“The Cask of Amontillado” is an ironic short story written by Edgar Allen Poe. Poe used symbolic irony to describe who his characters were, how they dressed, and the settings in which the events took place. In this short story symbolic irony was used to define how Montresor, one of the prominent characters, sought his way to redemption by repressing his friend Fortunato to his demise. Poe’s two prominent characters in “The Cask of Amontillado” was Montresor and Fortunato. Montresor, whose name means “to show fate,” is a man with a bitter heart seeking for revenge.
Poe carries verbal irony throughout the rest of the story, as well; Montresor refers to Fortunato as “my friend” in many instances, however, the reader knows
“Cask of Amontillado” Analytical Paragraph In the short story “Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe, the author reveals that revenge will not solve anything even though when you really wanted to kill someone for their loved ones deaths. In this story, Montresor wanted to kill a man named Fortunato who didn’t care for Montresor’s family’s deaths. So in return, Montresor tries to murder him by tricking him with wine. Because Montresor really loved his family, he wanted to honor their deaths to make sure they rested in peace and everyone honors them too.
One form of irony present is situational irony. Situational irony can be defined as expecting one action to happen but the opposite occurs. Poe uses a play of words in a way a few times throughout. The title itself hints us the plot of the story. “The Cask of Amontillado” contains the word “cask” which is means a barrel of wine.
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.
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.
Poe often uses words and actions to imply the opposite of their literal meanings this is called literary irony. Poe makes great use of two of the three types of literary irony in his story, “The Cask of Amontillado.” Verbal irony takes is when the speaker says something but it actually means two completely different things. The dialog between the two main characters in Poe’s story are full of verbal irony.
Another example of the irony used would be the reference to Montresor’s family arms and family motto. His family arms depicts the scene of a foot of gold stepping on a serpent “whose fangs are imbedded in the heel” (Poe 118). His family motto is “Nemo me impune lacessit” which means “No one provokes me with impunity” in Latin (Poe 118). Both the arms and the motto symbolize Montresor’s intended revenge against Fortunato. To the audience, the irony is glaringly apparent.
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.
“The Use of Irony in "The Cask of Amontillado" Edgar Allan Poe is a phenomenal writer and makes many points in his writings. There are three different ways in Poe 's writing of "The Cask of Amontillado" that irony is used: verbal, situational and dramatic. Verbal irony can be seen when Montresor first sees Fortunato at the carnival. Situational irony is also used and can be seen between the meaning of Fortunato 's name and his destiny, as well as Montresor 's response to his own. The last way irony is used is dramatic irony, this can be seen by any reader, this occurs when Montresor tells Fortunato he is also a mason.
As stated in the beginning of the story, Montresor talks about how he seeks revenge on Fortunato. Fortunato is the complete opposite of a friend to Montresor. Another example of irony is when Fortunato develops a cough while in the catacombs of Amontillado. The irony develops when Montresor comments that the cough will not kill him but inevitably he will die from the dampness of the catacombs because Montresor traps him in the
Edgar Allan Poe’s Use of Symbolism and Irony Edgar Allan Poe is famous for his short stories—I’m sure you’ve done your fair share of high school assignments featuring his work—and there’s a reason he’s so mainstream. Edgar Allan Poe uses a great deal of irony, symbolism, and foreshadowing—evidenced in The Cask of Amontillado by the way he portrays Montresor’s deceitful nature and Fortunato’s drunken obliviousness, developing the plot and along with it, a dark theme of revenge and murder. Immediately, The Cask of Amontillado demonstrates this by describing the scene of a fair, in which Fortunato is dressed in motley and bells—that is, the clothing of a jester, which translates literally by the way that he plays the part of a fool. Montresor, meanwhile, wears a dark “roquelaire”, or cloak, and coaxes Fortunato into his catacombs where the Amontillado supposedly is kept; alongside it, the burials of his ancestors. There are actual piles of bones as they descend into the vault.
After that, Montresor leaves the catacombs for Fortunato to die. In Poe’s story, “The Cask of Amontillado,” the theme of revenge controls the story through irony, symbolism, and the setting. Revenge is the recurring theme throughout the story. This is obvious in the first sentence, which says, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge” (Poe 236). The use of irony is in use throughout the story as well as showing the theme of revenge.
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.
Irony is used as a symbol in the short story as Fortunato and Montresor both set forth toward the catacombs, Fortunato starts to cough for "many minutes" and Montresor asks if he is alright and Fortunato answers him in the most ironic way replying "the cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall not die of a cough." "True—true" Montresor answers in sharp irony. A cough will not kill Fortunato, because Montresor will ("Explanation of The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe"). The thousand injuries that Fortunato had on Montressor is what caused him to vow for revenge towards Fortunato.
