Power Causes Desires
Greed always turns people into a different person which shows in story, “The Monkey’s Paw”. In the story the family got a monkey’s paw which can have three wishes from it. Without listening to the warnings, they wished to have two hundred pounds, and the wish came true with paying for the death of the son. After some days, the woman wished to have her son alive but was stopped by the last wish the man made at last. In the story, “The Monkey’s Paw”, by William W. Jacobs, the author believes that power usually compels greedy desires from the heart.
Sergeant Major Morris, the man who gave the monkey’s paw to the family, tried to persuade them not to have it for many times in different ways by telling the experience of the first man who wished, throwing the paw into the fire and mentioning many times not to have it. As this wiser in the story said, “‘if you keep it, don’t then say that it is my fault’” (Jacobs 2). However, the family ignored the warnings. They wished for two hundred pounds for they thought it wouldn’t hurt but turn out to be death of their son. If the pay on that two hundred pounds didn’t hurt, the next wish would become “wishing that [he was] an emperor” (Jacobs 2). That’s the desire inside them, but not just a two hundred pounds. With power, greedy desires came out without control. The only reason they didn’t wish it directly is that they didn’t know how the paw works and were just giving a try.
After losing the son, the White stuck in a down mood until “‘The paw!’, [Mrs. White] said wildly, ‘The monkey’s paw!’ …… ‘Go down and get it quickly and wish our boy alive again” (Jacobs 4). Although the boy trapped in the machinery and buried ten days ago, the existence of the monkey’s paw made the woman have thought of using it. She was actually going mad at the time which much different with the one who was unbelieving the magic before. She was like turning into a different person. She didn’t care what would the thing knocking on the door outside looking like but shouted and struggled to open the door. She had all these thoughts of turning a died person alive is because of the paw, simplify as a tool to realize the desire.
There are desires in everyone’s heart but whether or not thinking of it depends on the what the one has; it’s wasting time daydreaming things much uncontrollable for one’s self. However, after having the paw, it seems possible for anything wanted. That’s what the power does, compelling more and more desires.
