I actually have read “The Cask of Amontillado” a number of times in high school, along with a number of Edgar Allen Poe’s other short stories. Although his stories tend to have darker subject matter, I tend to enjoy them due to the suspense that they bring. His stories, this one in particular, usually focus on the darker aspects of human nature. Although he usually uses extreme cases as seen with Montresor’s revenge on Fortunato, they are real traits and often faults of human nature.
Edgar Allen Poe really brings the reader into the mind of Montresor. The story begins with Montresor justifying why he took his revenge to some form of audience (I will touch on this later). He is never explicit with what Fortunato did to deserve his fate, we just know it was based on insult. The reader is thrust into the psyche of Montresor’s games with Fortunato, beginning with his playing upon Fortunato’s self-proclaimed connoisseurship of wine to lure Fortunato into his house. Montresor uses his knowledge of human nature throughout the story to get his way, as seen when he tells his workers to remain working while he is gone and they all leave. He is able to put Fortunato’s guard down by quenching his thirst with wine and acting like a friend genuinely concerned for his well-being.
Irony is another aspect that is found continually throughout the story. While they are on their trek through the catacombs, Fortunato insists that the cough will not kill him, but when he is buried alive it is most likely a contributing factor to his eventual death. Another example of irony found in the story is Montresor’s family arms which read “no one attacks me with impunity.” This is also very foreboding for the fate of Fortunato. Montresor also implores the use of irony when he pulls a trowel from beneath his cloak when asked if he was a mason. Fortunato was speaking of the brotherhood of the Free Masons rather than a mason by trade. There are numerous other examples of irony throughout the story and can even be seen in the meaning of the character’s names.
By the end of the story, we see exactly how twisted Montresor is. He toys with Fortunato as he is sealing him to his death inside of the catacombs. He mocks Fortunato by yelling and repeating what he says. This is the most disturbing part of the story to me, as I am reading Montresor’s actions they seem inhuman. He even makes the reader believe that he pities what he did to Fortunato when he claims his heart felt sick, but Montresor immediately casts it out and attributes his sickness to the dampness of the catacombs.
Lastly, I wanted to touch on who Montresor is retelling his story. I believe that Montresor is telling his story to a priest as reconciliation on his death bed. However, after the way in which he tells the story with every exact detail and no mention of remorse, it is hard to say that Montresor actually is trying to reconcile his actions. Rather, I believe that Montresor is boasting about his actions. He didn’t want to die without anyone else knowing about his “perfect” revenge, so he told the priest in reconciliation. He is recounting the story to someone so that they “appreciate” the measures he went to in order to “punish with impunity.”
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