The Cask Of Amontillado By Edgar Allen Poe

Montresor tells the story in detail of how he leads a man, Fortunato, to his death. Montresor repeatedly expresses the need to kill Fortunato because he has done something to insult him and he must pay for it with his life. Montresor tells readers early in the story that he is going to be lying to Fortunato’s face by acting one way, but thinking about killing him the whole time. He says "I continued, as was my wont, to smile in

“The Cask of Amontillado” composed by Edgar Allan Poe is one of the precise examples of Poe’s hypothesis of solidarity of the short story. Poe’s utilization of language helps the reader to understand the conflict between two men, Montresor and Fortunato. In the story, Montresor, cunningly, wants to take revenge from Fortunato. Although the two men are seen in an unexpected way, they both need a similar thing; to fulfill the desire for something that has long past due. Montresor is confessing his crime in front of someone. The story broadens Montresor character but limits Fortunato’s character. The theme of trickiness and revenge, is explained with the utilization of symbolism and irony, Montresor seeks peace

Conflict: For Montresor to revenge himself for Fortunato’s insult, he has to get away with it – if Fortunato can revenge him back,

     In “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allan Poe takes us on a journey into the mind of a mad man. The story relates a horrible revenge made even more horrible by the fact that the vengeance is being taken when no real offense had been given. In a short space and with ultimate technical skill, Poe creates a nightmare, guaranteed to give the reader a sleepless night.

Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” is a goosebump-evoking tale that follows one man’s twisted plot for revenge. Although carnival season is in full-swing above ground, Fortunato finds himself being lead to his death underground in the catacombs. His “past insults” will ensure that he will never again participate in such feasts and merriment; Montresor, his “frenemy”, will make sure of that. As if the story isn’t creepy enough, Poe uses dialogue and sensory details to produce a mood that is both suspenseful and dark.

He told himself already how he was going to get back at Fortunato. His concept of revenge went too far. He should have just let the situation stand. They could have simply talked it out. In my opinion Fortunato seemed to be a pretty cool guy although he just made one mistake that set Montresor off. Montresor was never a true friend from the beginning if he can let what Fortunato did to him make him want to kill Fortunato in return. Montresor just seems to be a bit jealous of him, so he reacts in a bad

From the very beginning of the story, one can obviously see that Montresor thinks that he has been wronged by Fortunato. His plan for vengeance is easily seen through his actions and his thoughts. "He had a weak

It is indicated that in the past that Fortunato has hurt Montresor many times, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge.” However, there were never any insults or unkind acts actually mentioned in the story. It is exactly the opposite. Fortunato was friendly and helpful towards Montresor. From the very beginning of the story, one can obviously see that Montresor thinks that Fortunato has wronged him. “He had a weak point-this Fortunato-although in other regards he was a man to be respected and even feared.” This line shows that Montresor’s plan was well thought out. There is not any indication of what Fortunato thinks about Montresor. It can only be assumed that he trusts him do to the fact that he follows Montresor into the catacombs. It is up until the last moment, before the last brick is laid, that Fortunato believes this is all a joke. “Ha! Ha! Ha! – He! He! He! – a very good joke, indeed-an excellent jest.” Montresor is successful in his plan for vengeance. He succeeds in having Fortunato follow him into the catacombs and with great ease, had him up against the wall and shackled. Then tier-by-tier, Montresor constructed Fortunato’s tomb of bricks around him. When Montresor called out to him, he heard nothing and thus his plan was a success. “In pace requiescat!”

In the beginning of the story Montresor shows that he is planning revenge on Fortunato and that is the only thing on Montresor mind. “ I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge.”(1) This supports the theme because Montresor holds in a grudge and takes it

When Montresor is first introduced, the reader can easily identify Montresor as an unreliable narrator based on his unreasonable need to get back at Fortunato. He begins his recollection with words of exaggeration, recalling the “thousand injuries” (Poe 179) he endured, and the insult Fortunato had “ventured upon” (Poe 179). There is no further explanation on what would warrant such resentment before he quickly transitions to his definition of revenge:

“The force that drives Montresor to commit the horrible murder of Fortunato is his powerful desire for revenge. His first words in the story speak of it: “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge.” The idea of revenge is repeated several times in the opening paragraph. Montresor will not rush to act, he says, but “at length I would be avenged”; he is determined to “not only punish, but punish with impunity.” In seeking revenge, Montresor is acting out the motto of his people, as it appears on the family coat of arms, Nemo me impune lacessit (“No one wounds me with impunity”).” (Bily)

Montresor has held this grudge against his friend who according to him had given him “thousands of injuries.” This grudge he has makes him vindictive as he seeks revenge against Fortunato for his insult against him. His family’s motto is “Nemo me impune lacessit" meaning “No one attacks me with impunity”. The motto implies that the entire Montresor family history is filled with acts of revenge. Montresor becomes obsessed with his vengeance and when he has Fortunato chained to the wall he mocks at his cries and moaning, “I replied to the yells of him who clamored. I re-echoed, I aided, I surpassed them in volume and in strength.” Montrosor never mentions what the insulting act was which can tell us that the actual act wasn’t as important as him just getting some sort of revenge.

Montresor gives us very few detail about what Fortunato has done prior to the plot of the story. All we know is that Fortunato has done something to insult Montresor, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge. (165) Montresor is saying that Fortunato has hurt him copious times and Montresor was kind and did nothing about them, but now Fortunato had insulted him and Montresor will not tolerate this. There is no mention of what Fortunato has done to Montresor, but it is deemed worthy of vindication on Montresor’s part. The lack of information on what Fortunato has done is misleading because it could be such a minute offense that Fortunato has no

Edgar Allen Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado tells the story of a man who illustrates vengeance in its purest form. The short story is set in an unnamed Italian city during a time of celebration and carnival. It is told in a flashback by the narrator, Montresor, who recounts the day he took revenge on Fortunato, a man who continuously insulted him until he had enough and responded. This story is one of the most influential works in the horror genre as it possesses valuable insight into the psychological tendencies of the mind and its power to bring out the worst in human nature. Montresor becomes frustrated with the “injuries” caused by Fortunato and proceeds to commit the “perfect” crime— an undisclosed murder. Montresor’s strange and obsessive need for vengeance drives him to a point of insanity as he plans the most intricate details of his crime. In addition to this psychological analysis, biographical elements stemming from Poe’s life contribute to the story’s plot and themes. The idea behind the story stems from Poe’s experience at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, as he heard rumors of a military officer who faced a similar fate to that of Fortunato’s. Although proven to be false, the rumor contributed to the idea of such a story along with other things occurring in Poe’s life, such as his rivalry with literary critic Thomas Dunn English, who made parodies of Poe’s poetry and stories. Edgar Allen Poe’s writing of this short story was influenced by a variety of

narrator Montresor uses revenge as a motive to trick and murder and old friend, Fortunato, in the