“The Faustian-Bargain Theme Found in The Monkey’s Paw, The Playground, and The Black Lake”

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document in English

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published 12/10/2007

review : Completed

level : General public

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Temptation preys upon what we wish for and what we dream for. Want a flashy car: a cherry red, nitrous infused Lamborghini with leather seats, a thumping sound system and a set of wicked hydraulics? Sure it sounds good, but how possible is that on such a measly salary? Maybe, but only after working 60 hour work weeks and cutting your budget so that you’re surviving on toast and ramen noodles. Do this for the next decade or more, working to the break point and sacrificing everything comfortable, and only then would you be able to afford your dream car. But that is why your dream car is still a dream; the plausibility of purchasing it is so far out of your reach that you can only imagine it and dream about one day owning it. You continue to dream and hope, thinking about your fantasy becoming true, but you are positive the closest you will get to owning a Lamborghini is when you ogle it at the dealership as you drive by. What would happen if a person just offered a Lamborghini to you? That mysterious new guy from accounting approaches you and tells you he can grant you anything you want…all you have to do, is wish for it. Would you do it? Of course you would! If someone could offer you your dream car for doing no work at all, automatically, your first response would be “yes!”, but after a minute, you would remember nobody offers anything for free and you would ask: “Ok, what’s the catch?”

Temptation preys upon what we wish for and what we dream for. Want a flashy car:
There is never a free lunch; there is a consequence for every action, however direct or indirect it may be.
Dr. Faustus knew the power of temptation all too well.
The monkey's paw may hold the power to fulfill wishes, but it is Sergeant-Major Morris, the visitor to the White's house, that enlightens the family about the power of the paw.
. The Sergeant could have brushed aside the story behind the monkey paw, but that would mean he would have to die with the power of the paw dying with him as well.
Despite the subconscious thought that the paw brought about the death of her son, Mrs. White cannot resist the temptation to cheat death.
One night, Charles walks to the playground and is greeted by a solemn little boy that is in fact the son of his friend Thomas Marshall.
In both The Monkey's Paw and The Playground it is a person that offers a Faustian-Bargain to the character or characters.
As if the lake could hear the fearful sounds of Hugh's wishes, it responded by forming into a familiar shape. And a shape began to emerge.
The devil tempts a person with an unattainable wish being granted, but the consequences of dealing with evil usually cost that person his life.