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The Monkey's Paw
1902 horror short story by W. W. Jacobs From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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"The Monkey's Paw" is a horror short story by English author W. W. Jacobs. It first appeared in Harper's Monthly in September, 1902,[1] and was reprinted in his third collection of short stories, The Lady of the Barge, later that year.[2] In the story, three wishes are granted to the owner of The Monkey's Paw, but the wishes come with an enormous price for interfering with fate.[3]
It has been adapted many times in other media, including plays, films, TV series, operas, stories and comics, as early as 1903.[4] It was first adapted to film in 1915 as a British silent film directed by Sidney Northcote. The film (now lost) starred John Lawson, who also played the main character in Louis N. Parker's 1907 stage play.[5]
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Plot
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Mr. and Mrs. White, and their grown son, Herbert, are visited by Sergeant-Major Morris, a friend who served with the British Army in India. During dinner, he introduces them to a mummified monkey's paw. He explains how an old fakir has placed a spell on the paw, so that it will grant three wishes but only with hellish consequences as punishment for tampering with fate. Morris, having had a horrible experience using the paw, throws it into the fire, but the skeptical Mr. White retrieves it. Before leaving, Morris warns Mr. White of what might happen should he use the paw.
Mr. White hesitates at first, believing that he already has everything he wants. At Herbert's suggestion, Mr. White flippantly wishes for £200, which will enable him to make the final mortgage payment for his house; he then drops the paw, saying it moved and twisted like a snake. The following day, Herbert leaves for work. That night, a representative of Herbert's employer arrives at the Whites' home, telling them that Herbert has been killed in a terrible accident that mutilated his body. The company denies any responsibility, but tenders a bereavement payment to the family of £200.
A week after the funeral, Mrs. White, mad with grief, insists that her husband use the paw to wish Herbert back to life. Reluctantly, he does so, despite great unease at the thought of summoning his son's mutilated and decomposing body. Later that night, there is a knock at the door. As Mrs. White fumbles at the locks in a desperate attempt to open the door, Mr. White becomes terrified and fears that the thing outside is not the son he loved. He makes his third and final wish. The knocking stops, and Mrs. White opens the door to find that no one is there.
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Adaptations
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The story has been adapted into other media many times, including:
- On 6 October 1903, a one-act play opened at London's Haymarket Theatre, starring Cyril Maude as Mr. White and Lena Ashwell as Mrs. White.[6]
- A 1907 British stage adaptation by Louis N. Parker starred John Lawson.[5][7]
- A 1915 British film version was directed by Sidney Northcote and starred John Lawson (who was in the 1907 stage play).[8]
- A 1919 British silent film (director unknown) is known to have been made but is now considered lost.[9]
- The Monkey's Paw (1923 film) was a British film directed by Manning Haynes and starred Moore Marriott, Marie Ault, and Charles Ashton.[8]
- A 17 July 1928 British radio adaptation was based on the 1907 play.[7]
- The Monkey's Paw (1933 film), an American film with screenplay by Graham John and directed by Wesley Ruggles (his last film with RKO), starred C. Aubrey Smith, Ivan Simpson, and Louise Carter. The film was considered lost[10] until pictures from it were posted online in 2016; the existing copy is dubbed in French.[11]
- A 28 May 1946 episode of the BBC Radio series Appointment with Fear.[7]
- The Monkey's Paw (1948 film), a British film with screenplay by Norman Lee and Barbara Toy.[12]
- A 16 December 1958 episode of the British radio series Thirty-Minute Theatre, starring Carleton Hobbs and Gladys Young.[7]
- A 1961 Mexican film version called Espiritismo (released as Spiritism in the US), directed by Benito Alazraki and starring Nora Veyran, Jose Luis Jiminez, and Jorge Mondragón.[8]
- "The Monkey's Paw – A Retelling" aired on American television on 19 April 1965 in season 3, episode 26, of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, starring Leif Erickson, Jane Wyatt, and Lee Majors.[13]
- An episode of the 1970s British television series Orson Welles Great Mysteries.[14]
- The 1972 horror film Deathdream directed by Bob Clark was adapted from the story as an allegory to the Vietnam war by screenwriter Alan Ormsby.[15]
- An 11 July 1980 episode of the Canadian CBC Radio series Nightfall.[7]
- The 1983 novel Pet Sematary, by American author Stephen King, was reportedly inspired by the story.[16]
- A 17 January 1988 BBC Radio adaptation by Patrick Galvin, presented as part of Fear on Four; rebroadcast individually as a Halloween special on 31 October 1993.[7]
- A half-hour televised special broadcast on the UK's Channel 4 in 1988, directed by Andrew Barker and starring Alex McAvoy and Patricia Leslie.[17]
- The 1991 pilot episode of the TV series Are You Afraid of the Dark? ("The Tale of the Twisted Claw") parodies the story.[18]
- A 1991 episode of the TV series The Simpsons ("Treehouse of Horror II", Season 3 Episode 7) has members of the Simpsons family making wishes using a cursed monkey's paw.[19]
- A 1993 episode named Taveez of the Indian television series The Zee Horror Show.[7]
- A 2004 adaptation as a radio play narrated by Christopher Lee in 2004 as part of the BBC radio drama series Christopher Lee's Fireside Tales.[20]
- A 2008 Nepali film, Kagbeni, is a loose adaptation of the story.[21]
- A 2011 short film adaptation directed by Ricky Lewis Jr. is available to watch on YouTube. This short film ends with the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. White, a different ending than the original story.
- A 2013 American film version with screenplay by Macon Blair, and directed by Brett Simmons.[22]
- A 2017 American opera, The Monkey's Paw, by composer Brooke deRosa, and produced by Pacific Opera Project.[23]
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Reception
The Nassau Literary Magazine praised "The Monkey's Paw" whilst reviewing The Lady of the Barge, comparing it to the works of Edgar Allan Poe and saying it was "calculated to give thrills and tremors to the most indifferent reader."[24]
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