Would you have such hatred for someone you commit murder to get back at them? A murder in the dark catacombs of an Italian Carnival with a vengeful desire for revenge. This is the synopsis of “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe. Montresor, one of the main characters, lures his old acquaintance, Fortunato, into the catacombs under the carnival to kill him. Fortunto’s prideful attitude ends up being his downfall. The eerie setting and tension between the characters make the readers stay on the edge of their seats as they read. In the story, “The Cask of Amontillado”, by Edgar Allan Poe the author uses imagery, irony, and point of view to create/enhance the unsettling and vengeful mood/tone throughout the story.
The imagery Poe uses in
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In the introduction of the story, Montresor is explaining to the readers why he wants to kill Fortunato. Poe wrote, “At length I would be avenged; this was a point definitely settled… I must not only punish, but punish with impunity.” (Poe, par. 1) This quote emphasizes the importance of Montresor telling the story. It does this because Montresor is verbalizing his hatred towards Fortunato with great anger and intensity, so it contributes to the unsettling mood of the story by causing the readers to wonder how Montresor is going to murder Fortunato and how brutal he will be to him because of how much he hates him and contributes to the vengeful mood as he is talking about revenge which is what the story is entirely about. Then, in this next excerpt, Montresor is also describing his hatred towards Fortunato and is continuing to give the readers context about their relationship. Another quote from the story that displays this is, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge.” (Poe, par. 1) This quote also contributes to the vengeful and unsettling mood by causing the readers to wonder what type of revenge he vows and more questions about what is going to happen later in the