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The Monkey's Paw-Qs-Ans-Atmosphere-Setting in the Play

 Answer the following questions in about 300 words each:

Q1. Describe the atmosphere and the setting of the play ‘Monkey’s Paw’. How do these add to the gloom and melancholy of the play?

Ans. The writer of this one-act play has appropriately created a suitable atmosphere and setting in this play. It surely adds to the gloom and the melancholy of the play.

Taken in one view, the story of this play is very simple. The family of Mr. and Mrs. White lives in a house, that is, at distance from the city of Fulham. Their son dies in an accident that occurred when he was at work in an electric factory. The company sends a compensation of two hundred pounds to the deceased son’s parents. This is all about the story of the supernatural and what we call the setting of this play is removed.

But to make the story more interesting and also to fill in the story with some elements of mystery and awe, the writer has added a supernatural element through a monkey’s dried-up paw and also by providing an additional setting in the background of the play.

The playwright gradually (slowly) starts building up the gloomy atmosphere in the play. The outside atmosphere of the house is quite eerie and disturbing for the insiders and even for the visitors. A fast wind is blowing. The weather is cold and wet, so the family is sitting around the fire. Mr. White is losing in the game of chess that is being played at the time. It makes the father feel angry. If this small incident of losing the game of chess by Mr. White is seen at a symbolic level, it really proves disastrous for the father. Mr. While really loses the game of life when the news about his only son’s death reaches him towards the end of the play.

The house is situated far away from the residential area of the city. The road that leads to it is not smooth. So Morris, their family friend, also complains about the way that he covered to reach the house. Another point that creates eeriness in the atmosphere of the house is that there is a cemetery nearby it and it could be seen through a window in the house.

To add something more to the atmosphere of the house is that Morris brings a dried-up paw of a monkey into the house. After that Morris narrates its gruesome (horrible) storytelling to Mr. White that an Indian fakir had cast a magic spell on it. He also tells Mr. White that the paw fulfills three different wishes of its owner. At the most, only three persons can be its owner at different times.

In addition, Morris also tells Mr. White that the wish-makers would have to suffer a big loss in lieu of the wishes fulfilled.

Knowing all this, Mr. White buys the monkey’s paw from Morris and pays him some money. When he makes his first wish, the paw shakes a little in his hand. A crashing sound is also heard on the piano. Mr. White felt terrified and the paw is dropped from his hand. Some mysterious faces are also visible to Mr. White in the fire. After some time, the family receives shocking news of the death of their only son in an accident at his workplace. Their wish of getting 200 pounds is also fulfilled and it was paid to them by the electrical company the compensation for the death of their son.

Thus Mr. White had to pay a heavy price for getting only two hundred pounds. After that, Mrs. White forces her husband to make another wish to bring their son back to life again. Their son does come back from the grave, but he was looking too horrible to see. Then Mr. White had to make the third wish to send back their son to lie in his grave and rest in peace.

Thus the whole atmosphere in this one-act play is full of a gloomy atmosphere. A shroud of mystery and awe is hung all around in the story of the one cat play. 600 words