In "The Monkey's Paw" how was foreshadowing used to hint at future events?

W.W. Jacobs' short story "The Monkey's Paw" is about an English family who come into possession of an Eastern "talisman" which destroys their lives. Foreshadowing is the use of clues and hints that suggest events that have yet to occur. There are at least four examples of foreshadowing in the story.

In the opening paragraph, Mr. White is described as a risk taker as he plays chess with his son Herbert. He regularly put "his...

W.W. Jacobs' short story "The Monkey's Paw" is about an English family who come into possession of an Eastern "talisman" which destroys their lives. Foreshadowing is the use of clues and hints that suggest events that have yet to occur. There are at least four examples of foreshadowing in the story.

In the opening paragraph, Mr. White is described as a risk taker as he plays chess with his son Herbert. He regularly put "his king into such sharp and unnecessary perils..." Because of this character trait, he later takes the monkey's paw from the Sergeant-Major, despite warnings about its potential evil.

The Sergeant-Major foreshadows the tragic events to come as he explains about the first man who made wishes using the paw:

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

Later, of course, the paw is responsible for the death of Herbert as he is killed in order to fulfill Mr. White's first wish.

More foreshadowing of impending doom is revealed in the final paragraph of Part I when Herbert imagines he sees "horrible" and "simian" faces in the fire. The next day Herbert meets his death while at work. When a representative of the company informs Mr. and Mrs. White of their son's death, he also brings 200 pounds, the precise amount Mr. White had wished for the night before.

The final bit of foreshadowing involves the way Herbert dies and his funeral. He was badly maimed when he got "caught in the machinery" so his body must have been terribly disfigured. He is buried two miles away from where the Whites live. Thus, when Mr. White wishes his son alive again he doesn't take into account the condition of the body and the distance from the cemetery. He eventually comes to the realization his reborn son will be a horrible monster and his last wish is for Herbert to go away as the living corpse knocks on the door.