“The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs
Directions: Use textual evidence from the story to support all answers.
Chapter 1 Questions:
1. How does Mr. White approach the game of chess as he plays with his son? What might this
reveal about his personality?
The narrator states he “possessed ideas about the game involving radical changes, putting his
king into such sharp and unnecessary perils that it even provoked comment from the whitehaired old lady….” Mr. White is taking big risks in his approach to chess with his son. With the
risks he takes, he ends up losing the game to his son. This might reveal he is the kind of person
who likes to take risks; risks he hopes will pay off in big ways. At the same time, these risks could
cost him greatly in terms of the consequences. The narrator believes the risks he takes are not
needed, so he might be the kind of person that likes to take risks or chances when he really
doesn’t have to; he might do it for the thrill. The narrator also states that Mr. White realized the
mistake he made in the game after it was too late. This could also show that Mr. White might be
the kind of person that does not think things all the way through before acting.
2. When Mr. White states that he’d like to go to India, just like Sergeant-Major Morris, Morris tells
him “better where you are.” In what way might this be foreshadowing?
Mr. White seems to be enthralled by the stories that Morris is telling, stories of far off places he
has never been. When he makes the wish of visiting these places like Morris, Morris essentially
tells him he is better off where he is. Mr. White has a nice life with his son and wife, a warm and
comfortable home, etc. Morris might be telling him he should appreciate what he has. This
might be foreshadowing, indicating that Mr. White should appreciate what he has, and if not,
something negative may result.
3. Morris tells Mr. White that the old fakir who owned the monkey’s paw put a spell on it to “show
that fate ruled people’s lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow.”
How might this information about the monkey’s paw be an example of foreshadowing?
This might be a clue that if Mr. White or his family uses this paw to make wishes, wishes that
would interfere with their fate, something bad will happen to them as a result.
4. After Mr. White retrieves the monkey’s paw from the fire, give examples of foreshadowing,
provided by Morris, that build suspense or hint at what might happen later in connection with
the monkey’s paw.
Morris cautions Mr. White repeatedly about the possible negative consequences that might
result from use of this paw. He states: “Better let it burn.” “If you keep it, don’t blame me for
what happens. Pitch it on the fire like a sensible man.” “I warn you of the consequences.” “With
a look of alarm on his face… If you must wish… wish for something sensible.” He also pressed
Mr. White again to throw it away after Mr. White paid him something for the paw. All these
clues point to future events of the story not going well for Mr. White if he wishes on this paw,
making readers wonder what will happen to him if he does so.
5. Give examples of Herbert White’s attitude towards the monkey’s paw.
Herbert thinks the stories about the monkey’s paw and its potential power are just made up. He
thinks they are exaggerated, like the other stories Morris tells about his adventures in India and
other places. He jokes with his father that he should wish to be an emperor so his wife can no
longer tell him what to do (no longer “henpeck” him).
6. Why does Mr. White at first have trouble making a wish on the monkey’s paw? What does he
end up wishing for?
He says he does not know what to wish for as he believes he has everything he wants. Although,
rather than appreciating what he has, he takes his son’s advice to wish for money ($200
pounds).
Chapter 2 Questions:
1. Using details from the first page of chapter two, provide examples of Mrs. White’s contradictory
feelings about the monkey’s paw and the wish that Mr. White made.
She says Morris’s stories were nonsense and that any wishes would likely not be granted. She
also disavows his warnings that if the wishes are granted things will go badly. She does not
believe wishing for $200 pounds could hurt Mr. White. However, she still seems hopeful the
wish for money will come true as she “scurries to the door” when the postman comes, which
could mean she is hoping he is about to deliver their money. She is disappointed when she finds
out she only received a bill for the tailor.
2. When the well-dressed stranger appears at their home, what foreshadowing clues are provided
that hint at the message that he brings will not be a positive one?
The well-dressed stranger is trying to make up his mind as if he should approach their home. He
keeps pausing at the gate and changing his mind like he is resistant to go forward. When he
enters the house, he seems “ill at ease.”
3. When the stranger arrives, what clues can the reader use to make an inference that Mrs. White
believes he is rich? What inference can the reader make about why Mrs. White believes the
stranger has come?
She comments on the fact that he is well dressed and wore a new silk hat. She seems conscious
of the fact that they are not rich, perhaps she is embarrassed, and she hides her apron under
the chair cushion. She even apologizes for the room and what her husband is wearing. The
reader can infer that she is hoping, because this man is wealthy, he might be there to deliver the
$200 from her husband’s wish.
4. How was Mrs. White able to make the inference that her son was dead?
The messenger says her son is badly hurt, but he also says he is not in any pain. Mrs. White must
have thought to herself, how could my son be badly injured but not feel any pain? She draws
the conclusion that her son must be dead. She also used the messenger’s facial expression and
the fact that he turned away from her (averted his face) as clues that her son was dead.
5. How is the end of chapter two an example of situational irony?
With situational irony, the outcome of the situation is not what the reader expected to happen.
This is definitely a twist in the plot. One hoped the Whites would receive the $200 but did not
expect their son to be killed in a machine accident and then receive $200 as compensation for
his loss of life. The reader did not expect the Whites to receive the money this way.
Chapter 3 Questions:
1. How are the behaviors of Mr. and Mrs. White different at the start of chapter 3?
Their house is “steeped in shadow and silence” so they are not talking to one another. They are
hopeless and apathetic. They have nothing to talk about and their days are long and weary.
Before their son was killed, their days seemed happy, content, and warm. His wife also cries a
lot.
2. In what ways has Mrs. White’s attitude about the power of the monkey’s paw changed?
She now believes the paw has the power to grant wishes. She seems convinced if her husband
wishes for their son to be brought back from the dead that it will happen.
3. Why might Mr. White say that to bring back their son would be “foolish and wicked”?
Mr. White believes if they wish their son to come alive again that he will come back as he was
when he was last alive - mutilated from the machine accident. This might be why he says a wish
to bring their son back would be “foolish and wicked.” One wonders whether he also thinks it
would be wicked because fate has decreed their son to die this way, and if they bring him back,
it would be gambling with fate. The fakir who put the spell on the paw said that interfering with
fate would turn out badly. Perhaps Mr. White is afraid of what else could happen to them if they
make this new wish.
4. In what way does Mrs. White have power over her husband in the early parts of this chapter?
Mr. White does not want to wish to bring their son back, but at one point the narrator says he is
afraid of his wife and how she is acting. Even though he doesn’t want to make the wish, his wife
continues to command him to do so, and he does.
5. How does Mr. White react when he hears the knocks at the door?
When the first very quiet knock takes place, he drops his box of matches and he freezes in fear
as if he is shocked (or maybe he doesn’t want to reveal that anyone is home). When the second
knock happens, he flees to his bedroom and closes the door. When the third knock rings out
through the house, his wife hears it. When she asks what the sound was, Mr. White lies and tells
her it was a rat on the stairs. Clearly, he is scared of whatever or whomever is at the door.
6. Using clues from the story:
a. Make an inference as to what Mr. White believes is on the other side of the door.
He tells his wife, “For God’s sake don’t let it in.” With the word choice of “it” the reader can
infer that Mr. White believes the monkey’s paw has worked and brought back his son, who
might now be a walking, mutilated corpse, to their very door.
b. Next, make an inference as to what Mr. White made for his “third and last wish.”
Mr. White is wildly searching for the monkey’s paw in order to make a 3rd wish before his
wife let’s “the thing” that he believes is standing at the door into their home. As she pulls
back the bolt to open the door, he makes a wish, but the narrator does not say what the
wish was. After he makes his wish and before Mrs. White opens the door, the knocking
stops, and when she opens the door, no one is there. One might infer that Mr. White wished
for their son to go back to the grave.
c. Finally, make an inference as to why Mr. White made this wish.
Mr. White might have feared for his wife to see her son in a mutilated condition. He warned
her of how he looked upon his death (details he had originally concealed from her as he
thought it would upset her) but she tells him it doesn’t matter. He might believe that it
really will matter and his wife will be horrified. He also repeatedly calls the person that is
knocking at the door “a thing” so he might be afraid that if it is his son that has come back,
he will not be alive, but instead, be some kind of walking corpse or zombie.