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Literary Devices
Definition of Allegory
An allegory is a work that conveys a hidden meaning—usually moral, spiritual, or political—through the use of symbolic characters and events. The story of "The Tortoise and The Hare" is... read full definition
An allegory is a work that conveys a hidden meaning—usually moral, spiritual, or political—through the use of symbolic characters and events. The story of "The... read full definition
An allegory is a work that conveys a hidden meaning—usually moral, spiritual, or political—through the use of symbolic characters and... read full definition
Allegory
Explanation and Analysis—British Xenophobia:
While, on the surface, “Monkey’s Paw” is a story about the dangers of selfishly trying to change one’s fate, there is a second, more allegorical layer to the story. At the time that Jacobs was writing (the early 1900s), India was under Britain’s colonial rule. While some British people supported this colonial relationship—believing it was economically beneficial for them to exploit Indian people and their resources—others worried that even a colonial relationship was too close for comfort. This conservative, xenophobic stance was tied to the idea that any relationship with India would lead to an influx of Indian people and customs into Britain’s majority white and Christian society.
In this way, “The Monkey’s Paw” partially functions as an allegory for what Jacobs perceived to be the negative influence of Indian culture on Britain. Sergeant-Major Morris represents white Britons who, after spending extended time in India as soldiers, brought aspects of Indian culture back with them, such as the monkey’s paw. Many white Christian Britons viewed Indian spiritual practices as “black magic” or otherwise threatening, and Jacobs’s decision to have a “fakir” (or Indian holy man) be responsible for placing a “spell” on the monkey’s paw likely stems from these incorrect assumptions. That this object brings great suffering to a white British family (aptly named the "Whites") underlines the threat that Jacobs felt India posed to Britain's well-being writ large.
All that said, it is notable that the characters in the story who end up learning a moral lesson are the Whites. Despite Sergeant-Major Morris's warnings, the Whites use the monkey's paw for personal gain (two hundred pounds) even though they were, at the start of the story, perfectly happy with what they had. Jacobs—whether intentionally or not—ultimately leaves readers with the moral takeaway that the real threat to white Britons is their own greed and foolishness, not Indian people (or other “outsiders”).
Related Themes:
