Comparison Between “The Cask of Amontillado” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”

...us on deadly revenge. In each case, a retribution that is carried out in a cruel and callous fashion. The men fulfilling these actions are cold, calculating, and contemplative. They have painstakingly endeavored to seek retribution against what has plagued them: Fortunato and his insults to the Montresor and the old man’s piercing, chilling eye for the man from “The Tell-Tale Heart”. Driven to the point of madness by their own obsessions, they plot to murder their offenders. The tales are told each by the man who has indeed committed the crime. Each man’s insanity becomes more and more clear as they narrate confession; the Montresor with the unfailing ease with which he dictates his account and the man from “The Tell-Tale Heart” with his jagged and rough delivery. Their distinct mental instability calls into question to reliability of the report they give.

Symbolism is something that represents more than what it really is. It is often by authors in their writing to give it more emphasis. For example:" In life there will always be peaks and valleys" meaning in life there will be ups and downs but we should enjoy the peaks and fight through the valleys. Objects can also be a form of symbolism such as The Bible, it represents more than just a book. It represents Life, Church, Religion, and the life of Jesus Christ and what he stood for. Irony is like a twist or words or the opposite of what is intended. For example: Laughing at someone that just slipped and fell, then later you find yourself slipping and falling is a form of irony. Irony is found in real life situations as well as writings. Symbolism is a technique that gives authors a better story and shows objects as more than what they are. They use techniques like this to catch the reader’s attention.

Why do people love horror movies? Is it the feeling of your nerves on edge, or is it the thought that there Might be something else out there? People just seem to enjoy the horror and suspenseful movies that are produced in this day and age. But its not only the movies that have caught people's attention, but the horror story. Now they are preserved in books and are all over the internet. And yet, movies seem to be the best at displaying horror and catching the observer's attention. However, there is still one story that all successful horror writings and producers come back too, one that was written by Edgar Allan Poe. The Cask in Amontillado has three things that help it to be a successful horror story, these are: (1) he has a twisted main character, (2) the reader starts to put together the pieces in the story, (3) The main character kills another character.

Reading Edgar Allen Poe’s works such as “The Cask of Amontillado” and “Tell-Tale Heart” are both written around 1840’s and written in the gothic style. Poe displays his horror short stories, in which the reader can differentiate his signature style. Although many of Poe’s significant works may have a similar theme, the reader can distinguish the themes through the characters in “The Cask of Amontillado” and “Tell-Tale Heart.”

The Tell-Tale Heart and The Cask of Amontillado are two stories written by Edgar Allen Poe in the 18th century. Both of these stories are primarily focused on the mysterious and dark ways of the narrator. Since these stories were written by the same author, they tend to have several similarities such as the mood and narrative, but they also have a few differences. For instance, the characteristics of both narrators are different, but both stories portray the same idea of the narrator being obsessive over a certain thing.

Edgar Allan Poe is a wonderful writer. He is most widely known for his hair-raising stories. His writing style is unique in that he uses subtle details to add suspense to his stories. He also uses dark details to help his audience figure out lingering questions they might have upon finishing his stories. One perfect example of his famous style of writing is, “The Cask of Amontillado”. Throughout the story there are four important details that help the reader realize that the murder of Fortunato was not perfect revenge.

“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.

“The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.” University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 27 March, 2014.

The power to change is man’s greatest struggles, since a strong influence that lead them to where they are now. It is also the price and journey that both Montresor in Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Tell Tale Heart” and the narrator of the “The Cask of Amontillado”, another of poe’s story. In both story the narrators, both indicate that they want to get rid of an addiction they had that is driving them to madness, and in order to do so they, must do it at any cost. Both narrator clearly plan on their instincts and carefully plans out methods in which leads them to their satisfaction. These stories contain many similarities and differences in the use of tone, irony and symbolism, of the protagonist. Through these characters and their actions,

"Determination becomes obsession and then it becomes all that matters." -- Jeremy Irvine Poe presents the narrators of "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Cask of Amontillado" as devious, obsessed characters. Both are overpowered by the need to consume the life of their victim. Though they use different strategies to carry out the murders in different ways, obsession is the driving force in both. It is this obsession that inspires them to design cunning strategies and carry out the executions.