Guilt and Motive Leading to Murder Edgar Allen Poe wrote the “The Cask of Amontillado.” It is a short story in which the narrator kills one of the other characters. But what was the reason behind the murder? Was it for revenge or was it for satisfaction? Many people have their own reasons as to the motive behind the murder. The motive behind the murder is revealed through the text of the short story using irony, diction, and imagery. There is much irony displayed in this short story. For example, Fortunato’s name means fortune; however, in this story, he was not fortunate at all. He was murdered by Montresor. It seems like Montresor has been wanting to plot revenge for the longest of the times. In the first sentence of the short story, Edgar Allen Poe states , “ Thousand Injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge” (183). It seems as if Montresor had a plan for a while., and at that moment, he was ready to implement it. Another example is when Montresor says, “My dear Fortunato, you are luckily met” (Poe 138). Once again, Fortunato does not end up being the lucky one. The irony mainly lies in Montresor’s statements to Fortunato. Again, luck is reflected by Montresor. Luck of which Fortunato does not have. Towards the end of the story, Montresor says , “Yes, for the love of God.” This indicates that he may have killed Fortunato “for the love of God” (Karadas 3). Montresor’s dialogue mostly has an ironic twist to
Edgar Allen Poe's brings us a twisted tale of vengeance and horror in "The Cask of Amontillado." Poe's character, Montresor, acts as our guide and narrator through this story. He grabs a hold of the reader as he tells the story from his own apathetic and deceptive mind to gain vengeance from the weak and dismal Fortunato. Montresor's mentality is disturbing as he uses his clever, humor, ironic symbolism, and darkness to accomplish this.
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
In this story the character of Montresor is revealed through his own words. When he reveals he is going to punish Fortunato for merely insulting him, that he has planned the whole act of vengeance, and that he has been playing as being Fortunato’s friend, we know we are dealing with a deranged personality. His character is also revealed with references to his family. It is almost as if Poe has Montresor’s ancestors tell the reader how nicely he fits into the family tree. His legacy from his family motto “No one attacks me with impunity” and a coat of arms that depicts a serpent whose last wish before death is to poison the foot that crushed it. Does the fruit of ever fall far from the tree? Montresor is as evil as his forebears were. He shows no remorse about what he has done, even in old age. When he says, “May he rest in peace” at the end of the story, the reader gets the feeling he means, “ I hope you stay there and rot” rather than, “I hope you found joy and peace in heaven.”
The cast of Amontillado was written by Allan Poe at a time when he felt he was being unjustly attacked. Most critics believe that the cask of Amontillado was written by Poe against his critics in the Mirror. I believe the cask of Amontillado is a story of Revenge and Hatred against some friends whom be believed had wrongfully accused him. A review of Allan Poe as a person and his experiences in life is essential a clear understanding of "The Cask of Amontillado". Hence, I will apply a cultural method of interpretation.
Montresor is untrustworthy from the very beginning. By montresor vowing revenge early on ,the readers cannot trust his unreliable story. The text states , “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had born as long I could”(poe 59). The reader cannot trust montresor because montresor wants to kill fortunato.The reader cannot trust someone who has vengeance on others. There are always two sides to a story there side your side and the truth. And in this story we only got one side. James F. Cooney says “In the course of the narrative we learn how montresor used the cutting edge of irony to give a surgeon’s neatness to his work and to secure the greatest possible delight of himself” (Cooney 15 ). Montresor is trying to kill fortunato. He finds delight in the the act of killing fortunato. His murder
<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
Edgar Allan Poe, an American born writer and poet during the early 19th century, is known for his dark and twisted diction that continues to captivate readers to this day. Nearly all of Poe’s stories contain hidden symbolism and themes that entice readers to discover the secrets in his writings over a hundred years later and the “Cask of Amontillado” is no different. Written in November of 1846, nearly three years before Poe’s death, “The Cask of Amontillado” is often regarded as one of Poe’s master pieces, full of symbolism and dramatic irony. Edgar Allan Poe’s dramatic ironies and symbolisms in his short story “The Cask of Amontillado” convey a dark theme of pain, manipulation, and the impact of revenge.
One of the main rhetorical devices evident within the short story is the use of dramatic irony, which Poe uses to foreshadow the climax of the story, which is Fortunato's death. For example, one of the most obvious uses of irony in the story is the name of Fortunato himself, which translates to “the fortunate one”. However,
Vengeance and murder infects the minds of Montresor and Fortunato upon an exchange of insult in Edgar Allan Poe’s "The Cask of Amontillado”. This is the story of pure revenge after Forturano disrespects Montresor. The story follows the characters meeting up at a carnival and eventually the disguised Montresor lures Fortunato into the catacombs of his home by convincing him that he acquired something that could pass for Amontillado, a light Spanish sherry. Fortunato grows eager to taste this wine and to determine for Montresor whether or not it is truly Amontillado. He leads him back to the catacombs of his home and carries out his plot to bury him alive. Edgar Allan Poe writes from a mysterious first person perspective, uses colorful symbolism and situational irony to present the man's inner self, in turn revealing that revenge is fundamentally infeasible.
Some of the irony used on this story can be seen when Montresor asks Fortunato about how he's feeling with the nitre and Montresor warns him by saying "we will go back; your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, and beloved. You are happy, as once I was. You are a man to be missed. For me it is no matter. We will go back; you will be ill and I cannot be responsible." This phrases show all the irony necessary for a story to be ironic: first, Montresor saying that Fortunato's health is precious; second, when he says that Fortunato is a man to be missed; but after that, saying that to him it doesn't matter if he dies; and finally, saying that he will not be responsible.
Edgar Allan Poe portrays conflict by creating tension between Montresor and Fortunato. In the story, tension is merely only seen through the eyes of Montressor because of the animosity that he has against Fortunato for the cursing of his family's name which was one of an old and honored one. Montresor states his revenge by saying “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed my revenge.” Montresor is stating that he had been able to bear insults, but once his family's name was insulted, he was driven to seek revenge from this humility. Montresor's evil intentions to murder Fortunato come solely from Fortantos insulting demeanor. The conflict that is shared between Fortunato and Montresor is the main factor which creates the theme of revenge in this story.
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.
Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” is a frightening and entertaining short story about the severe consequences that result from persistent mockery and an unforgiving heart. Poe’s excellent use of Gothicism within the story sets the perfect tone for a dark and sinister plot of murder to unfold. “The Cask of Amontillado” simply overflows with various themes and other literary elements that result from Poe’s Gothic style of writing. Of these various themes, one that tends to dominant the story as a whole is the theme of revenge, which Poe supports with his sophisticated use of direct and indirect factors, irony, and symbolism.
The decision I made about the choice of how terror and horror compare to the real world as the theme to analyze is the right decision because revenge was vowed, death, was involved, and their was n punishment for the crime.¨I had borne the best I could venture upon insult. I vowed revenge,¨(beers et al 286) is illustrated in the short story,¨ The Cask of the Amontillado¨. This quote supports my claim because as revenge was vowed there was no punishment given at all for the crime. It also supports my claim in which that it relates to the real world´situations for example the news it has cases like this everyday and so in the story.
you love horror movies, scary movies or stories that have a real dark side, then you will love Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado”. The story is about revenge and secret murder, and how revenge can be a real motivator to kill someone. It goes to show, that you never know what’s in the mind of even the nicest person.