Comparing The Cask of Amontillado and The Interlopers Essays

Thematically very different, “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe and “A&P” by John Updike are both tales told through the eyes of one main character and one has to be conscious of how truthful and reliable those characters words are. However, while both stories are told in the first person, the reliability of both Montresor and Sammy differ greatly.

Edgar Allan Poe is a famous writer in writing detective stories and horror stories. One of his horror stories, “The Cask of Amontillado” was talking about how a man took his revenge to his friend. However, to look deeply in this story, I found that this story was not just simply a horror tale about how a man gets his revenge in the safest way. Instead, it also demonstrates much irony in several areas: the title, the event, the season, the costume, the environment, the characters’ personalities, a man’s dignity and cockiness and at the end, the public order. he are

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.

It was a cold October night when I first heard of Fortunato’s case, I was very amused at the thought of someone doing something so unhuman to a person. I guess some people can’t control their actions, but then again those people belong in a mental institution. This case in particular was very peculiar because it had gone five years without being solved. It was about a week ago when our department heard about this case, it wasn’t long before the case landed on my hands. I am after all the best detective in this state something to be proud of course. Going out to the other side of the world to solve a case was something I had never done before but this case was overdue and someone had to do

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

An important element in any story is setting. Authors use setting to convey certain feelings brought on by the character’s surroundings. It also subliminally serves to illustrate the character’s intentions. In “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allen Poe uses the dark, imposing setting to do just that, communicate the underlying theme of the story, being death, revenge and deception.

In “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe, the dark side of human nature is illustrated through the character of Montresor and his victim, Fortunato. Montresor is a manipulative and vengeful person whom is obsessed with the downfall of Fortunato. Through the acts, words, and the thoughts of Montresor, one is able to see him carry out his plan for revenge.

<br>The way the narrator treats his enemy is one of the clearest examples for ironic elements. When the characters meet, Montresor realises that Fortunato is afflicted with a severe cold, nevertheless he makes a point of him looking "remarkably well". Montresor acts in the most natural and friendly way towards the man object of his revenge, and even praises his "friend's" knowledge in the subject of wines. Also upon their meeting, Montresor begins a psychological manipulation of Fortunato. He claims that he needs his knowledge to ascertain that the wine he has purchased is indeed Amontillado. Furthermore, he acknowledges that Fortunato is engaged in another business (i.e.: the celebration of carnival), so he would go to Luchresi, who, one is made to believe, is a competitor of Fortunato's. To these words, Fortunato is forced by his pride to accompany Montresor to the vaults (where the Amontillado is kept), dissipate his doubts and also to prove his higher status than Luchresi as a connoisseur of wine. In fact, during their way down under in the catacombs, the twisted mind of Montresor, dares to give Fortunato the chance to go back, due to the almost unbearable dampness and foulness rampant in the vaults and Fortunato's state of health. The narrator clearly knows about the stubborn nature of Fortunato, and is

It is often said that revenge is sweet, but that phrase does not hold to be extremely true throughout The Cask of Amontillado. There are various themes and lessons throughout the story, but there is one theme that seems to be shown more than others. The most prevalent theme is that jealousy can lead to vengeance, and ultimately lead to the downfall, or even death, of a person. This theme is clearly evident through the two main characters, Montresor and Fortunato. By looking closer at Montresor’s words and actions toward Fortunato, it is apparent that there is a superfluous amount of jealousy between them. This jealousy that is between them ends up playing a major part in Montresor ultimately killing Fortunato, someone who was thought to be one of his best friends. The author uses the characters and their actions to develop a solid plot line and prove the point that jealousy and revenge can destroy a person, both figuratively and literally.

“... A hoarse cry came from his lips as he realized he had reached too far and lost his balance … he struggled up to the surface and cried out, but the wash from the speeding yacht slapped him in the face.”What did you feel there. Were you scared as he fell off the boat into the water? You may have felt this way because of the mood. In the story, “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell, the mood changes a lot. It goes from a pitch black night falling off a yacht, to a sunny afternoon walk on the beach, then after that a whole other mess of things. All these things make you feel different because of mood. Mood sets the tone through characters, the places they go, and the things they experience.

We soon see foreshadowing of Fortunato's impending doom when the issue of Montresor's shield of arms is brought into the conversation as &quot;A huge human foot d'or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel.&quot;. Even more appropriate is Montresor's family motto, translated as, &quot;No one wounds me with impunity&quot;. Such a visual depiction and mental conviction due to family honor and history creates all the more impetus in Montresor to carry out the punishment that Fortunato deserves for wronging him, and more likely the family honor. When Montresor finally captures Fortunato in the catacombs, the climax of his precisely calculated deed, he revels in the sound of Fortunato's chains rattling, and &quot;that I might hearken to it with the more satisfaction, I ceased my labors and sat down upon the bones&quot;. However, his satisfaction soon turns to apprehension when suddenly &quot;a succession of loud and shrill screams, bursting from the throat of the chained form, seemed to thrust me violently back&quot;. He hesitates at this moment, when his revenge is sweetest, when he should bask in the suffering of his &quot;enemy&quot;, and finds himself contemplating the shrill screams of his captive! He does eventually compose

The Cask of Amontillado is considered to be one of the best short stories. Written by Edgar Allan Poe in first person and having all the main events as a three hundred page fiction book, The Cask of Amontillado is a complete novel. This short story has several themes which function from the first page of the story such as: suspense, fear, and revenge.

"The Cask of Amontillado" is one of Edgar Allan Poe's greatest stories. In this story Poe introduces two central characters and unfolds a tale of horror and perversion. Montresor, the narrator, and Fortunato, one of Montresor's friends, are doomed to the fate of their actions and will pay the price for their pride and jealousy. One pays the price with his life and the other pays the price with living with regret for the rest of his life. Poe uses mystery, irony, and imagery to create a horrifying, deceptive, and perverse story.

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).

The Cask of Amontillado is a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe published in 1846. The story focuses on a man taking fatal revenge on a friend who, he believes betrayed him. Because of the plot arrangement, this short story seems to be written using biographical strategy. Biographical strategy is concerned about how the author’s biography may have influenced the story. The similarities between Poe’s personal life and the characters love with alcohol, failures in his life and along with the misfortunes Poe had lived shared many likenesses.