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The Cast Of The Amontillado Analysis

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Edgar Allan Poe is the author of many great pieces of literature including some of the most brilliant and horrifying stories ever written. "The Cast of the Amontillado" is just that, brilliantly written and utterly horrifying. Every element in "The Cast of the Amontillado", like the setting, theme, and imagery, creates the effects of horror, demise and insanity. Poe uses tactics such as dramatic and verbal irony to build suspense and horror; even the character names are ironic. The psychology aspect of this story is what makes it terrifying, this story has no gruesome, blood and guts, death scene. The narrator uses sadistic manipulation and that is what makes this such a great gothic horror story. The setting of "The Cast of the Amontillado" comes together throughout the entirety of the story and gives the reader the impression there will be no joyous ending, at least not for everyone. It starts off at dusk, one evening, during the carnival season in Italy. As the setting changes from the outdoor festival of the carnival to the narrator's, Montresor's, palazzo he explains the absence of his people. "There were no attendants at home; they had absconded to make merry in honor of the time." (Poe, 59-60) Therefore, we now know Montresor and Fortunato are the only people in Montresors palazzo and according to Montresor, Fortunato is drunk. This is shown when he states, "He accosted me with excessive warmth, for he had been drinking much." (Poe, 22-23). These facts let the

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