Based on the context of this excerpt from w. w. jacobs's "the monkey paw". what dose the word placidly mean

The "most dangerous game" is a short story about a hunter, rainsford, who ends up getting hunted himself on ship-trap island by another man. this passage is part of the story's exposition. what technique does the author use to foreshadow the plot twist which is to come? a) the humor that the men share at the beginning of the story changes into tragedy and horror in an ironic way. b) whitney's lack of empathy for the hunted foreshadows that he will have to learn how the hunted feels-- the hard way. c) whitney's inability to see the island, even though he is known to have great vision, foreshadows his blindness about hunting. d) rainsford's lack of empathy for the hunted foreshadows that he will have to learn how the hunted feels-- the hard way.