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The Monkey's Paw Foreshadowing

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Recommended: Themes of the monkey's paw fate

In W.W. Jacobs’ story, “The Monkey's’ Paw”, Mr White wanted 200 pounds to pay off his house, but his wish cost him his son's life, so he tries to wish him back to life. One passage in particular (page 6) is significant to the rest of the story. The passage is so important because it introduces conflict, sets the tone, and the rest of the story is based on this passage. Firstly, conflict arises for the first time in this passage. For example, a man shows up at the White’s door. He explains to Mr. and Mrs. White that their son, Herbert, had died as a result of a machinery accident. “He was caught in the machinery....”(6). This brings up conflict by showing that the monkey's paw is cursed, and that Mr. White's wish cost his son his life. This passage brings up the first major …show more content…

An example of this is, once Herbert dies, the rest of the story is about Mr. and Mrs. White trying to bring him back. “Go down and get it! Wish our boy alive again!” (7). They wish upon the monkey’s paw, but since it is cursed, the wish does not come true. The chosen passage foreshadows and provides content for the rest of the story.
Finally, this passage sets the tone of the story. The tone of this story is dark and scary. In the beginning of the story, the reader does not know that the monkey’s paw is cursed, so the reader may think that the tone is something happy or lucky. But, this passage shows that the monkey's paw is cursed and that only bad things can come from it. So, this passage sets the tone of “The Monkey’s Paw” as dark and scary.
Therefor, the passage on page 6 is the most important passage in the whole entire story. The passage adds conflict for the first time, sets the tone of the story, and adds content to the rest of the story as well. It is the most significant passage in the story, “The Monkey’s Paw by W.W. Jacobs. Always know that life can spin out of control if you are filled with

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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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