Monkey’s Paw

1. What is the title of your book ?

Outside, the night is cold and wet. Inside, the White family sits and waits. Where is their visitor? There is a knock at the door. A man is standing outside in the dark. Their visitor has arrived. The visitor waits. He has been india for many years. What has he got? He has brought the hand of a small, dead animal-a monkey’s paw. Outside, in the dark, the visitor smiles and waits for the door to open.

2. Describe the main characters.
Mr. White: Elderly man apparently retired.
Mrs. White: Wife of Mr. White.
Herbert White: Son of Mr. White.
Sergeant-Major Morris: Dinner guest of the Whites. He brings with him a curious talisman, a mummified (preserved) monkey’s paw.

Herbert White – The son of Mr. and Mrs. White. Herbert is an irreverent, affectionate, and loyal young man and the only surviving child of the Whites. He works in an unidentified capacity with heavy machinery at a company called Maws and Meggins. It is possible, although not certain, that Mr. White’s second wish reanimates Herbert as a terrifying corpse.

Mrs. White – Herbert’s mother and Mr. White’s wife. Mrs. White is an intelligent and passionate woman. She shares her husband’s and son’s fascination with Sergeant-Major Morris’s stories and questions him just as eagerly as they do. She is lovingly attentive to her husband and son, although she also enjoys teasing them. Herbert’s death traumatizes Mrs. White, and she forces Mr. White to wish Herbert back to life.

Mr. White – Herbert’s father and Mrs. White’s husband. Mr. White is an old man who is both curious and malleable. A poor man, he thinks longingly about the exotic lands he has never visited. The monkey’s paw fascinates him in part because of its connection to those lands. Although it is Mr. White who makes all three wishes, he makes the first two only at the suggestions of his wife and son. Sergeant-Major Morris – A friend of the Whites. A mysterious and possibly sinister figure, Sergeant-Major Morris enjoys talking about his adventures abroad and shows the Whites his monkey’s paw, in spite of his professed reservations. A jaded and world-weary man, he discourages Mr. White from dreaming of India, suggesting that life is better and simpler at home in England. He throws the monkey’s paw into the fire and urges Mr. White not to make any wishes, but he ultimately tells him exactly how to make a wish. The Representative – The man who informs Mr. and Mrs. White of Herbert’s death. The nervous representative sympathizes with the Whites and tries to distance himself from Maw and Meggins’s failure to take responsibility, stressing that he is following orders and not expressing his own feelings. He gives Mr. and Mrs. White two hundred pounds from the company.

In this story have four protagonists is Mr. White ,Mrs. White , Herbert and Tom Morris . Antagonists is Monkey’s paw .

Name : Mr. White
He is old man . He has mustache and glabrous.

3. What is the theme of your book?
In “The Monkey’s Paw,” Sergeant-Major Morris, an old family friend of the Whites, returns from India with tales of his exotic life and with a strange souvenir—a monkey’s paw. This paw has had a spell put on it by a fakir (a holy man), he tells the Whites. Morris goes on to say that the fakir wanted to show that “fate ruled people’s lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow. He put a spell on it so that three separate men could each have three wishes from it.” As the story unfolds, author Jacobs provides many hints that,…

The write family in this story can make three wishs. At first they laugh, and say “It’s not possible. And what can we wish for? What do we need ? “ But they make a wish ,and then they wait for something to happen. The next day , their first wish comes true , and suddenly, their life is like a terrible ,
terrible dream.

4. What is the plot about ?
The story is based on the well-known plot style where three wishes are granted. This is a creepy story about a magical monkey’s paw that gives three wishes to persons owing it.

Plot Overview
Part I opens on a dark and stormy night as the three members of the White family relax inside their cozy house. Herbert White and his father are playing a game of chess while Mrs. White knits near the fire. After his son wins, Mr. White complains about the terrible weather and nearly deserted road they live near. A family friend, Sergeant-Major Morris, arrives for a visit. Over whisky, he tells stories of his exploits abroad. Mr. White expresses interest in going to India, but the sergeant-major says he would be better off staying at home. At Mr. and Mrs. Whites’ urging, Sergeant-Major Morris takes a small, mummified paw out of his pocket. He explains that a fakir (a mystic miracle worker) placed a spell on the paw to prove that people’s lives are governed by fate and that it is dangerous to meddle with fate. According to the sergeant-major, three men can wish on the paw three times each. The sergeant-major himself has already had his three wishes, as has another man, who used his third wish to ask for death.

The sergeant-major has considered selling the paw, but he doesn’t want it to cause any more trouble than it already has. Moreover, no one will buy the paw without first seeing proof of its effect. The sergeant-major throws the paw into the fire, and Mr. White quickly rescues it. The sergeant-major warns him three times to leave the paw alone, but he eventually explains how to make a wish on the paw. Mrs. White says the story reminds her of the Arabian Nights and jokingly suggests that her husband wish her a pair of extra hands to help her with all her work. The sergeant-major doesn’t find this joke funny, however, and urges Mr. White to use common sense if he insists on wishing. After supper and more tales of India, the sergeant-major leaves. Herbert says he thinks the sergeant-major is full of nonsense and jokes that his father should make himself an emperor so that he doesn’t have to listen to Mrs. White’s nagging. In mock anger, Mrs. White playfully chases her son. Mr. White says he has everything he wants and isn’t sure what to wish for. Herbert says that two hundred pounds would enable them to pay off the money owed for the house.

Mr. White wishes aloud for two hundred pounds as Herbert accompanies him with melodramatic chords played on the piano. Mr. White suddenly cries out and says that the paw moved like a snake in his hand. After Mr. and Mrs. White go to bed, Herbert sits by the fire and sees a vividly realistic monkey face in the flames. He puts out the fire, takes the monkey’s paw, and goes to bed. Part II begins on the next morning, a sunny winter day. The room seems cheerful and normal in contrast to the previous evening’s gloomy atmosphere and the mummified paw now looks harmless. Mrs. White comments on how ridiculous the sergeant-major’s story was but remarks that two hundred pounds couldn’t do any harm. They could, Herbert jokes, if the money fell out of the sky onto his father’s head. Mr. White answers that people often mistake coincidence for granted wishes.

Herbert then leaves for work. Later that day, Mrs. White notices a stranger outside dressed in nice clothes. The stranger hesitantly approaches their gate three times before opening it and coming up to the door. Mrs. White ushers him in. He nervously states that he is a representative of Maw and Meggins, Herbert’s employer. Mrs. White asks whether Herbert is all right, and the representative says he is hurt, but in no pain. For a moment, Mrs. White feels relieved, until she realizes that Herbert feels no pain because he’s dead. The representative says that Herbert was “caught in the machinery.” After a pause, Mr. White says that Herbert was the only child they had left. Embarrassed, the representative stresses that he is simply obeying Maw and Meggins’s orders. He then explains that the company will not take any responsibility for the death but will give the Whites two hundred pounds. Mrs. White shrieks, and Mr. White faints. In Part III, the Whites bury Herbert. Several days pass, and the couple feels exhausted and hopeless. A week after the burial, Mr. White wakes up and hears his wife crying by the window. He gently urges her to come back to bed, but she refuses. He dozes off again until Mrs.

White suddenly cries out that she wants the monkey’s paw. In hysterics, she tells him to go downstairs and wish Herbert back to life. Mr. White resists and tells her that Herbert’s death and the two hundred pounds they had received had nothing to do with his wish the previous night. Mr. White says that he didn’t want to tell her before, but Herbert was so mangled that he had to identify the body by looking at the clothes. Mrs. White doesn’t listen, however, and continues to insist on wishing Herbert back to life with the monkey’s paw. Mr. White retrieves the paw from its place downstairs. Mrs. White orders him to make the wish two more times until he finally complies. He makes the wish, and as they wait, the candle goes out.

They hear the clock, the creak of a stair, and the sound of a mouse. At last Mr. White goes downstairs. His match goes out, and before he can strike another, he hears a knock at the door. Another knock sounds, and Mr. White dashes upstairs. Mrs. White hears the third knock and says it’s Herbert. She realizes he hadn’t returned right after the wish had been made because he’d had to walk two miles from the graveyard to their house. Mr. White begs her not to open the door, but she breaks free and runs downstairs. As she struggles to reach the bolt, the knocking becomes more insistent. Mr. White searches frantically for the paw, which had dropped to the floor. As Mrs. White pulls back the bolt, Mr. White finds the paw and makes a final wish. The knocking stops, and Mrs. White cries out. Mr. White dashes downstairs and sees that beyond the door, the street is empty.

The white family wants to have a lot of money ,so they wishs from the Monkey’s paw . It’s true ,but their son Herbert died in an accident.

5. Can you find any examples of ‘’Foreshadowing’’

6. What is the “Mood” of the book like?

The Horror Genre
“The Monkey’s Paw” is a classic of the horror genre that has been copied and adapted numerous times in the century since it was first published. Jacobs wove many common and recognizable elements of the genre into the story: the story opens on a dark and stormy night, the Whites live on a deserted street, doors bang unexpectedly, stairs squeak, and silences are interrupted by the ticking of the clock. These elements heighten the tension and inform readers that something dreadful could occur at any moment. Another element of classic horror is Jacobs’s transformation of the happy, loving White family into people who live amidst death and misery. Herbert’s transformation is the most obvious, from a joking and playful son to a living corpse. Parts of Mr. and Mrs. White also die after Herbert’s accident, and they become obsessed with death and the loss in their lives. Jacobs also draws from classic horror fiction when he plays off the White family’s happiness with readers’ sense of impending doom.

As the Whites make lighthearted jokes about the monkey’s paw, for example, readers cringe, sensing that disaster will soon strike. More than a classic horror piece, “The Monkey’s Paw” is also a modern parable, infused with moral messages and instructions on how to live a more fulfilling life. As with all fables, the story’s morals are familiar: don’t tempt fate, and be careful what you wish for. The White family isn’t wealthy, but they still have everything that’s important, including love, happiness, and a comfortable life. Mr. White even says that he is so content that he wouldn’t even know what to wish for. When he does make his first wish—partly in jest, partly out of curiosity—it is not for untold riches or worldly power, but merely for enough money to finally purchase their house. His small and sensible wish, however, is enough to tempt fate into killing Herbert. Jacobs’s story adheres to the traditional belief that we do not really want what we think we want and that wanting more than what’s sufficient may bring ruin.

7. How do you predict the story will end?

8. What is your opinion of the book so far ?
This is a great short story. What I believe the moral is trying to say here is that you can’t have everything at the snap of a finger (no pun!). There has to be a consequence if you’re going to get something without earning/working for it. It starts off slow and very inconspicuous…but around the middle of part II starts to get creepy and send chills down your spin. Don’t read this story alone in the dark..it may scar you for a while!