ipl-logo

How Does Poe Create Suspense In The Cask Of Amontillado

477 Words2 Pages

In the short story “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allan Poe uses many techniques to create and heighten the suspense of the story. In the article "Poe and the Gothic of the Normal: Thinking 'Inside the Box'" written by Elaine Hartnell-Mottram says, “this tale is told by an unhelpful first-person narrator, who is also the protagonist, to an addressee who is not directly involved in the action of the narrative and about whom we can deduce nothing with any certainty”. Nothing is certain in this short story. Poe uses many sources of irony and foreshadowing during the short story as well. As the story begins, there is suspense built up between the two main characters, Montresor and Fortunato. The reader will experience multiple sources of Gothic unease, which will add to the suspense (Hartnell-Mottram). One technique used right off the bat to create suspense is that Poe let the readers know that Montresor was out for revenge in the first line of the story. This keeps the readers at the edge of their seat because the readers can assume that there is going to be a fight or death occurrence at some point in the story. …show more content…

In the story Montresor states, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge” (Poe p174). This leaves a lack of explanation for his revenge, making the readers question why he wants to kill Fortunato so badly. Another way the suspense is heightened is Montresor’s obvious mocking and manipulation of Fortunado. The close friendship between Montresor and Fortunato also adds suspense to the readers. Montresor’s sarcasm and wanting to do evil things, manipulates Fortunado, which leads to the creation of a creepy villain which increases the suspense. Then the suspense is at its height when Montresor’s plan to wall Fortunado in and leave him there to die becomes

Show More
Related
750 Words | 3 Pages

Poe creates Montresor’s character cunning, secretive, and evil which helps create the suspense in the story. Poe is able to create and sustain a suspenseful mood in “The Cask of Amontillado” using setting, foreshadowing, and the characterization of Montresor. One way Poe creates suspense in his

Read More
864 Words | 4 Pages

He has plotted a revenge for him so that Fortunato could get what he deserved. Montresor planned for Fortunato to get drunk and then lure him to his home where he will kill him . After Fortunato is led back to Montresor’s house be deceiving him and took him to the catacombs of the Mansion where the supposed Amontillado wine is. Montresor was planning to trap Fortunato in the catacombs to kill him, this is an extremely horrible death. Dying of starvation or thirst would be a painful way to go especially in a dark catacomb surrounded by skeletons and the smell of rot and dampness.

Read More
1067 Words | 5 Pages

Montresor states, “I continued , as was my in to smile in his face and he did not perceive that my smile now was at the thought of his immolation” (Poe 1). Montresor devises an intricate and well thought out plan to murder someone he considers a friend, he highlights the evil of humanity when the thought of killing Fortunato brings a smile to his face.

Read More
269 Words | 2 Pages

In the story “The Cask of Amontillado,” by Edgar Allan Poe creates a mood that is dark and suspenseful and is developed by the image of the maze, the uneasiness of following, and the image of burying someone. First, the mood can be supported by a mental image on page four when it says “We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on, and descending again, arrived at a deep crypt.” For example, this gives us and dark mood because of the setting we can mentally see, followed by suspense of what is going to happen underground. Next, Poe’s astounding imagery can help us feel the suspenseful mood when he wrote “... as he stepped unsteadily forward, while I followed immediately at his heels,” also on page four. In other words, because

Read More
1239 Words | 5 Pages

Montresor tortures Fortunato, both physiologically and physically. Montresor clearly gives Fortunato “multiple chances to escape his fate” (Delany 34), as he gives Fortunato obvious clues to his true intensions. These include leading Fortunato into a place for the dead, telling Fortunato not to go due to his severe cough that made it “impossible to reply” (Poe 5) at times, reminding Fortunato of his family arms, mentioning Luchesi, and showing Fortunato a trowel. Montresor seems to receive morbid joy out of the fact that Fortunato is so intoxicated that, just like the foot on Montresor’s coat of arms, he is unintentionally “stepping into his own destruction” (Cervo

Read More
657 Words | 3 Pages

Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Cask of Amontillado” is the narrative of a man named Montresor who seeks vengeance against a man named Fortunato. Fortunato insults Montresor. Next, Montresor meet Fortunato at a carnival, eventually luring him into the catacombs of his home to bury Fortunato alive. Moreover, different types of irony are portrayed in this short story. Dramatic irony consists of the character in the story knowing less about his or her situation than the reader.

Read More
1054 Words | 5 Pages

The fictional short story “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe takes place in the catacombs of Montresor’s palace, during the carnival’s climax. The story begins when Montresor, the villain of the story, vows revenge on Fortunato. Throughout the story, the author doesn't tell us what the revenge will be, but his choice of words in the details creates a mood in the reader. The author’s detailed description in the short story creates different moods in the reader like anger, satisfaction, curiosity, and victory because the chosen words connect with the audience.

Read More
1072 Words | 5 Pages

In The Cask of Amontillado the foreshadowing can been seen in very start when Montresor is talking to a person and telling about his killing and getting away with if it. The foreshadowing also can be seen when Fortunato and Montresor are getting a vine called “DeGrave” and when they are walking in there there is bodies chained and bones hanging on the walls foreshadowing Fortunato 's faith. In both stories Poe uses well placed foreshadows and they make the reader wonder more of what will happen next and how will the story end. Poes plots are

Read More
647 Words | 3 Pages

With all we know about Poe and his many works, we 're hit with suspense and anticipation by the first part of the story. Later in the tale, the narrator slows down and reveals his preparations that lead to the murder in such a deliberately enticing and suspenseful way, that even though you knew what was going to happen, it was still intense and suspenseful to read. These moods were further carried on by the way the narrator

Read More
1109 Words | 5 Pages

Edgar Allan Poe made sure the reader knew more than the secondary character in his short story to build suspense. For the entire week before he murdered the old man, the main character crept into his bedroom every night, and observed the man while he slept. “I had my head in, and was about to open the lantern, when my thumb slipped upon the tin fastening, and the old man sprang up in the bed… He was still sitting up in the bed, listening;--just as I have done, night after night, hearkening to the death watches in the wall.” From the beginning, the audience knew the man would be murdered, and the suspense built from this knowledge.

Read More
905 Words | 4 Pages

After all the years he never forgot how he murdered Fortunato, and throughout the story the reader can see several different characteristics from both Montresor and Fortunato. Montresor is vindictive, manipulative, and murderous. Fortunato believes that he is the best at most crafts. Montresor is able to use his and Fortunato’s characteristics to get exactly what he wants. Once Fortunato pushes Montresor to the edge, he becomes vindictive.

Read More
1004 Words | 5 Pages

The first-person point-of-view found in Poe’s "The Cask of Amontillado" is essential in creating the central theme of the story. This style of narration is also important in this particular story, because when a murderous protagonist, Montresor, is allowed to tell the story from his own perspective, the reader obtains a disconcerting look into his mental composure from the initial conjuring of his plan to the end result. The style of narration develops the unsettling tone of the story by allowing the reader to become personally acquainted with the thoughts and intentions of the protagonist. The first person point of view allows certain ironies to become evident, and furthermore, “The Cask of Amontillado” would not have been as psychologically powerful were

Read More
323 Words | 2 Pages

Montresor told Fortunato that he is a “rich, respected, admired, beloved” (86) man. He does not actually think that. When he says he “must not only punish” (83) Fortunato, but he must “punish [him] with impunity” (83), which he does. The first step in Montresor's plan is to get Fortunato to go in the catacombs. He says to Fortunato, “Come, we will go back, your health is precious” (86).

Read More
765 Words | 4 Pages

Suspense is an integral part of storytelling. Without suspense, certain stories would not create their intended effect. Edgar Allen Poe wrote many books and poems, which were all under a gothic theme. His writings were very dark and mysterious, and they all contained suspense. Poe’s novel “The Tell-Tale Heart” and his poem “The Raven” contain suspense, which is created through point-of-view, irony, and diction.

Read More
678 Words | 3 Pages

Suspense by Edgar Allen Poe Suspense is a writing style that authors use to make it so a reader is ahead of the characters in the story. Edgar Allen Poe profoundly used this technique in his story “Tell Tale Heart”. The narrator is psychotic and is particularly tormented by an old man’s ‘evil’ glass eye. He was willing to do close to anything to be rid of the eye, including murder.

Read More

More about How Does Poe Create Suspense In The Cask Of Amontillado

Related Topics

Open Document