Man will go to extreme measures to get revenge. In Edger Allen Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado”, Montresor’s revenge is entirely moral according to protecting his personal honor but would be seen wrong in the public eye. The characters convey his theme that pride leads to a man’s ruin and there is a great use of irony that leads Fortunato to his death. Montresor’s pride in his family name is so great that “When [Fortunato] ventured upon insult, [Montresor] vowed revenge” (739). He cannot let himself be put down because he would appear to be weak and inferior, so he plans his revenge carefully. He [Fortunado] prided himself on his connoisseurship in wine (739). Montresor found this to be a weakness and his plot for revenge. Montresor preys …show more content…
Several times Montresor offers to turn back with Fortunato because of his cough and the dampness of the catacombs but Fortunato insists, “’Let us go on’” (741). Fortunato’s pride wouldn’t allow him to show weakness. Nothing would interfere with him tasting the Amontillado. They continued along the crypts which are lined with human remains. Montresor know that Fortunato pride would not let him turn back so he lead him to the crypt where he plans to bury him alive, saying, “Proceed, …”herein is the Amontillado” (742). As they proceeded forward, “He [Fortunato] is an ignoramus,” interrupted my friend, as he stepped unsteadily forward, while I [Montresor] followed immediately at his heels. In an instant he had reached the extremity of the niche, and finding his progress arrested by the rock, stood stupidly bewildered. A moment more and I [Montresor] had fettered him to the granite” (742). The pride of both men would lead them to this life changing moment. Montresor’s pride would lead him to take the like of another human being while Fortunato’s pride would blind him to the thoughts of Montresor’s revenge and effects of his prior actions. The pride of both of these men leads them to a place of darkness where they couldn’t see. Montresor’s actions proved that man will go to extreme measures to get
In the dark, gothic story of The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, the narrator, Montresor, can best be characterized as a revengeful individual. The story begins by Montresor stating that he has been injured and insulted countless times by his friend Fortunato and that he has vowed upon himself to seek revenge. During the carnival, Fortunato encounters Montresor in a drunken state and tells Fortunato that he had gotten himself something similar to that of Amontillado. Fortunato’s wine addiction and pride has aided in Montresor’s death revenge to lure him deeper and deeper within the vaults that will ultimately serve as his death room. Furthermore, with the passage “Nemo me impune lacessit,” which means “No one attacks me with impunity,”
Montresor is desperate for avengement after Fortunato disrespects his lineage “a thousand times” and devises a plan of revenge against Fortunato (Poe 68). Within his plan, Montresor stresses that he “must not suffer as a result of taking [his] revenge” (Poe 68). Montresor’s horror at being caught rather than the thought of murdering another person shows a serious lack of mental stability. Beyond the absence of guilt, the thought that Montresor puts into murdering Fortunato is concerning. Like Fortunato, Montresor is knowledgeable on fine wines, and he uses this as the heart of Fortunato’s demise. Montresor plans out Fortunato’s death, beginning with Fortunato’s “one great weakness: he liked to drink good wine,” so Montresor threatens his standing on wine when he says he will go to Luchresi instead of Fortunato for his opinion on the Amontillado became “they say he knows as much about wines as [Fotunato]” (Poe 68-69). Montresor plays on Fortunato’s pride to regain his own self-respect so that he may lure the other man into a sense of security before he bricks him into the wall. As Montresor builds Fortunato into the wall, he is being filled with the self-respect he had lost with Fortunato’s insults just as he is losing all of the guilt that kept him classified as a sane person before his insane actions. He refuses
Fortunato’s obsession with wine leads to ignorance in, “Cask of Amontillado”. In the beginning of the story, Montresor and Fortunato discuss their wine connoisseurship when Montresor reveals that he had received Amontillado, making Fortunato jealous. This leads to Fortunato practically begging Montresor to let him join in the trip to his wine vaults. However, what Fortunato does not know is that Montresor is tricking him into going so that he can get revenge. When in the catacombs, Montresor urges Fortunato to leave because of the conditions and says, “We will go back; your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as
While walking down the cavern walls to his cellar, Fortunato began to cough and began to show signs he was getting sick from the cavern walls. Montresor asked Fortunato if they needed to stop and turn around since he had began to cough, but Fortunato’s determination kept him going which was exactly what Montresor wanted. The article by Jamil Mustafa states, “After Fortunato suffers a coughing fit, Montresor announces that they must leave the noxious vaults” (Mustafa). This tests Fortunato’s determination and will to continue to the precious amontillado that Montresor has been talking about. Along the way to the cellar, he continues to cough and Montresor tells him often that they must turn around so Fortunato will not die from a cough. This only makes Fortunato more determined to make it to the amontillado, Fortunato said that he will not die of a cough and that he will taste the amontillado (Poe). Montresor uses Fortunato’s cough to manipulate him into making his determination to get to the precious amontillado even greater. The way he uses his sickness to lure him down further into the caverns is another example of the theme manipulative false
In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Edgar Allen Poe offers a complex and often disturbing portrait of the narrator, Montresor. His desire for revenge has always been a major part of the motive for his actions. Montresor is responsible for the death of Fortunato because Montresor does not allow an insult to remain unchastised. His desire for revenge was so well planned that the reader can see that Montresor did not waste one second of his time. The Cast of Amontillado is a portrait of human revenge expressed in an unpleasant manner. Also it express that Montresor did no care about anything he just was going to do everything that was in his hands to maintain his high social level. This story only focuses on taking revenge to maintain an upper class
To start off, we learn that Montresor has borne many insults by Fortunato that leads him to the extremity of whisking away his life. Towards the beginning, it is made clear that Montresor’s desire is revenge and that he is persistent in making it a reality. We also learn that Montresor is sly and cunning when acting towards Fortunato. Montresor’s fake smile and cunning ways of appeasing Fortunato’s senses lead him to his own demise. We learn from these actions that Fortunato is a fool and oblivious. Not only that, but we are given a sense of humor as well when
If anyone has a critical turn it is he. He will tell me--,” and at that point Fortunato interrupts him. This is how he lures Fortunato to go down into the catacombs with him. Since Fortunato thinks he is a connoisseur of wine, he is insulted that Montresor would even suggest getting Luchesi to test the wine because, “Luchesi cannot tell Amontillado from sherry.” The second way Montresor displays connoisseurship of revenge is when he acts caring towards his “friend.” Seeing that Fortunato has a terrible cough, Montresor says, “Come, we will go back; your health is precious to me.” This is said to make him want to keep going. A technique called “Reverse Psychology” is used here. By Montresor using this technique, it is a clear example of how he approaches revenge like a connoisseur. The final way that Montresor approaches revenge like a connoisseur is when he enjoys his
When Montresor is trapping Fortunato, the statements said and the actions done prove this. His self-confidence allows him to continue his plan, even when he may feel guilty and unable to move on. “My heart grew sick; it was the dampness of the catacombs that made it so. I hastened to make an end of my labor. I forced the last stone into position; I plastered it up.” (Poe 7) Montresor explains how he feels regretful, though he must still be confident enough to place the last stone into its position. He knows that he contains enough power to continue his mission, so he proceeds on and persists. Montresor’s confidence allows him to persevere through his plan of murdering
Secondly, Montresor is a connoisseur of revenge because he knows the weaknesses of his enemy. For instance, Montresor knows that Fortunato’s connoisseurship on wine, so he uses Amontillado to trick Fortunato into the catacombs. When Montresor tells Fortunato that he has Amontillado, Fortunato is excited, “‘Let us go, nevertheless. The cold is merely nothing. Amontillado!…he cannot distinguish Sherry from Amontillado’” (Poe 210). Montresor knows that he can easily trap Fortunato by mentioning the Amontillado. Since he has the Amontillado, Fortunato will follow him wherever he goes without any argument. Moreover, because Fortunato’s weakness is wine, he will not question Montresor when Montresor tries to convince Fortunato to drink more wine in the
Poe's, The Cask of Amontillado is a story about fear and revenge. The story begins with Montressor's vow of revenge, foreshadowing future actions. "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could; but when he ventured upon insult vowed revenge..." Montressor had to be sure not to raise suspicion of what he was going to do Fortunato. Montressor knew that Fortunato had a weakness that he could use towards his advantage.
Edgar Allen Poe, the author of “The Cask of Amontillado,” translates the writings of Montresor over fifty years after his act of vengeance is committed. Through Poe’s writing, in Montresor’s words, we see that Montresor committed the perfect crime without any repercussions. Montresor vowed to end Fortunato’s life due to the “thousands of injuries” Montresor endured from Fortunato. When Fortunato insulted Montresor for the last time, this was the final straw which drove Montresor to plot a devious plan that would bring Fortunato’s life to a halt. Montresor 's narration of his redemption brought onto Fortunato, over fifty years ago, shows the reader that Montresor is devoted, justified in his actions, and intelligent.
In "Cask of Amontillado", Montresor is the narrator. "The thousand of injuries of Fortunato he has borne as he best could; but when he ventures upon insult, Montresor vows revenge" (Poe 528). As the story unfolds, "Montresor's idea of perfect revenge" is "characteristically precise and logical in detail" as to how he commits his crime (Delaney 1).
Edgar Allen Poe’s tale of murder and revenge, “The Cask of Amontillado”, offers a unique perspective into the mind of a deranged murderer. The effectiveness of the story is largely due to its first person point of view, which allows the reader a deeper involvement into the thoughts and motivations of the protagonist, Montresor. The first person narration results in an unbalanced viewpoint on the central conflict of the story, man versus man, because the reader knows very little about the thoughts of the antagonist, Fortunato. The setting of “The Cask of Amontillado”, in the dark catacombs of Montresor’s wine cellar, contributes to the story’s theme that some people will go to great lengths to fanatically defend their honor.
In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor sets out on a vengeful mission that will end Fortunato’s life in an untimely fate. Montresor appeals to Fortunato’s love for wine to tempt the unsuspecting fellow to his impending doom. While Montresor tricks the foolish Fortunato frightfully, it is ultimately Fortunato’s pride that leads to his demise in the crypt. Poe uses several literary devices to foreshadow this murderous exploit of Montresor. Through the use of irony, symbolism, and imagery, the story entices readers to delve into the relationships and differences between Montresor and Fortunato.
By the end of the plot it becomes clear that the crime detailed by Montresor occurred quite some time ago. As “for half of a century” no one has disturbed the resting place of Fortunato. Within the passing of fifty years it seems no scandal or controversy has surrounded Montresor at all. Fortunato was punished with impunity at the discretion of Montresor. Yet, it is curious that with fifty years of passing time Montresor still does not give a real reasoning behind his actions. Vivid detail is given on the account of what events transpired, how Montresor fooled Fortunato into following him into that crypt. Where the setting changed from the lively carnival to the family crypt. How Fortunato was buried out of the view of the public eye, his death hidden just like the full truth of that incident is hidden from the audience. The details of Montresor descent from the world of the living to the hellish setting of the crypt are given perfectly. Yet, fifty years after the fact and Montresor still can provide little reasoning for why committed murder that