The Monkey's Paw
What if I were in the possession of the true Monkey's Paw of legend? Would I use it, knowing it was cursed with the most terrible curses of all, that which both feeds one's narcissism and then preys upon the individual's weakness of thinking they could come out unscathed by using it?
For those who aren't aware of the Legend of the Monkey's Paw, I would say to look up the short stroy that made the tale famous (The Monkey's Paw by W. W. Jacobs). It's a very dark story, thus my being fairly shocked when asked to read it in the seventh grade by the teacher, but it remains one of my favorites to this very day. The explanation: those who use the paw's power, that to grant three wishes, fall victim to the paw's original purpose: to show people that they can go through life without any outside intervention. How does it show them this? After using the cursed remains, the wish WILL come true, guaranteed. Yet, the cost is often a very gruesome one, one which eats a the user or the user's family in some way or another.
Now, the question at hand, would I, personally, use the Paw in my favor? The way that's worded, it's actually a trick question of sorts. You see, using the Paw to go in your favor... well, this doesn't happen. It always comes up with a way to make it an irreversible problem for you, thus you want to use the Paw again, to get rid of the first problem. This, in return, creates a massive problem that must be dealt with. The Paw's power is used a third time, using up it''s abilities. What then?
I'm a rational person, or at least consider myself to be one. So, with this type of power in hand, it's tempting, yet I am already aware of the effects of using it. But in the pursuit of power, which has ruined many a-people, I would at least wonder whether or not I could do it on my own. And then, a thought occurred to me: with all of the people out there who desire those three wishes, there's a market for it. Only two options now: sell it or seal it, but another legend holds that those who attempt to seal it have always fallen for it's curse as more problems occur in their life. This means only one thing to me, and that is that the Paw is still floating around somewhere in the reaches of some country out there, still damning those weak-willed or proud enough to use it to see if it will either raise them up or if they are the one, the one who can survive the curse and tame The Monkey's Paw.
-rcw
For those who aren't aware of the Legend of the Monkey's Paw, I would say to look up the short stroy that made the tale famous (The Monkey's Paw by W. W. Jacobs). It's a very dark story, thus my being fairly shocked when asked to read it in the seventh grade by the teacher, but it remains one of my favorites to this very day. The explanation: those who use the paw's power, that to grant three wishes, fall victim to the paw's original purpose: to show people that they can go through life without any outside intervention. How does it show them this? After using the cursed remains, the wish WILL come true, guaranteed. Yet, the cost is often a very gruesome one, one which eats a the user or the user's family in some way or another.
Now, the question at hand, would I, personally, use the Paw in my favor? The way that's worded, it's actually a trick question of sorts. You see, using the Paw to go in your favor... well, this doesn't happen. It always comes up with a way to make it an irreversible problem for you, thus you want to use the Paw again, to get rid of the first problem. This, in return, creates a massive problem that must be dealt with. The Paw's power is used a third time, using up it''s abilities. What then?
I'm a rational person, or at least consider myself to be one. So, with this type of power in hand, it's tempting, yet I am already aware of the effects of using it. But in the pursuit of power, which has ruined many a-people, I would at least wonder whether or not I could do it on my own. And then, a thought occurred to me: with all of the people out there who desire those three wishes, there's a market for it. Only two options now: sell it or seal it, but another legend holds that those who attempt to seal it have always fallen for it's curse as more problems occur in their life. This means only one thing to me, and that is that the Paw is still floating around somewhere in the reaches of some country out there, still damning those weak-willed or proud enough to use it to see if it will either raise them up or if they are the one, the one who can survive the curse and tame The Monkey's Paw.
-rcw
posted by rcw himself at
11:43 AM
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