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Montresor's Downfall

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Edgar Allen Poe was a mysterious man that exemplified in gothic horror on his short stories and poems. He is best known for his use of dark, eerie, and emotionally haunted characters and elements of the supernatural in American Literature. Although, not much is mentioned from his biography, his subjective like qualities in his short stories captured the public’s attention. Poe’s reputation today rests primarily on his tales of terror as well as his nostalgic poetry. The meaning of the lives in his characters all portray an eerie subconscious of the narrator before he commits heinous crimes of premeditated murder. The psychological aspect of his main characters in his literature, contributes to the immoral behavior that the protagonist endures …show more content…

Thus, Montresor manipulates the man without placing himself at risk of being caught. Poe’s criticism fails to emphasize that Fortunato and Montresor are friends, and Fortunato follows Montresor trustingly into the vaults of the catacombes. In the article critics such as Whatley, “Point out that there is no remorse in Montresor’s heart” however, instead of Montresor it is as if Fortunato’s all-consuming ego is hurling him into the darkest abyss (Web). Montresor has Fortunato’s burial on his mind. His single focus makes him lead his willing victim into his family’s catacombs. Dumfounded and resigned, Fortunato is choking to death because of the dampness of the crypt and the lack of air. Thus, this is where he’s buried behind a wall and is slowly being tortured to death. In the story Montresor says, “but now there came from out the niche a low laugh that erected the hairs upon my head…it was the succeeded by a sad voice, which I had difficulty in recognizing as that of the noble Fortunato” (Poe 252). While Fortunato wanted to be released from an excruciatingly painful joke, Montresor is paining to hear Fortunato beg for his life or apologize for the insult. Instead, Montresor walks away from the catacombs and lives his life without a regret or remorse for burying his friend. As a result, this shows the reader why the characters individual characteristics and cognitive thinking lead to do what he

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532 Words | 3 Pages

Due to the use of first person in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” Montresor’s syntax and diction are the only mechanisms used to characterize Fortuno in the story. This subjects the perception of both Fortuno and Montresor to a great deal of bias. Although Montresor claims that Fortuno has committed “a thousand injuries” (127) there are never any specific instances of his treachery cited within the text.

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882 Words | 4 Pages

As readers, we have no idea what Fortunato did to Montresor or his family name to drive him to such revenge. Poe hints at certain things, from revenge and the family crest to his arrogance of insisting that Fortunato penetrate the Montresor vault to acquire the esteemed Cask Amontillado. "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge" (1126). The only clue is that Montresor systematically closes up Fortunato in a bone chamber perhaps with others who have wronged his family in the past. However, due to the reader's not knowing his true injustice, his murder seems unjustified and maybe even cruel to some

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602 Words | 3 Pages

Most psychopaths feel no guilt after they commit crimes, and Montresor was cold hearted throughout the entire story. The thought of Fortunado slowly dying in the old catacombs under his home rather pleased Montresor. It excited him, and Montresor was quite enthusiastic about Fortunato 's death. In the story, Fortunato 's intoxication was wearing off, and after Montresor had laid a few layers of stone to conceal Fortunato, Montresor heard low, agonizing moans from inside. " The noise lasted for several minutes, during which, that I might hearken to it with the more satisfaction, I ceased my labours and sat down upon the bones."

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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

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594 Words | 3 Pages

As Fortunato gets manipulated into going deeper into the cask, Montressor's true intentions become undeniably clear later as he begins to burry Fortunato alive. In order to get away with the murder, Montressor demonstrates many qualities that help him be an undiscovered killer. Montressor is introduced in the beginning of the story as a man who is very vengeful. As Montressor bares the last insult from Fortunato that he can take, he vows to get revenge for all of Fortunato's pranks. He decides enough is enough after multiple tricks, that it is time to get Fortunato back.

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108 Words | 1 Pages

While it can be true that pride is always followed by destruction. Revenge can be a deliberate act of inflicting injury on others to right a wrong that was done to ones self. The mind at times can be consumed with the act of revenge, that is can sent one down a path of destruction. Montresor decides to seek revenge against Fortunato who is a prideful man, for the insults that were made against him and his family. This act of revenge follows Montresor for years.

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1192 Words | 5 Pages

Early in the story one can understand the hate towards Fortunato, but it gets confusing when Montresor says, “I was so pleased to see him, that I thought I should never have done wringing his hand” (Poe 1846). Montresor had such a hate for Fortunato due to all the pain and upsets caused by him, so much so that Montresor vowed revenge and devised a plan to achieve just that. He did what every person would have done, put on a fake smile, and go on as if nothing has changed and nothing will change. This makes the previous statement from Montresor clear; he is trying to deceive his friend from getting an idea of

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279 Words | 2 Pages

During the story, Montresor is also sadistic. He shows that he is sadistic when he starts to make jokes as he is putting the last bricks on the wall that will trap Fortunato in the catacombs forever. “Yes

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581 Words | 3 Pages

Edger Allen Poe writes with a purpose every time he writes a piece of literature. In Poe’s piece “The Cask of Amontillado” his character Montresor has a definite purpose why he is luring Fortunato to his death. Montresor narrates his unforgivable deed fifty years after it happened, he has gotten away with killing Fortunato with no one ever suspecting him, so why tell the story, because after killing Fortunato, he was left with his last screams in his head for fifty years. His conscience will not let them out until he confesses his sins, why would you not trust Montresor, and he confesses this murder as he is dying. Montresor’s conscience will not let him die without confessing the wrong he did to his once friend Fortunato.

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559 Words | 3 Pages

The catacombs are used to bury people so nitre is formed out of the moisture in the air and is used to help seal the bodies into the walls of the catacombs. Just like sealing the bodies into the walls, Montresor is sealing his good conscience away by purposely preventing Fortunato from talking to him. Fortunato and Montresor’s name literally represent the meanings fortune and monster which can be interpreted as the meanings good and bad. Without the good in Fortunato talking to the bad in Montresor because of the nitre, Fortunato cannot reason with Montresor which would lead to Montresor having sympathy toward Fortunato and not have the motive to kill. By Montresor enforcing a fake relationship with Fortunato, not only does he betray Fortunato, but he betrays his good conscience by murdering Fortunato.

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286 Words | 2 Pages

If I were to grade the narrator, whom we later find out is named Montresor; on a scale from A-F as a murder I would give him an A. I would do so for the simple fact that he was never caught therefore he had to have carefully planned and executed the murder and his revenge on Fortunato. As any murder would, Montresor waited until his victim was in a state where he could not resist or fight back to ensure his success in making Fortunato disappear without a trace. After Fortunato is drunk enough, Montresor leads him down to the catacomb of the Montresor family under false pretenses. At this point Fortunato is so consumed by wanting to sample the wine that he pays no attention to his surroundings and walks into a man-size hole in the wall where

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1048 Words | 5 Pages

Some hints of the possible cause of Montresor’s grief are offered between paragraphs 55 and 66 as Fortunato does a “grotesque movement” which is seemingly a sign of membership in the Free Masons. When Montresor shows his confusion and proceeds to claim he is a part of the Masons Fortunato’s derision for him seems to come out as he says, “You? Impossible! A Mason?” Whether this seeming air of superiority that Fortunato holds over him is the root cause of his desire for vengeance is never

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674 Words | 3 Pages

As we follow the storyline the usage of dialogue between the two characters is friendly, if the reader wasn’t already aware of the feelings of Montresor and his current motive than it would be impossible to explain why Fortunato is led to his death. After the characters exchange words over the cask of Amontillado, the narrator then leads Fortunato to the catacombs where it is kept. The setting then is switched from a open, free area to a confined, closed space as the move farther and farther away from freedom. We can see as the story progresses Montresor’s façade he has on display as he continuously gives Fortunato more and more wine. The most ironic thing about the dialogue is that many times Fortunato takes a drink for the dead while Montresor drinks to the hopes of Fortunato’s long life.

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602 Words | 3 Pages

Fortunato has a terrible cough and Montresor says to him, “' Come, we will go back; your health is precious,'” (35). And, once again, Fortunato urges that they continue forward to the Amontillado. Fortunato makes the decisions that they need to continue walking deeper into the catacombs. Fortunato still has absolutely no clue of what fate lies ahead of him. He has no idea that his best friend is going to bury him alive.

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597 Words | 3 Pages

In this essay I will explain how Montresor’s execution of Fortunato was carried out like an expert. I will list examples of how Montresor manipulated Fortunato, and how he enjoys his revenge. In this story Montresor, the murderer, used reverse psychology, and utilized cunning precondition to fulfill his scheme. He also used clever paronomasia to deceive Fortunato. Montresor first manipulated Fortunato when he met him at the carnival.

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