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“The Monkey’s Paw”

Literature Books,

Page 84

About the Authors

• William Wymark Jacobs (1863-1943) was a British writer who specialized in stories about the sea and the people who made their livings on and around the wharves. He produced fourteen novels and numerous collections of short stories, but he is probably best known for his tales of mystery and supernatural.

About the Authors

• Louis N. Parker, who was born in France in 1852, wrote, and sometimes directed, at least twenty original plays or adaptations for American and British audiences between 1894 and 1922. He died in England in 1944.

Build Background

It is a dark and stormy night and a small family huddles around the fire. Outside, heavy footsteps approach the door of their isolated cottage, and in walks…

• COMPLETE the sentence (on the left side) with about 10 words of vivid description. Be ready to share.

Next ODD page in ISN:�“Monkey’s Paw” Wishes Chart

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PREVIEW:

• The story you are about to read is a classic horror story. It may send chills down your spine. It may also make you think about how much control people have over their lives.

Chess—a game requiring strategy (p. 360)

• The object of the game of chess is to trap the opponent’s king. When a player says “check,” it signals that the opponent’s king is in danger of being captured. When the player says “checkmate” or “mate,” it signals that the opponent’s king is trapped and the game is over.

Visualizing �(bottom of p. 360) (Using your 5 senses)

• “…of all the beastly, slushy, out-of-the-way places to live in, this is the worst. Pathway’s a bog, and the road’s a torrent. I don’t know what people are thinking about. I suppose because only two houses in the road are let, they think it doesn’t matter.”

Clarify (middle of p. 362)

• He began to talk, the little family circle regarding with eager interest this visitor from distant parts, as he squared his broad shoulders in the chair and spoke of wild scenes and doughty deeds; of wars and plagues and strange peoples.

Infer-bottom of page 86

• The visitor tells the White family about his strange adventures in a faraway place.
• What do you learn about Sergeant Major Morris from the opening description?

India

Fakir

Monkey’s Paw

Higher Level Questions, �top of p. 363

• Why do you think the first man used his last wish for death?
• Why do you think the Sergeant doesn’t know if he would use three more wishes?
• What do you predict will happen next?

Arabian Nights

• These fanciful, sometimes brutal tales, revel in the art of storytelling. The underlying suggestion of the Arabian Nights is that a fantastically precious jewel exists which, when it comes into contact with people, actually changes them. The jewel is the maginicently powerful art of story. There may not be any better examples in the world of how art, trickery, magic and craft can swirl together and form a world that every reader and listener wants to enter. Regardless of the situation presented in any particular Arabian Nights story, the assumption contained in the story is that life is always worth living and that human endeavor, along with human weakness, is a wonderful and fascinating thing to behold.

Clarify, (bottom of p. 89)

• The family doesn’t believe the stories the visitor told, and they aren’t going to believe that the monkey’s paw has any powers.

Foreshadow-middle of page 89

• What clues so far suggest that the wishes will cause unhappiness for Mr. White and his family?

Suspense-bottom of page 89

• Mrs. White jokingly suggests that Mr. White wish for four pairs of hands for her. Alarmed, the sergeant major warns Mr. White to wish for “something sensible,” if he must wish at all. How does this incident heighten the suspense?

Compare and Contrast,�top of p. 90

• How does the sergeant-major’s attitude toward the paw differ from the Whites’ attitude?

Predict, top of p. 91

• Do you think the monkey’s paw will bring Mr. White happiness? Why or why not?

Infer (top of p. 91)

• What is the family’s feeling about the paw’s power?

Reading Check

• What does Mr. White wish for? Why?

1,000 US Dollars (USD) is equal to 200 UK Pounds (GBP)

Questioning (middle of p. 93)

• Who do you think the man is?
• Why do you think he hesitates at the gate?
• What do you think happened to Herbert, the son?

Clarify (middle of p. 94)

• He didn’t realize his wife screamed, and he fainted when he realized he caused his son to die with his silly wish.

Wishes

Expectations

Results

• Wished for 200 pounds, just wanted money

• Herbert is killed at work, the 200 pounds is compensation for the family’s loss

Higher level question

• Suddenly Mrs. White has an idea. What do you think she tells her husband to do?

Predict (middle of p. 97)

• What do you think will happen with the second wish?
• How does Mr. White feel when it appears the wish won’t come true?

Questioning (middle of p. 98)

• What does Mrs. White mean by “I forgot it was two miles away?”
• What does Mr. White do before his wife can open the door?

Wishes

Expectations

Results

• Wished for 200 pounds, just wanted money
• Wished for his son to be alive again.

• Herbert is killed at work, the 200 pounds is compensation for the family’s loss
• A knock sounds at the door.

Questioning (bottom of p. 99)

• Did you want Mrs. White to open the door? Explain your answer.
• What is Mr. White’s final wish?
• The Indian fakir put a spell on the paw “to show that fate ruled people’s lives, and that those that interfered with it did so to their sorrow.” How does this message apply to the White family?

Literary Elements

• Setting

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• Mood

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• Characters

• House in England during the late 1800’s
• Sinister; suspenseful
• Mr. and Mrs. White and their son, Herbert; Sergeant-Major Morris

Literary Elements

• Which event sets up the major conflict?

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• What is the major conflict?

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• Mr. White getting the monkey’s paw
• The wish for money, and it costs them his son’s life. They are miserable and want to undo the action.

Literary Elements�What other conflicts result from the major conflict? �

• The Whites have internal conflict as they struggle with their grief.
• Their external conflict is seen in their isolation from each other. A more obvious external conflict is the desire of Mrs. White for a second wish and Mr. White’s refusal to make the wish.

Rising Action

• There is considerable interval of time between Mr. White’s second wish and it’s fulfillment during which nothing happens.
• The suspense heightens as Mrs. White waits with excited anticipation and Mr. White wait the results with dread.

Climax

• A very faint knock is ignored by Mr. White The knocking becomes louder, and Mr. and Mrs. White argue over whether to open the door.

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Falling Actions

• Because the Whites’ lives are over with the death of their son, it is fitting that the end of the story shows finality of the last wish.
• There are no more wishes to be used up so nothing else can be done.
• The quick ending also reinforces the idea that life can change in an instant from simple but happy to miserable.
• The lack of elaboration in the end of the conclusion keeps alive the reader’s speculations about what might have been at the door reinforces the story’s mood.

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