When writing a story, poem, or a song, people use literary terms to express what they feel or what the character feels. For example, a story is good when it makes people feel like they are the one’s experiencing everything the character feels. It also means the author used the literary elements the right way. This essay will examine “The Monkey’s Paw” by W. W. Jacobs and the way the author used literary elements in creating this chilling and well written story that proves fate can’t be changed. Jacobs starts the beginning of the story with a bit of a spooky tone. Mr. White just having finished playing chess with his son and bringing in a serious scene. Jacobs wrote, “...a tall burly man, beady of eye, and rubicund of visage (The …show more content…
Monkey’s Paw 33).” The short story starts to tense up in this part of the dialogue as the tone gets serious and not to mention the whole, White family seems to take this man’s visit seriously.
In page thirty-three Jacobs describes how the family behaves, “the little family circle regarding with eager interest this visitor from distant parts (W.W. Jacobs)”. Now the purpose of these words is to make the reader feel excitement about the visitor Sergeant Morris. It helps people picture the setting of the family taking a seat surrounding the tall man with a fire in the main room as if the reader was there. Jacobs also uses Sergeant Morris from the story to bring in a spooky vibe in page thirty-four, right after Mr. Whiteasks Morris about the monkey’s paw, Morris says, “Nothing...leastways nothing worth hearing (W.W. Jacobs pg34).” With these words Jacobs let’s the readers know that the focus of the story will be on the monkey’s paw later revealing that it symbolizes the fate of the family. …show more content…
This quote also foreshadows that Mr. White will use the paw for a wish since in page thirty-three he describes his house he states, “of all the beastly, slushy, out of the way places...this is the worst... Pathway’s a bog, and the road’s a torrent...only two houses on the road (The Monkey’s paw pg33).” This helps the reader picture the setting of an isolated house and crappy roads. The tone Mr. White uses here shows that he isn’t grateful for what he has and would do anything to get what he wants if an opportunity showed up. The second half of the beginning of the story Jacobs exposes the theme. In page thirty-four,Morris states, “He wanted to show that fate rules people’s lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow (W.W. Jacobs pg34).” That’s what the Muslim told Morris when he gave him the paw, and it opens the introduction of the story which will be focusing on the family’s fate and the paw, the controlling mechanism. After Sergeant Morris leaves, the Whites stay with the paw, but they joke about it not believing Morris’s words. Ms. White asks, “could two hundred pounds hurt you, father? (The Monkey’s Paw pg37)” and Herbert answer’s, “Might drop on his head from the sky.” The tone of these words shows the family thinks that if they ask the paw for a wish it will appear out of nowhere, but Morris stated that everything happened naturally. This foreshadows that something can happen to the family if they wish for something without taking precaution, having in mind they will have to pay a price because the wish doesn’t just appear. Later the story proves the point that “those who interfered with fate did so to their sorrow,” when Mr. White wishes for two hundred pounds, one of Herbert’s work mates visits the whites to claim Herbert’s death and as compensation the company gives them two hundred pounds in page thirty-nine of the story. Now this story takes place in the late 1700s. In an article called, “What Was It Like to Live in 18th-Century England?” a scientist said, “the rich were getting richer, and the poor, poorer...it was a difficult life for the poor (Lang pg1)” In Mr. White’s case he seemed to be in the middle but he was not getting richer so he took his chance with the paw ignoring the cost.
Jacobs also showed his point that messing with fate is dangerous with Herbert’s death. Herbert’s death affects the Whites, Ms. White especially. It wasn’t until about a week ago that she thought about using the paw to bring her son back. Mr. White didn’t agree with her knowing it could be dangerous in page forty while he gets the paw for Ms. White it says, “His brow cold with sweat, he...groped along the wall until he found himself in the small passage with the unwholesome thing in his hand. (W.W. Jacobs pg40)” the tone of these words shows how dangerous the paw has become and that Mr. White knows they will somehow have to pay another price after wishing their son Herbert alive. Not wanting to disappoint his beloved wife hewished for Herbert alive again interfering with fate. This foreshadows that the whites will have to pay the price by losing their lives to see Herbert which’s not in the story because Mr. White prevents that from happening. In page forty-one after Ms. White assumes that its her son knocking on the door while she struggles with the bolt, Mr. White says, “don’t let it in (The Monkey’s Paw pg41),” this tense tone reveals, he truly thinks it isn’t his son and he might possibly be thinking it’s a killer instead sending them to heaven with Herbert, as the paw’s price for the wish. Although, Jacobs doesn’t write what Mr. White
says on his third and last wish its pretty obvious that he wished his son to go back to his grave at the exact moment his wife opened the door. In page forty-two Jacobs writes, “A perfect fusillade of knocks reverberated through the house... (The Monkey’s Paw pg42)” this description shows a metaphor comparing the person’s knocks as a fusillade and it further proves that it wasn’t Herbert because he wouldn’tbe knocking that way to startle his parents. As soon as Ms. White opens the door she notices that she lost the chance of seeing her son when its empty outside. The whites are both safe, but this time Mr. White might have to pay the price by earning hate from his wife after wishing his son dead again. Jacobs writes, “a long loud wail of disappointment and misery from his wife gave him courage to run down to her side (The Monkey’s Paw pg42).” This description of Ms. White’s reaction shows she could hate Mr. White afterward even though the story doesn’t say it, as the price for interfering with fate. If only the whole family was thankful maybe they wouldn’t have to deal with the paw in the first place. W. W. Jacobs finished the spooky short story with a lot of clues in the end, but he still usedthe literary terms the right way for us to understand the theme of the story. Using the paw of the monkey as the symbol of fate he taught us that interfering with it will only bring trouble for us according to the story. For the Whites one wish led to another when they ignored Morris’s warning. Its possible that the purpose of Jacobs’s story was to tell us that we should accept who we are and be thankful for what we have instead of asking for more like the Whites did in this fictional yet chilling story of “The Monkey’s paw”
Another reason why The Monkey's Paw explains foreshadowing with suspense or tension because in the article the author writes again "A rat," said the old man, in shaking tones—"a rat. It passed me on the stairs."
“I warn you of the consequences” - “The Monkey's Paw” (page 89) this essay will be comparing and contrasting Two stories “The Monkey's paw” by w.w. Jacobs and “The Third wish” by Joan Aiken. In “The Monkey's paw” and “The Third Wish” the mood and setting are almost completely different, If it wasn't for the theme this book wouldn't be so similar .
One may stutter over the conception that a monkey’s paw holds the power to determine fate, rather than siding with freewill. In the short story, “The Monkey’s Paw,” an average family, located in the middle class discovers a monkey’s paw and are told that they had three wishes upon that magical, yet deceiving item. However, their decisions cost them several, unintended consequences, due to greed within the human mind. The author, W.W. Jacobs uses symbolism, foreshadowing, and irony to convey the peril of wish fulfillment and the dangers of interfering with fate.
Three wishes, an old Indian curse, and a mummified paw, that was cut from a monkey. This is going to be exciting! “The Monkey’s Paw” is a short story written by W.W. Jacobs in the early 1900’s just after the turn of the centenary. Even though the text is short, it grabs the reader’s attention and keeps them on the edge of their seats until the very end. As exhilarating as this thriller is to read, unfortunately like many literary works written during that time, “The Monkey’s Paw,” is demeaning towards women and goes against feminist literary criticism’s principles and ideologies.
In the story, Mr. White wishes that he could have 200 pounds from the Monkey's Paw. In the text it states, “I wish for two hundred pounds," said the old man distinctly…."He was caught in the machinery… Mr. White dropped his wife's hand, and rising to his feet, gazed with a look of horror at his visitor. His dry lips shaped the words, "How much?" "Two hundred pounds," was the answer.”(“The Monkey’s Paw”). This piece of evidence leaves the reader in suspense because the reader doesn’t know how much destruction the paw is going to cause in the future. The White family is suddenly given the 200 pounds for their son's death which is never expected. The reader doesn’t know what might happen in the future and could be even more devastating for the family. Furthermore in the “Monkey's Paw,” the reader infers Mrs. White wished for Herbert to come back from the dead but did not realize the possibilities of the outcomes. Moreover, Jacobs develops suspense by incorporating cliffhanger to the story. In the text, it states “The knocking ceased suddenly, although the echoes of it were still in the house. He heard the chair drawn back and the door opened. A cold wind rushed up the staircase, and a long loud wail of disappointment and misery from his wife gave him courage to run down to her side, and then to the gate beyond. The street lamp flickering
In The Book Thief, Death bluntly tells the reader, “You are going to die.” The macabe statement grabs the attention of the reader and points to a larger theme: fate rules peoples lives. The theme of fate is present in many popular works of literature. Through the use of literary devices, the authors of The Book Thief, Monkey’s Paw, and The Interlopers convey their common theme that fate is fixed and that humanity can not change the course of their lives.
White used on the monkey’s paw was to have 200 pounds (Jacobs 91). The previous examples prove how the theme of limiting luxury is illustrated differently in both stories by showing the wealth of each family. In “The Veldt,” the family is in a superior financial state where they have access to anything they want and where money is not an issue. However in “The Monkey’s Paw,” although it took place in 1902, the White’s first wish was for 200 pounds- 243 dollars and 83 cents- which is not an insanely large amount of money that would result in them being care-free for the rest of their lives. Overall, this proves the theme of the limiting luxury through showing the amount of means each family has and how their limit’s would be different from one another's as the two stories progress. Another instance of how the theme is portrayed differently in the short stories is how finances play a role in family life. For instance, in Ray Bradbury’s “The Veldt,” the Hadley’s have access to such an extreme amount of money that it begins to affect how the parents and kids interact. This occurs when Peter threatens his father by saying, “I don’t think you’d better consider it any more, father” (Bradbury 7). On the contrary, the relationship between the members of the White family is much
Just like a genie, right? Wrong. Thesewishes come with an outstanding price. The story proves that interfering with fate can have a disastrous outcome. “The Monkey’s Paw” uses literary devices to create a story filled with both suspense and horror..
In short, there are multiple similarities and differences in the characters, plot, and resolution in the short story and motion picture “The Monkey’s Paw” that clearly influence the audience. For instance, the difference in characters affects the mood. Similarities in the plot influence the tone, and the corresponding resolutions impact the theme. The director of the motion picture “The Monkey’s Paw” chose to stick to some aspects of the text as well as change some for numerous reasons, some of which include keeping the audience's attention, sustaining the author's tone in the text, and ensuring that the readers and viewers receive the same message.
In the stories, The Monkey's Paw and The Landlady, the characters, settings, and mood, are all similar and different in many different ways. These suspenseful yet intriguing stories leave readers confused and thrilled but the end. The characters are confused, the setting is mysterious, and the mood is traumatizing.
Comparing The Monkey's Paw and The Signalman. In these two short stories, both authors write gothic tale stories. Both authors use gothic tale features e.g. darkness, isolation. and use of the senses.
"Plot Summary: 'The Monkey's Paw'." DISCovering Authors. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Discovering Collection. Gale. St Charles Community College. 15 Apr. 2011.
The authors use of tone, and word choice can greatly affect the reader's’ mood. First, The Monkey’s Paw. In this story the author uses great word choice that goes right along with the mysterious story. Without the tone and word choice of the author, the story would not be much scary at all.
Striking to the audience that a loved one would be taken away after The White Family finds a loophole in their life. The family uses the paw again to then wish for their son back alive but, Herbert was no the same as once he was. This scenario is relatable to the audience because it shows how someone will take shortcuts to reach a goal but, does not know how to face the consequences. Seeing how the family would do anything to get their son back, even wishing for his return with the same tool that might have killed him shows that they would anything to get their son back like a mother who loses a son. Moreover, deception allows an author to gain the reader’s attention.
Events take place through the art of African storytelling by Simon, the ‘narrator’ who offers a commentary on the lives of all the characters. He shares pained experiences that the characters endure in their lives such as that of the beating of Alfred Sorrows and the self-mutilation of Ruth. The commentary takes a very irreverent approach and serious issues are introduces light-heartedly and playfully. This element lends itself to the postmodern style of the text but also highlights the theme of futility. The minds