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The Monkey’s Paw LITERARY ANALYSIS: PLOT
PART I. DIRECTIONS: Identify each passage below as exposition , rising action , climax , falling action , or resolution . Then, tell what each passage foreshadows.
1. “Hark at the wind,” said Mr. White, who, having seen a fatal mistake after it was too late, was amiably desirous of preventing his son from seeing it.
Part of plot: _____________________ Foreshadows: ______________________________________________________
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2. He 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.
Part of plot: _____________________ Foreshadows: ______________________________________________________
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3. “The first man had his three wishes, yes,” was the reply; “I don’t know what the first two were, but the third was for death.”
Part of plot: _____________________ Foreshadows: ______________________________________________________
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4. Herbert sat alone in the darkness, gazing at the dying fire, and seeing faces in it. The last face was so horrible and so simian that he gazed at it in amazement.
Part of plot: _____________________ Foreshadows: ______________________________________________________
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PART II. DIRECTIONS: In the boxes below, list three chronological events that are part of the rising action in “The
Monkey’s Paw.”
1 st
plot event
2 nd
plot event
3 rd
plot event

PART III. COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
DIRECTIONS: Write your responses to the questions in this section on the lines provided.
Identify two ( 2) comments Sergeant Major Morris’s makes that foreshadow the harm that the monkey’s paw will cause.
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In “The Monkey’s Paw,” the firm of Maw and Meggins pay the Whites to avoid legal responsibility for Herbert’s death. Provide two earlier details that help the reader predict that the payment will amount to two hundred pounds.
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Identify the climax of “The Monkey’s Paw” and explain why this event qualifies as the climax. (3 lines)
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The narrator never directly tells us Mr. White’s third wish in “The Monkey’s Paw,” but the story’s events suggest the answer. Identify what Mr. White’s third wish for and explain how you came to that conclusion in a well-structured paragraph? Provide two pieces of textual evidence in support of your response. (7-8 lines)
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The Monkey’s Paw Open-Book Quiz
DIRECTIONS: Identify the letter of the choice that best answers the question.
1. Which detail foreshadows the effect of the first wish?
A. There is a crashing sound from the piano, which Herbert is playing.
B. Mr. White faints after the monkey’s paw moves in his hand.
C. Herbert urges his father to wish to be an emperor.
D. Mr. White loses the chess game to his son.
2. How does the family feel in the morning after Morris’s visit?
A. relaxed and relieved
B. anxious and upset
C. angry and confused
D. joyful and amazed
3. Which line foreshadows what happens to Herbert?
A. “I don’t see the money . . . and I bet I never shall.”
B. “Why, we’re going to be rich, and famous, and happy.”
C. “If you only cleared the house, you’d be quite happy. . .
.”
D. “I expect you’ll find the cash tied up in a big bag. . . .”
4. What does the man from Maw and Meggins bring to the Whites?
A. the body of their son
B. two hundred pounds
C. the monkey’s paw
D. a bill
5. What fact about Mrs. White helps you predict what the second wish will be?
A. She is a loving mother.
B. She does not fear death.
C. She does not believe in the monkey’s paw.
D. She is very angry.
6. In “The Monkey’s Paw,” what is outside the door after the second wish?
A. the man from Maw and Meggins
B. Herbert’s body, back from the dead
C. the holy fakir
D. Morris
7. Which detail foreshadows the results of the third wish?
A. The monkey’s paw wriggles in Mr. White’s grasp.
B. Morris urges the Whites to burn the monkey’s paw.
C. Herbert goes off cheerfully to work.
D. Mrs. White claims she could never fear the child she has nursed.
8. What does this line spoken by Mr. White help you predict?
“It seems to me I’ve got all I want.”
A. that he will wish for a large sum of money
B. that the wishes can only change his life for the worse
C. that his wife will force him to wish for something
D. that he will regret it if he doesn’t make a wish