Edgar Allen Poe's Use Of Diction

208 Words1 Page

Edgar Allen Poe uses diction like “descended”, and “passed on” to foreshadow the death of Fortunato in the crypts. The word descent is often used to symbolize going to hell or that a situation has gone downhill. When Fortunato and Montresor are walking further down into the catacombs Poe writes, “We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on, and descending again, arrived at a deep crypt.” By saying that they passed on in the middle of this journey, it could represent his actual death, while the first descent is his choice to follow Montresor and the second being his journey to some sort of afterlife. In addition to diction, a specific technique for syntax can be seen throughout the conversations the narrator has with Fortunato.

Open Document