The Cask Of Amontillado And Dr. Heidegger's Experiment

Foolishness, sin, falsely placed trust. These are the overarching themes in Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment.” There are a number of similarities between the two in terms of theme, but far fewer similarities between the literary devices used in both. In that case the most prevalent, far-reaching similarity is that of symbolism. Symbolism seeps from the pores of each story; it is present in nearly every aspect. Both authors most notably use it for characterization, foreshadowing, and suspense. In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Poe mainly uses symbolism in the form of clothing, Montresor’s family coat of arms, and the walls of the crypt. In “Dr. Heidegger's Experiment,” Hawthorne uses the bust of Hippocrates, Sylvia’s rose, and the skeleton in the closet.
Poe uses clothing to symbolize and foreshadow each character. Near the beginning of the story, Poe describes Fortunato as wearing a jester’s costume: “The man wore motley. He had on a tight-fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells.” This could of course be explained by the circus in town that night but the jester, also known

“In the obscurest corner of the room stood a tall and narrow oaken closet, with its door ajar, within which doubtfully appeared a skeleton.” (Hawthorne) The skeleton could symbolize death, peering out at the old friends who foolishly think they have a chance at cheating it with this magical elixir of youth. However, the phrase “skeleton in the closet” means to have a dark secret, as a character such as Dr. Heidegger no doubt has. The allusion to his dead fiance - who took the wrong medication on her wedding night - makes this even more suspicious, especially considering that Heidegger is some form of doctor and was the one to give her the medicine. Could he have purposefully given Sylvia the deadly