The Monkey's Paw

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. What is the significance of the knocking on the door after Mr. White makes his second wish?

A) It is a coincidence with no particular meaning.

B) It is a sign of impending danger.

C) It is a result of Mr. White’s wish for money.

D) It is a prank by Sergeant-Major Morris.

2. What does the monkey’s paw symbolize in the story?

A) Hope and optimism

B) Greed and temptation

C) Courage and bravery

D) Mysticism and superstition

3. What does Sergeant-Major Morris warn the Whites about the monkey’s paw?

A) It is cursed and brings misfortune.

B) It can only grant three wishes.

C) It can only be used by five people.

D) It is a harmless novelty item.

4. What literary device is used in this sentence: “He wanted to show that fate ruled people’s lives and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow” (Paragraph 26)?

A) Simile

B) Personification

C) Foreshadowing

D) Imagery

5. What is the significance of the number of wishes granted by the monkey’s paw?

A) It represents the number of chances one gets in life.

B) It reflects the number of regrets that each character has.

C) It underscores the theme of karma and retribution.

D) It symbolizes the unpredictable and arbitrary nature of fate.

6. Which of the following is an example of a simile?

A) “As I wished, it twisted in my hand like a snake” (Paragraph 60).

B) “She came stumbling across the room toward him” (Paragraph 105).

C) “He sat until he was chilled with the cold” (Paragraph 128).

D) “A loud knock resounded through the house” (Paragraph 134).

7. At the end of the story, why does Mr. White choose to make a third and final wish?

A) To bring his son back from the dead

B) To test the power of the monkey’s paw

C) To undo the consequences of the previous wish

D) To placate his overwrought wife

8. How does the theme of Coincidence Versus the Supernatural in the story relate to the concept of fate and destiny?

A) It suggests that fate and the supernatural are unrelated concepts in the story.

B) It supports the idea of predetermined fate by portraying the paw’s powers as purely coincidental.

C) It reinforces the idea that fate is solely determined by supernatural forces.

D) It challenges the idea of predetermined fate by suggesting that events can be influenced by supernatural events.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What does the story suggest about the nature of human desires and their consequences?

2. How does the White family’s attitude toward the monkey’s paw change over the course of the story, and what events lead to this transformation?