‘ “Well, it’s just a bit of what you might call magic, perhaps” said the sergeant-major off handedly.’
This makes it look like Morris sees it as nothing, especially the ‘off handedly’ making it look like he tries to throw his words away, but it even greatly captures the family’s attention, making them want it more.
The questions the family asks are questions the reader may be wondering themselves, Jacobs has managed to even further involve the reader as the reader is on the same trail of thought as the characters. The atmosphere is tensioned with quick answers from Morris, the answers are not all unveiled adding to the suspense of the mystery. Morris also says something that will frighten the reader and make them want to read on, as the point is not brought up again for a while,
‘ “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. That’s how I got the paw”
This not only creates suspense and the read-on feeling, but also a suspicion that Morris may be dead too due to him having had his wishes.
The first wish made is for the reasonable, not too greedy sum of two hundred pounds, but the reader is left in suspense as the paw moves when the first wish is made, ‘ “It moved!” he cried’, but with the money not appearing the family are quickly calm again, but the reader is left in suspense from what Jacobs writes, such as ‘outside, the wind was higher than ever’, the pathetic fallacy shows that something is different than it was the outside has worsened, and a little has crept in to the house, starting to corrupt the family, ‘A silence unusual and depressing settled upon all three’ gives the reader an uneasiness feeling towards the family, creating suspense over what will become of them.
The first instalment ends on suspense with Mr. White staring in to the fire, ‘seeing faces in it. The last face was so horrible and so simian that he gazed at it in amazement’
This is a perfect end to instalment one as it leaves the reader tense and full of suspense.
Instalment two opens with a small catch-up of the last instalment, this is a good idea of Jacobs’s as it may have been one or two weeks since the reader had read the last part.
The presence of the family unit is still there, Mrs. White ‘following him (Herbert) to the door’ shows the unity which will greater the upcoming tragedy. A time lapse then follows and the tragic events start happening, and the family starts to crumble.
‘ “Herbert will have some more of his funny remarks, I expect, when he comes home” ’
This is ironic as he will not come home, but leaves the reader feeling he will be ok, which will make it even more shocking for the reader when the news arrives.
Mr. And Mrs. White argue a little here, for the first time, representing some corruption, but it is also the mirror image of the final part, Mr. White convinced of the magic, Mrs. White trying to convince him it wasn’t. Even so, greed also starts to show as Mrs. White is quite impatient, this could be her waiting for the money, which would represent greed entering the family.
The visitor who has come to tell the family of Herbert’s death is very cautious and slow in saying so, the appearance heightens suspense that something may have happened, but the reader doesn’t find out for another half a page, heightening suspense. The most tragic moment is probably Mrs. White’s relisation that her son is dead.
‘The visitor bowed in assent. “Badly hurt,” he said quietly, “but he is not in any pain”
“Oh thank God!” said the old woman, clasping her hands, “Thank God for that! Thank----” She broke off suddenly as the sinister meaning of the assurance dawned upon her’
Is one of the most tragic moments in the story, as Mrs. White thinks, even for a few seconds, her son is well, leaving the reader too in sorrow for the family’s lost son. The use of the word ‘sinister’ adds to the horror of this part of the story.
The final twist of this part comes at the end of this instalment, and will leave the reader shocked and in sorrow for the family,
‘ “They wish to present you with a certain sum as compensation”
This is the visitor delaying the action, but the reader should already know exactly what he is going to say,
‘ His dry lips shaped the words, “How much?”
“Two hundred pounds,” was the answer.
This is an extremely tragic end to the second instalment.
The third instalment again has a catch-up, but this is the first part that starts outside of the safety area of the house, there is an overwhelming feeling of grief and depression through the air, and the house is ‘steeped in shadow and silence’.
Another time lapse, and the action picks up again, the tension raised as Mrs. White has a plan to use the paw to bring back her son, but Mr. White of course knows he will not be the same, the reader may be split over both sides and the language Jacobs used is fast-paced and create a lot of tension as a lot happens, but a lot happens over a lot of words, so it also creates suspense for the reader.
There is a change in thought between Mr. And Mrs. White, as she now wants to use the paw, believing it is magical, and Mr. White is trying to convince her it is not and convincing her not to use it, although he is the one to go and get it.
The description of Mr. White descending in to the parlour where the paw is kept is not too long, but the sentences and description are drawn out, creating a lot of suspense through the time it takes him to get it compared to the length of the sentences.
Mrs. White, almost crazed forces Mr. White to wish for Herbert back, Jacobs starts to make the reader feel terrible that this has happened to the family, but desperately wanting to read on to see the outcome.
Jacobs’s language slows down, but almost suddenly picks up again as the knocking on the door causes Mrs. White to try to open in, the tension skyrockets as it is a race of if Mrs. White can open the door before Mr. White can find the paw, the language is so fast paced the tension is likely at its highest as the reader is immersed in the dramatic climax. The tension stays right up until Mr. White ‘frantically breathes his last wish’, and the action is brought right down, with long, drawn out sentences as the terror dissipates and the story comes to it’s conclusion.
In conclusion, I think ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ is a very well written mystery story, I think Jacobs, with his use of language keeps excitement, tension and suspense, and with the way the story unravels, the reader becomes very attached to the characters even though it is a short story, feeling emotions for the characters, such as sorrow. I think ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ contains all the correct elements, and good language, so I think it is a very good mystery story.
