Literature
Galen College of Nursing
The quote, "Be careful what you wish for," has become such a colloquialism. It is generally used as a warning before destruction, yet it is an off handed response that allows for people to give heed to others without being specific. This quote is also used to give a general warning to a large group of people: unspecific warning. Most times people are wishing for things that add the glitter and glam to the doldrums of life. The granting of wishes is a literary convention that is used throughout many cultural literary genres, especially fairytales. In childhood stories, the granting of a wish brought about good. One such fairytale is the American, Cinderella, story. Cinderella …show more content…
Jacobs uses foreshadowing throughout the text to keep the readers anticipating what will happen next. When the readers are introduced to the family in the first paragraph, the first hint is given to the reader. As the chess game was being played, the author foreshadowed that Mr. White was "putting his king into such sharp and unnecessary danger...", which ultimately Mr. White does this to his family (Jacobs, 2001-2004). The plot of the text follows a regular plot graph: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution. Even so, the action is propelled in Part I of the story, then Part II and Part III of the story is full of suspenseful action. Part II begins with a scene similar to that of Part I, yet there is an underlying sense of disappointment, doubt, and cautious eagerness. The rising action of the plot is underlying sense of disappointment, doubt, and cautious eagerness. The rising action of the plot is underlying during this moment to the characters in the text, but the reader has a little more information due to foreshadowing. The reader is expecting something bad …show more content…
Both of these warnings were given by Sergeant-Major Morris. A theme of a text is the message or moral of the story. If the reader looks at the theme as something that is learned that she/he can apply to their life, then one will be more apt to discover themes in all texts that they read. In brief, W. W. Jacobs does ask his readers to suspend their disbelief, much like the writers of the romantic period; Williams Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. And like all great literary writers, Jacobs uses the elements of literature, within his own style, well. Although Jacobs was best known for his stories of humor, "The Monkey's Paw" is a classic to the horror genre. The characters are diverse and the plot keeps the reader entertained. Also, when one considers the characters beyond the humans, the plot thickens even more. This is a classic storyline that is made special by the author's style. Jacobs used the supernatural in a normal looking family to teach a lesson that the indigenous and religious sects have been stating for centuries.
Reference
Jacobs, W. (2001-2004). www.englishlibrary.org/story_monkeyspaw.html. Retrieved from The online English