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The Monkey's Paw

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One night after the burial of their son, Mr.White woke up looking at his wife dozing off. He gently urges her to go back to bed, but she refused and suddenly cries out looking for the monkey's paw and insists on wishing her son back to life. He tried to explain about the situation but she still keeps on wishing that for their son to come back to life. Nevertheless he still went to get the paw, when suddenly a strange aura was felt inside the house. He felt a cold touch on his shoulders and heard a soft voice assuring him that he's going to be alright, living life without regrets and full of happiness. As he turned to the direction where he felt the touch hoping that it was Herbert, there were only thin air floating around the room. Mr. White
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The Monkey’s Paw is “magical” paw that will grand all your wishes, or so it’s told to be. Yes there have been wishes that have been granted but also terrible things that have happened to the people who wished upon it. W.W. Jacobs uses foreshadowing to create suspense in “The Monkey's Paw” In what way does W.W. Jacobs use foreshadowing to create suspense?

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In the story, “The Monkey’s Paw”, the White’s acquire a monkey’s paw from an old friend. The friend reveals that the paw is considered magic and then gives it to the Whites, starting a chain of events that brings sorrow to the family. However, just who is responsible for the misfortune that came to the Whites? Sergeant-

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Yes, Herbert was at the door at the end of “The Monkey’s Paw” and he came back as the undead. Firstly, the family wished for 200 pounds and when they received it, it was because their son died. Then the dad made the wish, “‘I wish my son alive again” (Jacobs 8). This means that they made a wish for their son to come back with a magical monkey’s paw that grants wishes just like in the story of “Aladdin.” As a general rule, if someone has some way to bring someone back they will and it will work.

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690 Words | 3 Pages

This then creates the most tension and suspense in the story - what if their son is coming back? They go back to bed, but hours later awake to knocks at the door. As his wife rushes to the door to let the monstrosity inside, Mr. White frantically searches for the Monkey’s Paw. This is by far the most suspenseful moment in the story, because if he does not find it within the small amount of time that he has, their lives could be ruined forever, beyond what their minds could perceive. When he finds it, he wishes their son away, and so comes the cries of disappointment from his wife when she opens the

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495 Words | 2 Pages

The Monkey's paw was face down in the fireplace which might have been the cause to the bad things that happened. An example of foreshadowing was shown when Sergeant-Major said ¨“Hold it up in your right hand, and state your wish out loud so that you can be heard, but I warn you of what might happen¨ (W.W. Jacobs 3). He already knew that the Monkeys paw brought bad luck and it was very important to be careful what was wished for. I think that Mr. White understood that it was important to wish for practical things so he told his wife, ¨If you must wish, wish for something sensible¨ (W.W. Jacobs 3). After making the first wish and what the outcome was for it, I think that Mr. White understood why

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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

A perfect fusillade of knocks [reverberates] through the house, and he [hears] the scraping of a chair as his wife [puts] it down in the passage against the door. He [hears] the creaking of the bolt as it [comes] slowly back and at the same moment he [finds] the monkey’s paw, and frantically [breathes] his third and last wish” (Jacobs 13). He wishes for their son to leave and not return again. At that same moment, the knocking stops and his wife opens the door. When she opens the door and sees nothing outside, she lets out a loud wail of sadness and disappointment (Jacobs 14).

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548 Words | 3 Pages

A cold wind rushed up the stairs and a long, loud wail of disappointment and misery broke from his wife. " This passage reveals that the mother is crestfallen that her son, Herbert didn’t come back. She had her hopes up at the thought of her son coming back but when the knocking stopped and it was silent she grew heartbroken and wanted to see him again. Alternatively, Dahl writes "... the first thing he saw was a bright fire burning in the hearth.

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418 Words | 2 Pages

The title, “The Monkey's Paw” was used multiple times throughout the story; At first It’s meaning or use was just what it was, a Monkey’s Paw that seemed like someone's old souvenir or a memento. But throughout the story it changes into deeper and more perplexing meanings. The paw’s meaning became things like the relenting desire to fix mistakes and regrets, and the symbol of greed and ignorance; shown by the wishes from Mr. and Mrs.White, but It’s true meaning is that you can’t control all things In life, and that you shouldn’t take things for granted. This is one of the most important parts of the story, It’s where the real conflict started and where part of the message Is the quotation or part in the story where Morris warns Mr.White about

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546 Words | 3 Pages

In The Monkeys Paw, Mrs. White used the magical object (monkey’s paw). One out of the three wishes granted using the monkeys paw was to have her son back. The outcome of this was pounding at the door, not knowing exactly who was behind the door. The Monkeys Paw is all about granting wishes and not expecting its outcome. This is comparable to The Story of an Hour because Mrs. Mallard wished to have her husband back in her life, but she didn’t expect the outcome of actually seeing her husband alive.

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776 Words | 4 Pages

With Morris’s face whitening, it tacitly tells the audience that something terrifying happened when Morris made his wishes. This foreshadows that something dreadful will happen once the Whites make their wishes. Question 2: Compare Mr. White’s feelings about the monkey’s paw when he makes the first wish, second wish, and third wish. How does his attitude change?

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582 Words | 3 Pages

In the story “The Monkey’s Paw” the theme is don’t mess with fate and this story elements like character, setting, and plot all help contribute to the theme. The character’s emotions, reaction, and actions are a significant role in revealing the theme. The setting, though not realized as much actually shapes the story too. As normal, plot most definitely contributes to the theme. The character’s reaction contributes to the theme.

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819 Words | 4 Pages

“The Monkey’s Paw” holds back a lot of information, a perfect example of this is when Herbert’s boss comes to tell Mr. White about his son’s death he wouldn’t say Herbert had died he only said, “He was badly hurt, but he’s not in any pain.” It leaves the readers imagination to decide on what happened to Herbert; this state of unknowing creates suspense forcing the reader to continue to read to figure out what happened. Another example of this literary device is when Mr.White says to Mrs.White "He has been dead ten days, and besides he - I would not tell you else, but - I could only recognize him by his clothing. If he was too terrible for you to see then, how now? " this is almost self-explanatory, during those 10 days the no information is given as well as Herbert’s appearance, so the reader is left to decide based on all the give information; what had happened to Herbert.

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649 Words | 3 Pages

“Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality”-Edgar Allan Poe. All great horror stories represent that quote. There is one story that does not. “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs is not a horror story because there is not a monster, it is not believable, and it does not have a creepy setting. Classic horror stories usually have some sort of a monster in it, whether the monster is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde or Frankenstein.

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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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