This cautionary tale begins when Major Morris, of the British army in India, shares the tale of a troublesome monkey's paw with a married couple, Mr. and Mrs. White, and their only son, Herbert. Morris says the superstition is that the paw's possessor is granted three wishes but that meddling with fate can get quite tricky. Mr. White disregards the old soldier's warning, and becomes set on retrieving the monkeys paw after Morris has pitched it into a fire.