Question

Which detail from “The Monkey’s Paw” is most clearly an example of foreshadowing?

Answer 1

Answer:

A. The fakir's prediction that anyone who interferes with fate will be sorry.

Explanation:

W. W. Jacobs' short story "The Monkey's Paw" revolves around the theme of superstitious beliefs emanating from an ancient relic called "the paw" from India. This piece of the animal body seemed to have the ability to grant any wish that its owner might have, much like the fairy-tale story of Aladdin and the genie in the lamp.

Foreshadowing provides a sense of knowing something before it happens. This allows a writer to provide hints that will be about what will happen in the coming scenes. And in this story, foreshadowing is clearly seen in the Sergeant-Major's words when he mentions about the fakir's warning of how "fate ruled people's lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow". This seems to be true, for the first owner's third wish was death and that was how the 'thing' came to be in the possession of the Sergeant-Major. And this warning foreshadows how Herbert White will wish for £200 which will lead to the unfortunate death of his son and the said amount being given as compensation.