In “The Monkey's Paw,” author William Jacobs offers a cautionary tale about unexpected consequences and how achieving what we desire could prove catastrophic in ways we wouldn't expect. This terrifying story follows the White family as they receive a talisman, a monkey's paw that grants three wishes, but each of those wishes is granted under unexpected conditions. Jacobs uses foreshadowing, figurative language, and mood to examine critical questions, such as what can happen when we try to interfere with fate and the dangers of what happens when we follow our curiosity a little too much. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Jacobs uses foreshadowing to add more suspense to the story of what will happen next and to keep readers on their toes. At the beginning of the story we are introduced to Sergeant Major Morris, who shows the Whites the famous “monkey's paw”. Morris tells the family that it is a talisman that can grant three wishes but at a price. He explains that the monkey's paw “received a spell from an old fakir, a very holy man. He wanted to show that destiny governs people's lives and that anyone who tried to change it would regret it." This illustrates how the monkey's paw was made explicitly to bring harm to anyone who attempted to change fate. Morris warns the family that the last man who had him ultimately wished for death. He tells the family about the dangers and consequences of the monkey's paw and how it could cause harm to the family if they used it. Through the use of foreshadowing, readers are informed that the story will be full of suspense and that the monkey's paw will be responsible for what happens. Another event foreshadowed was the death of Herbert White: Mr. and Mrs. Whites' son. Mr. White decides to use the talisman even after all the warnings given to him. For the first wish he decides to wish for two hundred pounds; he did not know that his son would have to die to receive him. After he takes his first, the atmosphere in the house becomes tense and dark as if something terrible is about to happen. The wind picks up outside and "an unusual and depressing silence settles on all three." After Mr. and Mrs. White go to bed, Herbert sits alone in the darkness looking at the faces of the fire, and in the last one he sees "A face that was so hideous and so simian that he looked at it in amazement". The face became so lifelike that it scared him, so he picked up a cup of water to throw on it but ended up grabbing the monkey's paw. This illustrates how Herbert could be the one who pays the consequences of the first wish, preparing readers for the first horrible event, Herbert's death. The next day Herbert dies in the factory and Mr White receives two hundred pounds as compensation for his son's death. Jacobs uses literary elements to give the story a more robust and impactful meaning. After making his first wish, Mr. White says: “He moved, cried out, with a look of disgust at the object as it lay on the floor. As I wished, it coiled in my hands like a snake.” The author compares the monkey's paw to a snake to emphasize how dangerous it is and so readers know that whatever is about to happen will not be good. Snakes are evil, calculating and treacherous animals; you never know what to expect from them. At the same time, however, they represent power and some even say they are “magical creatures”. They are animals that have been linked to good and evil, representing life and.