The Cask Of Amontillado Essay The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe is a short story based off revenge, deviance, and cruelty. The theme in this short is how the act of revenge changes a person negatively because it makes a person lose sight of humanity. This is revealed through Montresor's indirect characterization. Montresor's speech reveals the theme of the short story “The Cask Of Amontillado”.
"The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge. "(Montressor; Cask of Amontillado) As the saying goes, hatred and grudges can lead to fatal circumstances. Edgar Allen Poe illustrates the concept of revenge through Montressors' demented thoughts and creates a sense that Montressor feels revenge should be considered okay because of the reasoning behind it.
Edgar Allen Poe wrote many great stories in his lifetime including “The Cask of Amontillado” which is a suspenseful story about a man named Montresor getting revenge on a jester named Fortunato for insulting him and ruining his family name. Montresor got revenge by leading Fortunato to his family catacombs and trapping him in the wall for all eternity, by using suspense, verbal irony and foreshadowing Poe brought us to this climactic point in the story. In the “Cask of Amontillado” Poe tells a story about a man, Montresor, getting revenge on the one who tarnished his family name, Fortunato. Poe starts off the story with a monologue from Montresor talking about how he will get revenge on Fortunato for insulting him Montresor said “at length I will be avenged” (83) showing Montresor plans to get his revenge no matter what.
In the “Cask of Amontillado” Montressor is a very angry and vengeful man. He says that he was insulted by Fortunato, but fails to give a reason as to why or how. He begins to enact his revenge by luring Fortunato in with the rare wine and when his “friend” Fortunato is drunk, he t proceeds to bring him deeper and deeper underground, while telling him to turn around repeatedly. Once he reached a place where no one can hear them, Fortunato walked into what he thought was another corridor, but it would turn out to be his grave! For as soon as Fortunato hit the wall, Montressor chains him against it.
Man has been known to be the cruellest animal on our planet and since we are at the top of the food chain we can do anything we want to our planet and also other people. Our kind is so cruel that we destroy our world for the need of resources and we can even be cruel to each other. Humans throughout history have always been at war with each other over land, greed, culture and revenge. Revenge and greed are both prominent in the short stories Stone Mattress and The Cask of Amontillado. Both of these short stories have great examples of greed and revenge in them and that they are similar but both are set differently.
Any fan of the medieval and Victorian eras knows that there are many stories centered around the rectification of lost or sullied honor through varying means of revenge. Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” is no exception. The story’s protagonist, Montresor, feels that his friend, Fortunato, has insulted his family’s honor and decides to take revenge during a nighttime carnival by luring Fortunato into the Montresor family crypt and sealing him inside to die a slow death. Through the use of irony and symbolism, Poe reveals to readers an intense theme of revenge. Poe’s theme of revenge is illuminated through his application of the three different types of irony: dramatic, verbal, and situational.
In “The Cask of Amontillado”, Edgar Allan Poe displays the theme of revenge and manipulation. The narrator Montresor pledges revenge on Fortunato for an insult that is never explained. He maintains an appearance of goodwill towards Fortunato and decides to make use of Fortunato's weakness for fine wines against him. During the carnival season, the narrator approaches Fortunato, telling him that he has come across something that could pass for Amontillado a rare and expensive wine. Fortunato being excited about the news insists on accompanying Montresor to the vaults to determine whether it is Amontillado or not.
“Evil is always devising more corrosive misery through man's restless need to exact revenge out of his hate.” This quote by Ralph Steadman, exemplifies the heart of the character, Montresor, in Edgar Allen Poe's short story “The Cask of Amontillado.” Poe, a compelling writer, weaves together a story in such a way that it captivates and entices the reader to want more, even if it leads to mounting horror. He is an author that develops characters and reveals their complex personalities through descriptive language and imagery. The reader is able to imagine, in their mind's eye, the plot being played out.
Everybody will eventually want revenge on an old friend or just someone they know. Montressor, similar to many people in the world, wants revenge on one of his old friends, Fortunato. The story opens with, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge” (Poe 212). In this statement, Montressor tells the reader what the cause of his revenge against Fortunato is. “The Cask of Amontillado”, written by Edgar Allen Poe, tells the story of how Montressor brings Fortunato into the catacombs to bury him alive.
The Ultimate Revenge in “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allen Poe’s twisted nature is well represented in the unique writing style of “The Cask of Amontillado”. This short story takes the reader into the mind of a vengeful murderer who seeks the ultimate revenge. Throughout the writing, Poe combines emotion and imagery to impact to the reader. The construction of this dark and sinister work is manipulated by Poe by using the theme, point of view and tone.
Anger leads to revenge, but sometimes revenge can lead to death. The reason for this anger is because Fortunato insulted Montresor, so he decided to kill him for revenge. Several events unfolds his plan like venom that slowly leads to death. In the short story, “The Cask of Amontillado,” by Edgar Allan Poe, he builds suspense which slowly develops the theme of revenge and reveals the mood of creepiness.
In The Cask of Amontillado the author, Poe, shows examples of the characters being doubtful and careful. By using words like doubts , health, precious, and implore. When the author says “We will go back; your health is precious.” Montresor, the antagonist, was not saying what he said out of interest. He’s acting like he cares to lure him to be by themselves so he can kill Fortunato.
Edgar Allan Poe is most famous for the gothic themes he presents in his writings, this was no exception for Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado”. Several important ideas are brought up about the story’s central theme of revenge. These ideas can be broken down into 3 parts: the incentive, the extent, and the reaction of the person partaking in revenge. It is essential to consider these ideas while reading Poe’s story, in order to comprehend his views on revenge. It also provides the reader the ability to question their own views on revenge as well as compare it with Poe’s.
Though many critics and scholars like to discuss the “terror” of The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, the word doesn’t truly suit the story’s mood. The story’s sense of inexorable doom rides on its juxtaposition of ominous characters against a tranquile setting in the introduction, and colorful characters on a bleak background for the remainder of the tale. Poe primes the reader for a grisly ending with visual clues early, so the literal and figurative descent is far less terrifying than it is disquieting. By introducing elements of the macabre early and gradually saturating the story’s atmosphere with ominous details, Edgar Allen Poe crafts a suffocating mood of impending and inexorable doom in The Cask of Amontillado.
"The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe is a gripping and macabre short story that explores the themes of revenge, deception, the destructive nature of pride, and their relevance to us in the present day. While the story was written in the 19th century, its themes continue to resonate with contemporary audiences, highlighting the timeless nature of human emotions and their consequences. One theme that remains particularly relevant today is the theme of revenge. Montresor's relentless pursuit of vengeance against Fortunato raises questions about the limits of revenge and the morality of taking justice into one's own hands. As Montresor states, "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge" (Poe, 1846).
