The Cask Of Amontillado Literary Analysis

General notions often state that wine improves with age. Although the process of aging may alter the flavor compounds, texture, or color of the beverage, neither improvement, nor deterioration are guaranteed. Centuries have passed since the death of a gullible fool, yet the taste of his murderer’s Amontillado wine remains bittersweet. This certain cask of wine, however, never existed. Despite its physical absence, “The Cask of Amontillado” provides an emotional and dismal libretto, depicted as a tale of revenge and a murder in cold blood. Through the effective use of symbolism, theological allusion, and foreshadowing, Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” informs the reader that seeking revenge upon enemies proves equally, if not more,

“The Cask of Amontillado” occurs during carnival season in an unnamed European town; consequently, the protagonist, Montresor, and the antagonist, Fortunato, dress accordingly (Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado). Fortunato dresses in motley, as a court jester, clad in “a tight-fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells” (Poe). Fortunato’s attire contradicts his given name; furthermore, Poe suggests that Fortunato represents a gullible fool stereotype and shall not receive any deeds of good fortune. The attire of Fortunato portrays irony, for the attire presents “a reversal of [the] social ladder” (Stephen Housenick, The Cask of Amontillado). Although the description of Fortunato portrays him as a connoisseur with an adequate amount of wealth, he is dressed otherwise. The ludicrous attire accentuates two of Fortunato’s qualities: “Pride [and] greed” (Housenick), alluding to two of the seven deadly sins - gluttony and pride - foreshadowing Fortunato’s demise in consequence (King James Version, ). Although a Fortunato’s attire presents a jubilant, carefree tone, his counterpart, Montresor, dons “a mask of black silk”, as well as a “roquelaire” which drapes past the knee (Poe). Montresor’s dark, sinister getup symbolizes death and foreshadows not only the murder of Fortunato, but also Montresor’s satisfaction in terms of

Poe may have incorporated Montresor’s usage of trickery as a biblical allusion, where he, Montresor, symbolizes the serpent, cunning and eloquent. He tempts Fortunato - an allusion to Eve in the Garden of Eden - with a forbidden fruit: The cask of Amontillado (David Stewart, What Did the Serpent Promise Eve?). The forbidden fruit in the Bible represents an equilibrium between good and evil; furthermore, the Amontillado wine exemplifies a conflict between Montresor and Fortunato, roughly mirroring a good versus evil scenario. The nonexistent cask of Amontillado erupts an immense moral dilemma within Montresor, as well. Although he doubts his intentions to seek revenge on Fortunato, the figurative cask of Amontillado entices both Montresor to murder and Fortunato to pursue his death trap (Poe,