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The Cask Of Amontillado Chapter 1 Analysis Essay

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4+1 Analysis: The Fall of the House of Usher The tone of the beginning of the story was foreboding and gloomy. When the narrator arrives at the House of Usher, he uses the word “melancholy” to describe the feeling of the house and says it has “a sense of insufferable gloom” (pg. 69). The house was falling apart, and it appeared as if Roderick Usher was too. He wrote to the narrator, explaining that his sister will die soon. This foreshadowing adds to the apprehensive tone. Poe includes many details that contribute to the ominous tone in the beginning. One important attribute of Roderick Usher is that he is a twin. When he found Madeline “dead,” this had a huge toll on his mental state and even his physical appearance. “The luminousness of his eye had utterly gone out.” (pg. 84) Some twins are known to have a sort of telepathic connection, so …show more content…

Montesor sounds like “monster,” while Fortunado sounds like “fortune.” Montesor, the mastermind behind this revengeful tale, was truly a monster. He murdered a man by burying him alive, just because he insulted him. Even though Fortunado’s name sounds like “fortune,” he definitely wasn’t fortunate in this story. Once Montesor “had fettered him to the granite,” (pg. 101) Fortunado realized he was destined to die, which does not suit his ironic name. Poe is very sarcastic when choosing his characters’ names. Fortunado is a very oblivious character in this story. He is a jester which shows he can be quite foolish. It seems as if he is very clueless to the fact that he’s being lead to his death until towards the end of the story. When Montresor offers him wine he says, “And I to your long life,” (pg. 99) which is very ironic; it’s like he’s mocking Fortunado. He had many chances to escape, yet he persisted on staying with Montresor. He’s an imbecile, and some could say that he was at fault for his own

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