The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe is a classic story that has everything one would expect in a Gothic tale. The narrator, Montresor, lures Fortunato into his family’s catacombs with the promise of amontillado wine and proceeds to take him down to the depths below, brick by brick. The setting is especially important to this story as the catacombs are dark, dank, and cold with very few places for escape. The cask of Amontillado is a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe that was first published in November 1846. The story follows Montresor who has been hurt by insults from his friend Fortunato.
Montresor plots his revenge against Fortunato by luring him down into the family catacombs where he will suffocate him within a wall of brick then leave without being known or suspected. The old man whom they pass along their way to the catacomb seems oblivious to what’s happening but perhaps, deep down he knows more he lets on. The two men converse and insult each other while descending down into the catacombs. The last part of this story follows Montresor as he brags about the murder and explains how Fortunato was never suspected for it.
The short story The Cask of Amontillado begins with a man named Montresor who is speaking to an old friend named Fortunato in order to get revenge against him for his insul… Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask Of Amontillado The infamous Edgar Allen Poe tells us a tale of revenge, deceit, and murder in The Cask of Amontillado. The author describes many key points that makes this story disturbing and terrifying. The main character’s intention, feelings, the setting, and the unknown are all key topics that makes The Cask of Amontillado a great read.
The story begins with Montresor speaking to his old friend Fortunato who has previously insulted him many times. The first point that was brought up is Montresor’s intention for wanting revenge against Fortunato. The reader does not know why he wants revenge against him other than that Fortunato continuously insults him which results in Montresor’s patience being pushed to its limits. The next key topic discussed throughout this short story is feelings. The author expresses them by saying “I looked upon him as my future husband” (Poe).
The feeling expressed here shows how much love there once was between the two men. The other key topic is the setting. The main character takes his friend to a place where there is no escape for Fortunato. The final key topic brought up in The Cask of Amontillado is the unknown. The reader knows that there will be revenge, but they do not know what will happen throughout this short story. The… The Cask of Amontillado Edgar Allen Poe In the dark and quite streets of an old European city one could find a very grand looking building with grand steps leading up to its majestic doors.
This building was said to have been owned by a man who had made his fortune from selling liquor long before prohibition had ever been thought of, so naturally he built this building as his personal underground liquor storage. The location of the building was in a sort of maze like pattern, and if you were not familiar with it you could very easily get lost in this maze like pattern which made it all that more easy for something or someone to go missing never to be seen again.
The man who had built these underground tunnels and storage rooms also decided that he wanted one room to be filled with bricks and left untouched, just as a reminder of how dark his past really was. The hollow walls would protect the wine bottles from getting broken or accidentally opened. The years went by and soon enough prohibition ended so the use of the cellar didn’t continue much beyond that time period.
The plot revolves around the narrator, Montresor, who seeks revenge on his friend Fortunato for an undisclosed slight. Montresor lures Fortunato down into a subterranean crypt to taste wine. Before releasing him, Montresor chains the drunkard to a stone wall and bricks up the entrance. The final line reveals that he has sealed his enemy alive in the wall, and that there is “blood near”. The story is one of Poe’s most famous works because of its twist ending. The irony of this tale’s suspenseful mood stems from the fact that readers know all along how it will end.
The dramatic effect among readers is so strong that they often fail to be as attentive as they would in a short story without such an ending. The interesting point about this tale is the fact that the narrator never states what he has done nor why he has turned against his friend . The revenge taken is not an every day occurrence and thus is not likely to occur among readers. The revenge itself, however, can still be felt between friends or enemies due to the double-meaning of the word “Montresor”.
The reader must understand Montresor’s name from two different perspectives: 1) He chooses “Montresor” because of its closeness to monstrum , Latin for “monster”; 2) MontrEsor (with accents) is close to ” monsieur “, French for “sir” or ” Mr. “. The double-meaning allows the reader to understand that Montresor has a deep hatred for Fortunato, but at the same time envies him. The two reasons he wishes revenge are because of Fortunato’s social standing and his engagement to his beautiful daughter.
The second reason is more touching than others, as it gives deeper insight into Montresor himself. The author uses these elements in order to emphasize how seriously this final conflict is taken by all parties involved. “The Cask of Amontillado” begins with narration by an unidentified person who claims that he once knew a man named Montresor. One day, the man asks Montresor to accompany him into a family catacomb because he wishes to show Montresor something. The visitor states that no one knows of this place but him, and that it is “meant only for myself and my friends.
As they go down, the narrator reveals his thoughts on each of the people whose remains are kept there. The two men reach an alcove where three stone steps lead up to a brick wall with an iron gate. The man exclaims how beautiful the arched ceiling above them appears due to candlelight, then takes out several trowels, silk ropes, and masonry tools. He calls Montresor’s attention toward what looks like bricks inside the oubliette and explains that they can be removed to reveal what he says is a great cask of rare Amontillado.
The man then offers a wine-tasting on the spot and removes one brick with a trowel. The narrator drops in and holds Fortunato for his friend as he ties the loose end of the rope around his neck. The man seals up the wall, trapping his friend inside. He throws Fortunato’s body over his shoulder as he climbs out (with the help of ropes) and replaces each brick, feeling delight as they “clang[] against [Fortunato’s] ear. “
