Lesson 6 Close Reading: The Monkey's Paw

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Close Reading

Why is close reading important?

Analytical tools  help you to analyse texts. It is very useful for Paper one, written tasks and individual oral commentary.

 This is the lens in which you look at texts and reveal the levels of understanding.

Audience and purpose – who wrote the text, who was it written for, why did the writer write it

Content and Theme – what is the text about

Tone and Mood – what is the writer’s tone how does the text make the reader feel.

Stylistic analysis – what devices does the writer use

Structure – what kind of text is it, what structural conventions are used.

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Video: listening and reading. 

Take out pen and paper. While you listen/read along, write down words or phrases that strike you in a particular way. 

Summary of the story: 

The short story involves Mr. and Mrs. White and their adult son, Herbert. Sergeant-Major Morris, a friend who served with the British Army in India, comes by for dinner and introduces them to a mummified monkey's paw.

Three wishes are granted to the owner of The Monkey's Paw, but the wishes come with an enormous price for interfering with fate.

First wish: 200 dollars, paid by son's death

Second wish: return of dead son

Third wish: undoes second wish, story ends

Tone & Mood

Causal relationship between tone and mood. 

Relationship between the events of the story and the diction used by the author. 

Repetition

Tone = attitude of the author

Mood = feelings conjured in the reader

Knowing the chain of events, what kind of mood does the story have?

Is the mood only created by the death of the sound (by the action of the story), or does diction also take part in it?

CR is required to find that out!

The tone of this story is dark and malicious because of the mood. The context of the story is filled with evil words and fear-filled thoughts from the characters. The story also has a sad tone due to the fact that the couple's son died. From then on, the narration and speech took on a more negative tone.

Outside, the night was cold and wet, but in the small living room the curtains were closed and the

fire burned brightly. Father and son were playing chess; the father, whose ideas about the game

involved some very unusual moves, putting his king into such sharp and unnecessary danger that it

even brought comment from the white-haired old lady knitting quietly by the fire.

“Listen to the wind,” said Mr. White who, having seen a mistake that could cost him the game after

it was too late, was trying to stop his son from seeing it.

“I’m listening,” said the son, seriously studying the board as he stretched out his hand. “Check.”

“I should hardly think that he’ll come tonight,” said his father, with his hand held in the air over the

board.

“Mate,” replied the son.

“That’s the worst of living so far out,” cried Mr. White with sudden and unexpected violence; “Of

all the awful out of the way places to live in, this is the worst. Can’t walk on the footpath without

getting stuck in the mud, and the road’s a river. I don’t know what the people are thinking about. I

suppose they think it doesn’t matter because only two houses in the road have people in them.”

“Never mind, dear,” said his wife calmly; “perhaps you’ll win the next one.”

Mr. White looked up sharply, just in time to see a knowing look between mother and son. The

words died away on his lips, and he hid a guilty smile in his thin grey beard.

Passage 1

read together

First sentence indicates a contrast;

cold and wet outside vs warm fire burning brightly inside

Mood – In a literary work, the mood is the feeling that the reader experiences while reading literature.

• Author’s will use imagery and descripEve words to create a mood.

• Specific word choice and sensory details help create a mood

As you read, analyze the text for clues that reveal the story’s mood. 

Mood – In a literary work, the mood is the feeling that the reader experiences while reading literature.

• Author’s will use imagery and descriptive words to create a mood.

• Specific word choice and sensory details help create a mood

As you read, analyze the text for clues that reveal the story’s mood. 

Outside, the night was cold and wet, but in the small living room the curtains were closed and the

fire burned brightly. Father and son were playing chess; the father, whose ideas about the game

involved some very unusual moves, putting his king into such sharp and unnecessary danger that it

even brought comment from the white-haired old lady knitting quietly by the fire.

“Listen to the wind,” said Mr. White who, having seen a mistake that could cost him the game after

it was too late, was trying to stop his son from seeing it.

“I’m listening,” said the son, seriously studying the board as he stretched out his hand. “Check.”

“I should hardly think that he’ll come tonight,” said his father, with his hand held in the air over the

board.

“Mate,” replied the son.

“That’s the worst of living so far out,” cried Mr. White with sudden and unexpected violence; “Of

all the awful out of the way places to live in, this is the worst. Can’t walk on the footpath without

getting stuck in the mud, and the road’s a river. I don’t know what the people are thinking about. I

suppose they think it doesn’t matter because only two houses in the road have people in them.”

“Never mind, dear,” said his wife calmly; “perhaps you’ll win the next one.”

Mr. White looked up sharply, just in time to see a knowing look between mother and son. The

words died away on his lips, and he hid a guilty smile in his thin grey beard.

5-7 minutes

5 minutes to work

2 minutes to discuss what they have noted down

Passage 2

Write an explanatory paragraph that identifies and states the mood of the short story, “The Monkey’s Paw.” Pay close attention to the details the author uses to create the mood. Be sure to include a topic sentence, quotations, and explanations in your paragraph.

"But her husband was on his hands and knees feeling around wildly on the floor in search of the paw. If only he could find it before the thing outside got in. The knocks came very quickly now echoing through the house, and he heard the noise of his wife moving a chair and putting it down against the door. He heard the movement of the lock as she began to open it, and at the same moment he found the monkeys’s paw, and frantically breathed his third and last wish.

The knocking stopped suddenly, although the echoes of it were still in the house. He heard the chair pulled back, and the door opened. A cold wind blew up the staircase, and a long loud cry of disappointment and pain from his wife gave him the courage to run down to her side, and then to the gate. The streetlight opposite shone on a quiet and deserted road."

5 minutes

Stylistic devices

• Techniques to give an additional and/or supplemental meaning, idea, or feeling.
• The goal of these techniques is to create imagery, emphasis, or clarity within a text in hopes of engaging the reader.

Example: metaphor

techniques have to be unraveled to discover a deeper meaning. 

also, these techniques beautify a text and make it more literary/aesthetically pleasing.

stylistic devices

3 minutes

Examples: metaphor, simile, alliteration, hyperbole, allegory etc. 

1. allusion
2. metonym
3. alliteration
4. repetition

alliteration = the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

allusion: an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.

"an allusion to Shakespeare"

metonym: a word, name, or expression used as a substitute for something else with which it is closely associated. For example, Washington is a metonym for the US government.

"Fear knocked on the door"
is an example of:

1. Onomatopoeia
2. Symbolism
3. Personification
4. Hyperbole

personification = the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

onomatopoeia: the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (e.g. cuckoo, sizzle ).

symbolism: a writer uses one thing—usually a physical object or phenomenon—to represent something more abstract.

hyperbole: exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

"he vowed revenge with oaths and hyperboles"

I can resist anything but temptation.

1. paradox
2. metonymy
3. synecdoche
4. personification

Paradox: A paradox is a statement that contradicts itself, or that must be both true and untrue at the same time

Metonymy: it is a way of replacing an object or idea with something related to it instead of stating what is actually meant. (Crown. (For the power of a king.)

The White House. (Referring to the American administration.))

Synecdoche: where a word for a small component of something can stand in rhetorically for the larger whole, or vice versa ("The captain commands one hundred sails" is a synecdoche that uses "sails" to refer to ships.)

Personification: the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something non-human, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

Passage 3

As you read, look for examples of figurative language. In the spaces provided, write a quote that includes figurative language, and then explain the type, meaning, and effectiveness of the figurative language.

“I wish for two hundred pounds,” said the old man clearly.

A fine crash from the piano greeted his words, broken by a frightened cry from the old man. His

wife and son ran toward him.

“It moved,” he cried, with a look of horror at the object as it lay on the floor. “As I wished, it

twisted in my hand like a snake.”

“Well, I don’t see the money,” said his son, as he picked it up and placed it on the table, “and I bet I

never shall.”

“It must have been your imagination, father,” said his wife, regarding him worriedly.

He shook his head. “Never mind, though; there’s no harm done, but it gave me a shock all the

same.”

They sat down by the fire again while the two men finished their pipes. Outside, the wind was

higher than ever, and the old man jumped nervously at the sound of a door banging upstairs. An

unusual and depressing silence settled on all three, which lasted until the old couple got up to to go

to bed.

As you read, look for examples of literary devices/figurative language. Write down quotes that include figurative language, and then explain the type, meaning, and effectiveness of the figurative language.

“I wish for two hundred pounds,” said the old man clearly.

A fine crash from the piano greeted his words, broken by a frightened cry from the old man. His

wife and son ran toward him.

“It moved,” he cried, with a look of horror at the object as it lay on the floor. “As I wished, it

twisted in my hand like a snake.”

“Well, I don’t see the money,” said his son, as he picked it up and placed it on the table, “and I bet I

never shall.”

“It must have been your imagination, father,” said his wife, regarding him worriedly.

He shook his head. “Never mind, though; there’s no harm done, but it gave me a shock all the

same.”

They sat down by the fire again while the two men finished their pipes. Outside, the wind was

higher than ever, and the old man jumped nervously at the sound of a door banging upstairs. An

unusual and depressing silence settled on all three, which lasted until the old couple got up to go

to bed.

Passage 3

Hand out a list of literary devices, give them 4 minutes to look at the list and then 5 minutes to use the list to analyse the passage. 

Passage:

Multieple examples of similes

personification: "A fine crash from the piano greeted his words" AND "a door banging upstairs"

Passage 4

As you read, look for examples of literary devices/figurative language. Write down quotes that include figurative language, and then explain the type, meaning, and effectiveness of the figurative language.

"In the huge new cemetery, some two miles away, the old people buried their dead, and came back to the house which was now full of shadows and silence. It was all over so quickly that at first they could hardly realize it, and remained in a state of waiting for something else to happen – something else which was to lighten this load, too heavy for old hearts to bear.

But the days passed, and they realized that they had to accept the situation – the hopeless acceptance of the old. Sometimes they hardly said a word to each other, for now they had nothing to talk about, and their days were long to tiredness.

It was about a week after that the old man, waking suddenly in the night, stretched out his hand and found himself alone. The room was in darkness, and he could hear the sound of his wife crying quietly at the window. He raised himself in bed and listened." 

5 minutes

hint: metaphors in the passage

Foreshadowing

Foreshadowing – A literary device in which a writer provides the audience with hints and clues about what will happen next.

• Foreshadowing usually appears toward the beginning of a story.

• Foreshadowing allows readers to make better 

predictions about what will happen next.

Foreshadowing, closely related to structure.

the clues should not be confused with the theme!!

picture (Starwars): the shadow of Darth Vader behind Anakin foreshadows who Anakin will grow up to be

think about the literature you've read, can you name an example of foreshadowing from the dystopian novels read or even To Kill a Mockingbird...

Othello: the emphasis on Desdemona's chastity and innocence and Othello's appreciation for all that, foreshadows that the downfall of everything will be caused by adultery

Passage 5

As you read, look for examples of foreshadowing. Write down a quote that includes foreshadowing, and then explain why this is an example of foreshadowing.

"It had a spell put on it by an old fakir," said the sergeant-major, "a very holy man. He wanted to show that fate ruled people's lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow. He put a spell on it so that three separate men could each have three wishes from it.”

His manner was so impressive that his hearers were conscious that their light laughter jarred somewhat. "Well, why don't you have three, sir?" said Herbert White, cleverly.

The soldier regarded him in the way that middle aged men usuallt regard presumptuous youth. "I have," he said, quietly, and his blotchy face whitened.

"And did you really have the three wishes granted?" asked Mrs. White.

"I did," said the sergeant-major, and his glass tapped against his strong teeth.

"And has anybody else wished?" persisted the old lady.

"The first man had his three wishes. Yes," was the reply; "I don't know what the first two were, but the third was for death. That's how I got the paw."

5 minutes

Final Passage

As you read, look for examples of foreshadowing. Write a quote that includes foreshadowing, and then explain why this is an example of foreshadowing.

"If you've had your three wishes, it's no good to you now, then, Morris," said the old man at last. "What do you keep it for?”

The soldier shook his head. "Fancy, I suppose," he said, slowly. "I did have some idea of selling it, but I don't think I will. It has caused enough mischief already. Besides, people won't buy. They think it's a fairy tale; some of them, and those who do think anything of it want to try it first and pay me afterward.”

"If you could have another three wishes," said the old man, eyeing him keenly, "would you have them?”

"I don't know," said the other. "I don't know.”

He took the paw, and dangling it between his forefinger and thumb, suddenly threw it upon the fire. White, with a slight cry, stooped down and snatched it off.

"Better let it burn," said the soldier, solemnly.

"If you don't want it, Morris," said the other, "give it to me.”

"I won't," said his friend, doggedly. "I threw it on the fire. If you keep it, don't blame me for what happens. Pitch it on the fire again like a sensible man."

What did we learn today?

Tone & Mood

Stylistic devices

Foreshadowing

Tone = attitude of the author

Mood = feelings conjured in the reader

Techniques to give an additional and/or supplemental meaning, idea, or feeling.

Foreshadowing – A literary device in which a writer provides the audience with hints and clues about what will happen next.

What did we learn in the past few weeks?

The 5 analytical tools;

The classic function of literature

Direct and Indirect Characterization

Internal and external conflict

Structure/Suspense

Stylistic devices

Foreshadowing

5 tools: audience & purpose, content & theme, tone & mood, stylistic devices, structure

Classic function of literature = to impart moral values to readers

So...

now that you've learned all this and practiced the skill of CR by doing the assignments, the grade you will receive is based on the work in class from the first lessons that Ms. Schilders gave you and the work you've handed for me to assess. 

If you did not hand in the assignments, you cannot hand in anything anymore. 

Any questions about the theories? Or grading?