t want to do that creating the plot. Any change in the plot could have/ would have altered the course of the story but also altering the theme. In “The Monkey’s Paw,” the downfall of the White family is when they receive the two hundred pounds as a compensation for the son’s death which was actually caused by messing with fate.

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825 Words | 4 Pages

In the short story, The Monkey 's Paw we are first introduced to the White, the Mrs.White, Mr.White, and their son, Herbert White. Later in the story, we are introduced to Sergeant Major Morris who brought the mummy-like monkey’s paw to the Whites house. The theme of the Monkey 's paw is to never interfere with fate. The theme is shown through many forms in the short story. The forms are the events, the foreshadowing, and the actions.

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