What is the monkey’s paw?
The monkey’s paw is a mummified monkey’s paw said to have the power to grant its owner three wishes. It appears in “The Monkey’s Paw,” a horror short story published in 1902 by the English writer W. W. Jacobs, which is still read around the world as a classic of horror fiction.
The story of “The Monkey’s Paw”
A soldier back from India leaves “a monkey’s paw that grants three wishes” with a family. He warns that “those who interfere with fate do so to their sorrow,” but the father half-jokingly wishes for 200 pounds. The next day, the son is killed in an accident at the factory, and the company pays exactly 200 pounds in compensation. Overcome with grief, the mother makes the second wish: “Bring my son back to life.” That night, knocking begins at the front door, and the father makes the third wish.
“Be careful what you wish for”
The story is known for its lesson that “wishes come true in unexpected ways and carry a terrible price.” It has been adapted many times for film and TV and is often parodied in animation and drama. As a classic tale about a “cursed object,” it is sometimes even told like an urban legend.
