ipl-logo

Theme Of Karma In 'The Monkey's Paw'

317 Words2 Pages

The Monkey's Paw

The karma in this story was not what you wanted to come back and get you. The main theme that I noticed was karma. Almost every person in this story experienced karma. The karma came back and got Mr. and Mrs. White when they decided to keep the monkeys paw instead of letting it burn in the fire. If they would’ve left it there they would’ve not experienced as much loss. Herbert probably wouldn't have even died if they would’ve destroyed it in the first place. Some people believed the paw was bad, while other people just thought it was dumb and that there was no point to the paw. The Whites should've listened to Sergeant Major-Morris. He knew what he was talking about and had a good idea about what the future held for the Whites. …show more content…

When Sergeant Major-Morris threw the paw in the fire to destroy it he knew something bad was going to happen. He was trying to warn them, but instead the Whites didn’t listen. They just kept it and wanted to sell it to someone else so it was off their hands. Another example was when they wished for Herbert to come back. Since the other wish made something happen, this one would to. The Whites didn’t know what Herbert was going to come back like they just wished for their beloved son to come back.
A large symbol that the story evolved around was the monkey’s paw. It is symbolic because it shows many things. The monkey's paw was the reason there was conflict and many other emotions in this story. Some of the wishes hurt people in the story and some helped people in the story. Throughout the story the monkey's paw played a large role. The story would be nothing without this large

Show More
Related
280 Words | 2 Pages

In W.W Jacob’s short story “The Monkey’s Paw,” there are many instances of foreshadowing in order to keep readers engaged and on the edge of their seats. In part one of “The Monkey’ Paw’” the White family is introduced to the monkey’s paw by, family, friend Sergeant Major Morris. Major Morris explains the dire outcome of using the paw. Mrs. White asks if anyone has used the paw before and Major Morris responds with “The first man used his wishes, yes,”...”I don 't know what his first two wishes were, but the third was for death.

Read More
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.

Read More
692 Words | 3 Pages

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-

Read More
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:

Read More
435 Words | 2 Pages

By: Javan wright The Tell Tale Heart story and the monkey’s paw are both horror. The Tell Tale Heart story has three major characteristics; mystery, horror, and thriller. The monkey, paw has horror and the suspense was the supernatural events going on in the story. In these three paragraphs I will talk about the suspense, fear, and surprise in these two stories.

Read More
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

Read More
1566 Words | 7 Pages

In W. W. Jacobs’ short story, “The Monkey’s Paw,” the White family’s innocent want for a better life is challenged when a magical talisman plagues their family through its wishes. When faced with death, humans have different ways of dealing with the rollercoaster of feelings that accompanies it. The family has to overcome grief, disappointment, and anger as they live their lives without their son. Through these emotions, the characters are being taught not to act foolishly, but they never learn. Through foreshadowing and situational irony, the story “The Monkey’s Paw” conveys the theme of how innocent intentions can have terrible repercussions.

Read More
762 Words | 4 Pages

Symbols often play large roles in connecting stories with readers. Writers use symbols to refer to larger ideas, meanings and feeling, allowing readers to think and further connect to the characters in the story. In Lawrence and Lee’s Inherit the Wind it is shown that a symbol is a concrete thing that represents something abstract, something completely different from itself to show an idea. In the book there are three big symbols, Drummond’s “Golden Dancer”, Darwin’s Origin of Species, and monkeys.

Read More
810 Words | 4 Pages

In the story “The Monkey’s Paw” there was a small amount of cause and effect events, these cause and effect events create different feelings like suspense and much more. Mr. White told a story about the monkey’s paw after hearing it he wanted to test it to see if it was true he then wished for 200 pounds. The next day a soldier came to their house, saying their son had died, but they got the two hundred pounds they wished for, this happened all because he wished for two hundred pounds its simple

Read More
1182 Words | 5 Pages

When many people think about maturing, they think about getting older and having more responsibility when they are young, but this is not necessarily true. You can mature and learn Life lessons at any time in your life from anyone, young or old, as shown by the characters in Part One of Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Two of these characters who display maturing qualities include Uncle Jack Finch and Scout Finch, the daughter of Atticus Finch. Both of these characters learn a new moral about Life throughout the course of the novel. Uncle Jack learns to listen to both sides of the story in an argument before punishing anyone, and Scout learns to understand a person’s situation before forming an opinion about them.

Read More
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.

Read More
776 Words | 4 Pages

Think Question 1: Foreshadowing is a literary device in which a writer gives an advance hint of what is to come later in the story. How does the author of “The Monkey’s Paw” use foreshadowing in the first chapter to suggest that the spell placed on the paw might not bring happiness to whoever possesses it? Cite textual evidence from the selection to support your answer. Response 1: W. W. Jacobs uses foreshadowing in "The Monkey 's Paw" by having Sergeant-Major Morris recount his experience with the monkey’s paw. After Herbert asked Morris if he already requested his three wishes, Morris replies with, “‘I have,’...and his blotchy face whitened” (Jacobs).

Read More
446 Words | 2 Pages

That creates suspense because the reader wants to know why he wished for death. It foreshadows that the paw brings bad luck. Sergeant Major Morris also tells the Whites “…don’t blame me for what happens” (Jacobs 91). It foreshadows that something very bad is going to happen. Herbert foreshadows his death by saying the quote “Well I don’t see the money…and I bet I never shall”(134-135 Jacobs).

Read More
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.

Read More
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.

Read More

More about Theme Of Karma In 'The Monkey's Paw'

Related Topics

Open Document