Death is an inevitable stage of development that each human must reach. Some receive the privilege of having an extensive life, but others have short lifespans due to their actions or extreme accidents and tragedies. Various gothic writers emphasized death throughout their work, including Edgar Allan Poe. Poe discussed death and tales of horror in his short stories “The Cask of Amontillado” and “The Pit and The Pendulum” but in different manners. “The Cask of Amontillado” involves a protagonist Montresor and an antagonist Fortunato who have conflict with one another; Fortunato deeply insulted Montresor, so Montresor successfully planned to close Fortunato in the wall of an underground graveyard to die. Similarly, “The Pit and The Pendulum” …show more content…
Both stories focus on death and dying but ironically involve freedom and containment as well; one character must die or be contained for another to be free. In order for Montresor to reach freedom from his troubles with Fortunato, he claims he must trap and kill his enemy. He enjoys permanently blocking the exit for his foe and feels relieved once Fortunato has no escape. Montresor thinks “The nose lasted for several minutes, during which, that I might hearken to it with the more satisfaction, I ceased my labours and sat down upon the bones” (“The Cask” 6). Montresor satisfaction comes from Fortunato’s misery, making them contrasts of each other’s fates. Although Montresor is physically free from his conflict, he is mentally contained by his thoughts and wants to tell what he did to Fortunato, which is why he is the narrator of the story fifty years later. Additionally, the carnival that Montresor and Fortunato were attending is the celebration of freedom, but both characters are held physically or mentally. “The Pit and The Pendulum” portrays the ideas of death, freedom, and confinement through the criminal’s cell and escape from fate. In the same way as Montresor and Fortunato, the judges and Spanish inquisitors take pleasure in the criminal’s confinement in the pit and feel relieved knowing he cannot escape, but the criminal finds freedom and relief when he gets rescued …show more content…
The stories take place in dark, eerie sceneries, such as an underground graveyard and a pitch-black prison cell. Majority of “The Cask of Amontillado” occurs in the catacomb of the Montresor family in Italy during the carnival season. While celebrations were taking place above ground, Montresor and Fortunato were experiencing the opposite. According to Montresor, the “walls had been lined with human remains” (“The Cask” 5); the bones and bodies of the deceased emphasize the murder that Montresor was about to commit. Additionally, the setting was in the darkness of night surrounded by graves, which all represent death and dying. The murder happened in the dark, and Fortunato is unable to ever see light again because of his containment and death. Likewise, “The Pit and The Pendulum” occurs in a completely dark prison cell and pit. The criminal claims “the blackness of darkness supervened; all sensations appeared swallowed up in a mad rushing descent as of the soul of Hades” (“The Pit” 1). There is no life at the bottom of the pit, and the chances of survival are extremely slim; in the same way as night, the darkness of the cell emphasizes death. Along with mortality, the pit represents an afterlife in hell when the Spanish sets the walls on fire, capturing the criminal. The flaming pit creates the idea of dying and having an eternal death by mimicking the
Montresor is a man who feels pride in himself and in his family, so when Fortunato—an acquaintance of Montresor— “venture[s] upon insult,” Montresor “vow[s] revenge” against him (1). Montresor hastily decides that he must kill Fortunato, even though his use of the word “venture” implies that Fortunato had not yet insulted him, but nearly did. Montresor’s impulsive need for revenge causes him to formulate a plan to murder his acquaintance. He keeps Fortunato intoxicated by “presenting him…[with] wine,” he “fetter[s] him to the granite,” and he “plaster[s] up… [a wall of] new masonry” to trap Fortunato in the catacombs (39, 71, 89). All of these acts are signs that the need for revenge has made Fortunato insane. A person who has any sense of morals would not commit crimes such as Montresor’s. His impetuous decision to exact revenge caused him to lose his
Meanwhile as Fortunato was concocting his plan beneath the earth, Montressor was heading back to his house feeling slightly guilty about what he had done. “He insulted me, he made me to be less that I am, he had it coming.”, Montressor told himself reassuringly. But that did not erase the ominous tone he now felt in the vaults. Something was not quite right since he pushed that last brick into place in Fortunato’s tomb. Shaking the feeling off as best as he could he reached the top of the catacombs and entered his home with a taste for the barrel of wine that he knew was Amontillado all along. After his drink he returned to his bedroom for the night and before he fell asleep he heard a small voice in his head saying that Fortunato was still alive and that he was coming for him.
No matter how well executed, a crime of this magnitude will leave scars on the conscience, thus marring it’s perfection. Conflicting psychological emotions and actions plague the journey causing inner conflict ranging between pity and revulsion by the time the narrator concludes. Notwithstanding the shortage of information on Montresor’s life in the ensuing fifty years since Fortunato’s death; it can be surmised from the events leading to the murder that Montresor does, in fact, have a conscience and that it builds upon itself as the action
“The Cask of Amontillado” is a dark piece, much like other works of Edgar Allan Poe, and features the classic unreliable narrator, identified by himself only as Montresor. This sinister central character is a cold ruthless killer that is particularly fearsome because he views murder as a necessity and kills without remorse. Montresor is a character who personifies wickedness. Poe uses this character and his morally wrong thoughts and actions to help the reader identify with aspects of the extreme personage, allowing them to examine the less savory aspects of their own. The character of Montresor detailing the glorious murder he committed is a means of communicating to the reader that vengeance and pride are moral motivators that lead to treacherous deeds and dark thoughts.
...ows the reader to interpret the end of the story by himself, which brings imagination into the picture. Why does Montresor hesitate in putting up the last stone? This makes the reader wonder if Montresor was beginning to feel guilty. At the end of the story Montresor and Fortunato talk a little. Montresor called aloud, "Fortunato!" No answer came so Montresor states, "I thrust a torch through the remaining aperture and let it fall within. There came forth only a jingling of the bells. My heart grew sick; it was the dampness of the catacombs that made it so"(153). This statement leads the reader to believe that Montresor may have had a moment when his conscience begins to creep up on him. He quickly states that it is the dampness of the catacombs that makes his heart sick.
In the story "The Cask of Amontillado", Edgar Allen Poe tells the story of Montresor and Fortunato. This story has a much lighter mood to it, but from the beginning there is some tension between Fortunato and Montresor. The story its self has a
The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe is a short story told in the gothic genre. Although this story was written decades after the popularity of the genre, The gothic genre through its descriptions of the atmosphere as well as its use of grotesque and macabre imagery creates a sense of alienation, chaos, entrapment, uncertainty, and terror in the reader. Gothic literature often deals with themes of death, fears and anxieties, good vs evil, estrangement, and revenge. Furthermore, gothic literature often ends with a sense of moral closure and resolution. The Cask of Amontillado use of gothic conventions can be seen in its setting. However, the story’s unconventional use of irony and omission of moral closure adds to the psychological
Poe’s first-person narration style in “The Cask of Amontillado” allows the reader to experience the story from a different level and the ability to look at the story from a different light. An unusual perspective. From the mind of a killer, the narrator and main character making him familiar with the reader. Poe focuses more of the thoughts and emotions of the main character rather than physical attributes of Montresor which made for a more intimately disturbing story for the reader.
Clearly, Fortunato is intoxicated because he is having a merry time at the carnival. Upon meeting, Montressor takes advantage of Fortunato’s excessive drinking in that he will be taking revenge on Fortunato on that night. Therefore, the carnival setting emphasizes on the theme of revenge. Montressor takes benefit from the catacombs setting, where he uses deception against Fortunato:
Montresor never changes in his motivations over the course of the story, and succeeds in his goal of killing Fortunato. His unflinching devotion to murdering a man who may not even know what he has done wrong is a very disturbing aspect of Montresor, and is a major part of his
Montresor drops frequent hints and insults to Fortunato as if he is giving him a chance to comprehend his plan. At the climax, Fortunato never considers turning back until it is too late. Montresor chains Fortunato inside an upright casket the depts of the catacomb. Montresor builds a wall of
“The Cask of Amontillado”, “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Pit and the Pendulum”, all have common motifs; death, fear or terror, and madness. Each story has their own special way of showing the three different motifs. In all three stories these three motifs were connected in some way. Someone was afraid of something or someone, which drove them mad, which led them to kill someone. In the case of “The Cask of Amontillado” death was caused by revenge, and hate. Death, fear and madness are all common themes in a lot of Poe's work. They add depth and different perspectives to look at things from. They all make the stories what they are.
Because Montresor narrates the story in the first person, the reader is able to perceive his thoughts and understand his motivations and justifications for his ruthless murder in a manner which a third person point of view would not allow. Montresor’s personal narration of the events of the story does not justify his crime in the audience’s eyes, but it does offer a unique opportunity for the audience to view a murder from the perspective of a madman killer. It is Poe’s usage of this unique angle that causes the story to be so captivating and gruesomely fascinating. As the story opens, Montresor explains why it is necessary that he “not only punish but punish with impunity” to avenge for Fortunado’s insult to him. This justification for his crime is a piece of information that the audience is able to learn only because they are permitted inside the mind of the protagonist. In the final scene, when Montresor is carrying out his murder pl...
Through the acts, thoughts, and words of the protagonists Montresor, the reader is able to feel the psychological torment that Fortunato is about to endure. The first line in the story Montresor said “The thousand of injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge” (553). Revenge remains a constant theme through the entire story. Montresor went to great lengths planning the revenge and murder of Fortunato. He knows that during the carnival everyone will be dressed in costume, mask, and drinking. No-one will be able to recognize them. Montresor himself put on a “mask of black silk” (554) and a “roquelaire” (554). He has also made certain that his attendants’ would not be at home, to be sure that there are no witnesses to his horrendous act.
The major theme in the story is the deep hatred buried within the outwardly congenial Montresor. This makes it vital that the story be told with Montresor's thoughts known to the reader. The tale simply would not work if it were told from Fortunato's point of view, or from a dramatic/objective angle. An omniscient view would function, but by knowing only Montresor's thoughts the reader develops a trust in him, and this causes the story's theme to have a more personal effect on the reader.