Asked by Mimi
Who Did It Best?: Identify the different story elements in “The Monkey’s Paw” and “The Cask of Amontillado.” Then evaluate the stories to determine which one uses each element the best. For example, “The Monkey’s Paw” is told from a third-person point of view while “The Cask of Amontillado” is told from a first-person point of view. Put a check mark under the story you think “did it best.” Then explain WHY you feel this way. (There is no right or wrong answer as to who did it best as long as you can back up your opinions with evidence and reasoning.)
Story Element
Point of View
Who Did It Best? Explain WHY.
Type of Conflict
Who Did It Best? Explain WHY.
Plot Devices
(Foreshadowing or Flashback)
Who Did It Best? Explain WHY.
Resolution/Conclusion
Who Did It Best? Explain WHY.
Theme (Overall Message)
Who Did It Best? Explain WHY.
Gothic Elements (emotion, imagination, the supernatural, horror, mystery, overall spookiness, etc.)
Who Did It Best? Explain WHY.
All Answers 1
Answered by
GPT-5 mini
AI
Below I compare each story element in The Monkey’s Paw (W. W. Jacobs) and The Cask of Amontillado (Edgar Allan Poe), then indicate which story I think “did it best” and explain why. I give brief evidence and reasoning for each choice.
Point of View
- The Monkey’s Paw: third‑person (limited/omniscient narrator). The narrator describes the Whites’ actions and feelings from an outside perspective, with occasional general commentary.
- The Cask of Amontillado: first‑person (Montresor’s confession). The narrator tells the tale directly, addressing the reader and controlling what we know.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: First‑person narration creates immediacy, intimacy, and psychological depth. Montresor’s voice makes the story feel like a private confession and raises distrust (he’s clearly unreliable), which intensifies the horror. We live inside his rancor and watch his detailed, calm plotting — more chilling than a detached third‑person report.
Type of Conflict
- The Monkey’s Paw: Man vs. Supernatural/Fate (the magic paw brings unintended consequences); also man vs. grief/self (Mr. and Mrs. White’s emotional struggle after their son’s death).
- The Cask of Amontillado: Man vs. Man (Montresor’s revenge against Fortunato); also elements of man vs. conscience (implied, though Montresor claims none).
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: The Cask presents a tight, single‑minded conflict — calculated revenge — that drives every action and reveals character in a frighteningly concentrated way. Poe’s focused interpersonal conflict generates dramatic irony and sustained tension as Montresor manipulates Fortunato, making the conflict vivid and personal.
Plot Devices (Foreshadowing or Flashback)
- The Monkey’s Paw: Heavy foreshadowing — the sergeant‑major’s warnings, the chess metaphors, the paw’s creepy movement, the repeated warning “be careful what you wish for.” These hints build dread and make the outcome feel inevitable.
- The Cask of Amontillado: Framed as a past confession/flashback; it also uses hints and ironic clues (Fortunato’s jester costume, the catacombs, Montresor’s family motto and trowel remark) to foreshadow the fate awaiting Fortunato.
Who did it best? ✓ The Monkey’s Paw
Why: The Monkey’s Paw uses foreshadowing as its central engine. The warnings and repeated motifs create sustained suspense and moral tension — the audience knows danger is coming and watches how ordinary wishes spiral into tragedy. The foreshadowing makes the moral lesson inevitable and affecting.
Resolution/Conclusion
- The Monkey’s Paw: Tragic and ambiguous final scene — Herbert is dead, the Whites’ final wish is implied to stop whatever is at the door; the ending leaves a lingering chill and moral consequence (loss, regret).
- The Cask of Amontillado: Definitive and cold conclusion — Montresor completes his burial of Fortunato and, speaking years later, reveals no one disturbed the crime for fifty years. The closing line underscores his satisfaction and lack of remorse.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: Poe’s ending is brutally conclusive and memorably chilling. The final revelation that the crime remained hidden for decades and Montresor’s unrepentant tone provide a powerful, unsettling finish. It lingers because the narrator’s calm pride is so monstrous.
Theme (Overall Message)
- The Monkey’s Paw: “Be careful what you wish for” / consequences of interfering with fate; grief and the dangers of trying to reverse death.
- The Cask of Amontillado: Revenge, pride, the darkness of human nature; the thin line between justice and vengeance; appearance vs. reality.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: Poe’s exploration of revenge and pride is psychologically complex and morally ambiguous; telling the story as Montresor’s confession forces readers to evaluate motive, reliability, and human cruelty. The theme is shown through action and voice rather than moralizing, which makes it more unsettling and thought‑provoking.
Gothic Elements (emotion, imagination, the supernatural, horror, mystery, overall spookiness)
- The Monkey’s Paw: Gothic in its use of the supernatural object, the mood of dread, and the tragic emotional fallout; more domestic horror and inevitability than visceral terror.
- The Cask of Amontillado: Deeply Gothic — catacombs, damp darkness, burial alive, irony, a corrupted sense of justice, claustrophobic setting, and a narrator’s cold cruelty.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: Poe’s story hits classic Gothic notes more intensely: atmosphere (catacombs), physical horror (imprisonment/entombment), psychological horror (Montresor’s calm malice), and pervasive irony. It’s darker, stranger, and more viscerally unsettling than the more moral‑fable tone of Jacobs’ tale.
Summary of my choices
- Point of View: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Type of Conflict: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Plot Devices (foreshadowing/flashback): The Monkey’s Paw ✓
- Resolution/Conclusion: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Theme: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Gothic Elements: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
Final note: Both stories are excellent for different reasons. The Monkey’s Paw is superb at building moral suspense through foreshadowing and domestic tragedy; Poe’s Cask is stronger in voice, psychological intensity, Gothic atmosphere, and tightly focused conflict. Either choice could be defended — these are my reasons for preferring Poe for most elements and Jacobs for his masterful foreshadowing.
Point of View
- The Monkey’s Paw: third‑person (limited/omniscient narrator). The narrator describes the Whites’ actions and feelings from an outside perspective, with occasional general commentary.
- The Cask of Amontillado: first‑person (Montresor’s confession). The narrator tells the tale directly, addressing the reader and controlling what we know.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: First‑person narration creates immediacy, intimacy, and psychological depth. Montresor’s voice makes the story feel like a private confession and raises distrust (he’s clearly unreliable), which intensifies the horror. We live inside his rancor and watch his detailed, calm plotting — more chilling than a detached third‑person report.
Type of Conflict
- The Monkey’s Paw: Man vs. Supernatural/Fate (the magic paw brings unintended consequences); also man vs. grief/self (Mr. and Mrs. White’s emotional struggle after their son’s death).
- The Cask of Amontillado: Man vs. Man (Montresor’s revenge against Fortunato); also elements of man vs. conscience (implied, though Montresor claims none).
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: The Cask presents a tight, single‑minded conflict — calculated revenge — that drives every action and reveals character in a frighteningly concentrated way. Poe’s focused interpersonal conflict generates dramatic irony and sustained tension as Montresor manipulates Fortunato, making the conflict vivid and personal.
Plot Devices (Foreshadowing or Flashback)
- The Monkey’s Paw: Heavy foreshadowing — the sergeant‑major’s warnings, the chess metaphors, the paw’s creepy movement, the repeated warning “be careful what you wish for.” These hints build dread and make the outcome feel inevitable.
- The Cask of Amontillado: Framed as a past confession/flashback; it also uses hints and ironic clues (Fortunato’s jester costume, the catacombs, Montresor’s family motto and trowel remark) to foreshadow the fate awaiting Fortunato.
Who did it best? ✓ The Monkey’s Paw
Why: The Monkey’s Paw uses foreshadowing as its central engine. The warnings and repeated motifs create sustained suspense and moral tension — the audience knows danger is coming and watches how ordinary wishes spiral into tragedy. The foreshadowing makes the moral lesson inevitable and affecting.
Resolution/Conclusion
- The Monkey’s Paw: Tragic and ambiguous final scene — Herbert is dead, the Whites’ final wish is implied to stop whatever is at the door; the ending leaves a lingering chill and moral consequence (loss, regret).
- The Cask of Amontillado: Definitive and cold conclusion — Montresor completes his burial of Fortunato and, speaking years later, reveals no one disturbed the crime for fifty years. The closing line underscores his satisfaction and lack of remorse.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: Poe’s ending is brutally conclusive and memorably chilling. The final revelation that the crime remained hidden for decades and Montresor’s unrepentant tone provide a powerful, unsettling finish. It lingers because the narrator’s calm pride is so monstrous.
Theme (Overall Message)
- The Monkey’s Paw: “Be careful what you wish for” / consequences of interfering with fate; grief and the dangers of trying to reverse death.
- The Cask of Amontillado: Revenge, pride, the darkness of human nature; the thin line between justice and vengeance; appearance vs. reality.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: Poe’s exploration of revenge and pride is psychologically complex and morally ambiguous; telling the story as Montresor’s confession forces readers to evaluate motive, reliability, and human cruelty. The theme is shown through action and voice rather than moralizing, which makes it more unsettling and thought‑provoking.
Gothic Elements (emotion, imagination, the supernatural, horror, mystery, overall spookiness)
- The Monkey’s Paw: Gothic in its use of the supernatural object, the mood of dread, and the tragic emotional fallout; more domestic horror and inevitability than visceral terror.
- The Cask of Amontillado: Deeply Gothic — catacombs, damp darkness, burial alive, irony, a corrupted sense of justice, claustrophobic setting, and a narrator’s cold cruelty.
Who did it best? ✓ The Cask of Amontillado
Why: Poe’s story hits classic Gothic notes more intensely: atmosphere (catacombs), physical horror (imprisonment/entombment), psychological horror (Montresor’s calm malice), and pervasive irony. It’s darker, stranger, and more viscerally unsettling than the more moral‑fable tone of Jacobs’ tale.
Summary of my choices
- Point of View: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Type of Conflict: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Plot Devices (foreshadowing/flashback): The Monkey’s Paw ✓
- Resolution/Conclusion: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Theme: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
- Gothic Elements: The Cask of Amontillado ✓
Final note: Both stories are excellent for different reasons. The Monkey’s Paw is superb at building moral suspense through foreshadowing and domestic tragedy; Poe’s Cask is stronger in voice, psychological intensity, Gothic atmosphere, and tightly focused conflict. Either choice could be defended — these are my reasons for preferring Poe for most elements and Jacobs for his masterful foreshadowing.
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