A Psychological Occurance of Montresor as an Obsession of Revenge with Impunity in Edgar Allen Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado"

In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Edgar Allen Poe issues a warning that even your closest friends can stab you in the back when you insult them in the right way. Poe perfectly portrays the way someone you think is your best friend could just as well be your biggest enemy. In “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allen Poe uses Montresor’s point of view, plot, and symbolism to convey the cold, merciless man who is Montresor to warn the readers that not everyone is who they seem to be.

time to think about why he is chained and closed into a wall to die.

In the text montresor says”my heart grew sick on account of the dampness of the catacombs”(poe 67). Montresor is saying he feels bad for what he is doing and he feels sick in his heart To where he doesn't want to go through with it. But he thinks to the fact that he has made fun of him. In that case he continued down the catacombs and on with the murder. He thinks he is going to bring justice to himself but he loves the fact that he is taking Fortunato to his death. James F. Cooney says “ He seems to be unaware but the reader is not ,of the gleeful tone of his confession”(Cooney 15 ). At first Montresor acts as though he does not know what he is doing wrong. Suddenly he feels sick and knows he is wrong but thinks to when fortunato mad fun of him and feels no longer

In The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, the dark side of human nature is exemplified through the character of Montresor and his victim, Fortunato. Montresor is a manipulative and vengeful person. These characteristics lead to the death of Fortunato, a man who has wronged him. Through the acts, words, and the thoughts of the character, one is able to see him carry out his plan for revenge.

All of these images of the setting and characters come together with the idea of Montresor’s premeditated demise for Fortunado. From the beginning we know that Montresor is upset with Fortuado and he is seeking revenge. With all of Montresor’s comments we see that this is not just talk but a reality. When the two men are discussing turning around due to Fortunado’s cough, Fortunado says, “I shall not die of a cough” which in reply Montresor says “true.” (Poe page 3) This foreshadows the demise of Fortunado, and what Montresor has in mind for him. Another example of this is when they discuss Montresor’s family crest, that his family moto is “Nemo me impune lacessit” (Poe page 3) which means no one attacks me without paying dearly. Along with this statement, is when he tells Fortunado that his family are of the masons, foreshadowing the way he will kill Fortunado.

Pride brought out a very dangerous emotion in Montresor, anger. Montresor had suffered "a thousand injuries" or wrong doings from Fortunato, but Montresor was never motivated to speak out against or hurt Fortunato (Poe 221). He was content to tolerate Fortunato's offences silently until he crossed a line. Fortunato "ventured upon insult" or slandered Montresor's name, which Montresor's pride could not let stand (Poe 221). After Montresor heard of Fortunato's slander of his name, he quietly plotted to exact revenge upon Fortunato and take advantage of his two greatest flaws, his excessive drinking and his pride (Poe 222). Montresor made careful plans that ensured he would not raise suspicions, so he would not get caught (Poe 222). Montresor believed that revenge is useless if one gets caught (Poe 222). He allowed pride and anger to cloud his judgment, which caused him to make the dangerous decision to murder Fortunato for an offense that did not

When discussing Montresor’s mental state, his methodical approach is a crucial indicator.  When Montresor is enacting his plan for revenge, it is apparent that he had plotted and took time to configure each of his

Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most celebrated literary authors of all time, known for writing very suspenseful, dramatic short stories and a poet; is considered as being a part of the American Romantic Movement, and a lesser known opinion is he is regarded as the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. Most recognized for his mystery and macabre, a journey into the dark, ghastly stories of death, deception and revenge is what makes up his reputation. The short story under analysis is a part of his latter works; “The Cask of Amontillado”, a story of revenge takes readers into the mind of the murderer.

A wise man once said, “ Destroy what destroys you.” destroying what destroys you is a common theme of revenge. When it comes to revenge, The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe is the story to go to. The whole story and plot itself revolve around one word. Revenge. The story is based on Montresor wanting revenge for the one who wronged him, Fortunato. Therefore, the theme of The Cask of Amontillado is revenge. The author Edgar Allen Poe uses different literary elements to create this theme. The literary elements Poe uses include: foreshadowing, suspense, and irony.

Another indirect factor that could contribute to Montresor’s vengeful act, and thus the story’s theme of revenge, is his state of mind. Some critics have analyzed the opening line of this short story and have determined that it could contribute to an insane state of mind. When the opening line states, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge,” it does not describe what the insult is. The fact that Montresor does not give a specific description of the insult leads many critics to believe that Montresor has acted irrationally in murdering Fortunato and that he is insane. Another example of Montresor’s insanity is found when he replies to Fortunato’s screams (Baraban). In the story, Montresor states, “I replied to the yells of him who clamoured. I re-echoed, I aided, I surpassed them in volume and in strength” (Poe 1616). Critics view this statement as contributing to Montresor’s unstable state of mind, and thus contributing to his act of revenge (Baraban).

Edger Allan Poe wrote characters, like Montresor, with these certain characteristics so we could relate to the emotions and feelings in the story. Montresor seeks revenge, takes pride in his vengeful acts and

“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe is a story full of irony. Irony is defined as a literary technique in which what appears differs radically from what is actually the case. In addition, irony can be divided into three groups: dramatic, verbal, and situational. Dramatic irony is when the readers notice something before the characters do. Verbal irony is when the characters say something that differs significantly from what they really mean. Situational irony is when the actual result is different from what was initially expected. In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Poe combines all of these ironies to tell the story and to construct the personalities of the characters in an entertaining way.

     Montressor can either be an insane murderer or just a man who wants revenge. He has to be a bit insane because he had killed this man. Whoever read this story

The “Golden Rule” taught to children in grade school is to treat others the way they would want to be treated. This rule goes back to a passage in the Bible found in Matthew 7:12, “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.” This rule is a general way for people to get by in life, a way to avoid conflict and live in peace. However, how far does this rule stretch? If one is kind and charitable the idea is that the person receiving the kind acts will act the same in return, but what if the situation goes awry? Would this concept of treating others the way one was treated still apply to someone who, for example, got stabbed, shot, murdered, or even raped? The idea of people behaving themselves in reciprocation to how they are treated in a situation gone awry as mentioned, follows the concept of seeking revenge. The theme of revenge is evident in, Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado,” Bruce Shapiro’s “One Violent Crime,” and in Andre Dubus, “Killings.” In the two stories and article, a character feels that to make up for a loss of some kind, they took matters into their own hands to exact their revenge upon the people who harmed them. While the thought may be that since they have been done wrong, they should do wrong too, Andre Dubus’ “Killings” demonstrates how doing so does not make up for that loss. Although revenge may seem like the answer to one’s cries of despair, the reality is

Revenge, the act of inflicting hurt or harm on someone for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands, except this time it might have gone too far. In The Cask of Amontillado, two main characters find themselves in an example of Man vs Man conflict. The story begins by introducing Fortunato, a wine addict that wrongs the other major character in the story, Montressor and, consequently, Montressor establishes an elaborate plan to trap and starve Fortunato deep in the catacombs under his house. An insult, no matter how hurtful, should drive another to kill a man. However, Montressor decides to kill Fortunato on the night of Mardi Gras. He decides to do this since Montressor knew of Fortunato’s wine addiction, so he tells him that there is a pipe of Amontillado, a lavish wine, in the catacombs of his mansion. Moreover, Montressor also decides to kill him that night because he would surely be drunk that night. After apprising Fortunato about the wine, Fortunato insists they go to unearth it, not considering the risks of this journey. During their descent, the author uses characterizations of heaps of bones, walls coated in niter, and sturdy stonework to good use several times in great detail. Specifically, on page 61, the author depicts this example of imagery, “We had passed walls of piled bones, with casks and puncheons intermingling, into the innermost recesses of the catacombs,”(61). As a matter a fact, this in-depth detail of the setting continues until they descend to