The+Monkey's+Paw+Summary

//The Monkey's Paw// Summary:
The story starts out with a cold and stormy evening and the White family is sitting around the house. Herbert (the father) and his son are playing chess when they hear a banging at the door. It happens to be Sergeant-Major Morris( Herberts old friend who is in the military ) and Herbert invites him in. They talk by the fire and Mr. Morris tells tales about distant countries and tells a particular story that catches the interest of the White family. He shows them a monkey's paw that a man in India placed a spell on. He did this because he wants to show that fate ruled people's lives. Mr. White begs the Sergeant to give him the monkey paw even though the Sergeant is hesitant. Mr. White gets the monkey paw and wishes for 200 pounds to pay off the mortgage.

A couple of days later, son is at work and gets killed by a piece of machinery and the White family gets composition money worth of 200 pounds. The White family gets money as they wished. However, they are afraid that monkey paw brings both good news and bad news. After, the wife is hysterical and wishes for the son to come back. That night, they hear a banging at the door. The father realizes that the son might be deformed or mutilated and as he keeps the wife from getting at the door, he whispers the last wish under his breath and the banging stops. The reader can assume he whispered for the thing at the door to go away. So basically, he wished for something good and got something in return but he had to loose what he used to have to gain the good.

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