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thematic idea of the cask of amontillado
thematic idea of the cask of amontillado
in the story of The cask of Amontillado what is the symbolism
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Revenge in The Cask of Amontillado
Revenge is the deliberate act of inflicting injury in
return for injury. Revenge also is the ghost that haunts one
man's soul for almost fifty years in Edgar Allen Poe's "The
Cask of Amontillado." Is vengeance really satisfied by
Montersor in Poe's tale? No, not only is it not satisfied,
but also ironically he damns himself for all eternity!
At the beginning Montersor gives us his two criteria
for revenge: "A wrong" he says "is unredressed when
retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally
unredresse[d] when the avenger fails to make himself
felt as such to him who has done the wrong."
(Harris 335)
Are these two criteria met? "No retribution seems to over
take Montresor" (Harris 335). But, that is just how it
seems. From the onset of the story "... the narrator
[Montresor] suffers from a guilty conscience..." (Gruesser
1), which means that Montersor did suffer. Poe also makes no
indication that Montersor ever told Fortunato why he is
executing this "motiveless evil"(Harris 335). Therefore,
neither of Montresor's requirements of vengeance are
accounted for. In reality Montersor permits himself to be
transformed from family avenger into a cold-blooded murder.
"He [Montresor] count[s] on God's judgment as the final
instrument of his revenge. He kill[s] his enemy by leading
him into sins of pride, vanity and drunkenness" (Cooney
195). Here Montersor fails also. When Fortunato poses a last
prayer for mercy to his murderer and his God, "'For the love
God, Montersor!' 'Yes,' I said, 'for the love of God'"(Poe
153). "To this, Montersor [is] deaf and when the prayer
receive[s] a merciful hearing in heaven, Montersor's
stratagems backfire[s]. Fortunato, lucky as his name
suggests [is] saved; Montersor damned"(Cooney 196). This is
reiterated by Gruesser when he writes "...going through with
the murder, Montersor boldly defies God, damning himself for
all time." Cooney also states that Montersor misses the
irony at the beginning of his own confession, "You who so
well know the nature of my soul"(Poe 149). This implies that
he has been confessing to this "priest" for quite a while,
but has not been confessing all of his sins; this in turn
makes all of Montersor's confessions in vain. Cooney also
shares with us that because of these false confessions
instead of being instruments of salvation they become
instruments of damnation. "Here, surely, is the irony of a
confession without repentance, an irony that makes the
entire plan double back upon the doer"(Cooney 196). So now
not only does he have the blood of Fortunato on his hands,
but the wrath of God on his head.
In Poe's last line "In pace requiescat," "let him rest
in peace," Montresor prays for the soul of Fortunato, but as
Revenge is the opportunity to retaliate or gain satisfaction for a real or perceived slight ("revenge"). In “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, Montresor, the narrator, is out for revenge. Montressor seeks revenge against Fortunato and thinks he has developed the perfect plan for “revenge with impunity” (Baym). Montresor never tells the reader why he feels Fortunato deserves punishment. He only says that Fortunato causes him “a thousand injuries”until “[venturing] upon insult” (Baym ?). As a result, Montresor plans to bury Fortunato alive.
Literary devices are tools used by the author to help the reader understand a given literary work. Writers use different literary devices depending on their style and what they wish their reader to get out of their work. One important literary device that is essential for a successful literary work is theme. Theme is the general insight into life that the author shares with the reader. There are a number of different methods from which an author can choose to present his/her theme. One common strategy is to communicate the theme through the use of mood; the overall feeling or emotion conjured within the reader. In Edgar Allan Poe's short story, "The Cask of Amontillado," and in Saki's short story, "The Interlopers," the mood evoked within the reader is used to communicate the short story's overall theme.
renovating a palazzo his men found the bones of a human. When I got to
An important element in any story is setting. Authors use setting to convey certain feelings brought on by the character’s surroundings. It also subliminally serves to illustrate the character’s intentions. In “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allen Poe uses the dark, imposing setting to do just that, communicate the underlying theme of the story, being death, revenge and deception.
The perfect revenge is an action so many scorned have attempted and what so many more have lusted after. Apt punishment for the offender, success without being discovered and fulfillment without regret are all elements for satisfactory vengeance. All were present in "The Cask of Amontillado." However, despite Montresor's actions seeming to be perfect, he does not fulfill the criteria for flawless revenge. Poe doesn't quite allow readers to feel convinced of his main character's peace of mind. Subtle indications are strewn throughout the story that suggest otherwise. Though Montresor intended to cleanse his honor of Fortunato's insults, it may very well be that he only succeeded in creating, for himself, a guilty conscience, forever depriving himself of the sweetness of revenge.
?The Cask of Amontillado? raises a question pertaining to the multiple character of the self (Davidson 202); Can harmony of one's self be restored once primal impulses have been acted upon? This question proposes the fantasy of crime without consequence (Stepp 60). Edgar Allan Poe uses first person point of view, vivid symbolism and situational irony to show that because of man's inner self, revenge is ultimately not possible.
In The Cask of Amontillado, the theme of revenge is established at the start of the story, when the narrator states that he suffered irreversible insult by his associate, Fortunato, thus he vowed to avenge this action. This is evident in the following statement in the opening paragraph of the story, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge” (Poe 7). Therefore, it is apparent to the reader from the onset of the story that revenge is a major driving force for Montresor for him to dreadfully murder his acquaintance,...
Edgar Allan Poe is one of greatest American authors and poets. He is well-known as a master of using irony in his story. “The Cask of Amontillado” is a horror story about revenge of Montresor upon Fortunato. Fortunato believes Montresor is his good friend, but he ends up with being chained and walled in to the catacombs. There are three types of irony used in this short story: verbal irony, dramatic irony, and situational irony. Using these ironies, Poe wants the readers to understand about Montresor’s “friendship” with Fortunato.
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.
In Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Cask of the Amontillado”, Montresor has always been viewed as a sociopath. He is a man who lured his friend into his family 's catacombs by lying to him. He then got his friend, Fortunato, drunk enough that he did not know what was going on. Montresor then chained his friend to a wall and boxed him in with mortar, all as an act of revenge and justice in his eyes. Although Montresor trapping Fortunato in the catacombs can be viewed as a cold, evil, heartless act, it does not mean that Fortunato’s death was meaningless. Montresor viewed Fortunato’s death as poetic justice, but others can not help but think of the irony of the situation. Poetic justice is defined as a result or occurrence that seems proper because someone
The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe describes how Montresor confesses the sequence of his well-designed or nearly flawless murder or revenge against Fortunato due to he is a threat to him. In his confession of a perfect crime, Montresor, who “vowed revenge” because of Fortunato’s “thousand injuries,” first say that his “heart grew sick” and then immediately add, “ it was the dampness of the catacombs that made it so because he believes Fortunato insults him many times that his hatred against him become bigger and bigger. This makes him cannot stand for Fortunato’s behavior anymore as well as the setting completely makes everything prefect as he believes Fortunato deserves the punishment. The nature and family hold a significant role
"The Cask of Amontillado" is one of Edgar Allan Poe's greatest stories. In this story Poe introduces two central characters and unfolds a tale of horror and perversion. Montresor, the narrator, and Fortunato, one of Montresor's friends, are doomed to the fate of their actions and will pay the price for their pride and jealousy. One pays the price with his life and the other pays the price with living with regret for the rest of his life. Poe uses mystery, irony, and imagery to create a horrifying, deceptive, and perverse story.
Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” is a frightening and entertaining short story about the severe consequences that result from persistent mockery and an unforgiving heart. Poe’s excellent use of Gothicism within the story sets the perfect tone for a dark and sinister plot of murder to unfold. “The Cask of Amontillado” simply overflows with various themes and other literary elements that result from Poe’s Gothic style of writing. Of these various themes, one that tends to dominant the story as a whole is the theme of revenge, which Poe supports with his sophisticated use of direct and indirect factors, irony, and symbolism.
Poe starts out with a man, by the name of Montresor, wanting revenge on another man, named Fortunato. Most of the story takes place deep in the Montresor family catacombs. As Montresor lures Fortunato into the catacombs, he chains Fortunato up to a small hole in a wall, bricks it over, and leaves Fortunato to die. Even through the traits of anger, hatred, and revenge, as the story progresses on, Montresor, the main character in “The Cask of Amontillado”, starts to show signs of feeling guilty for wanting to murder Fortunato.
Edgar Allan Poe is known for his murderous stories. All of them are psychoanalyses of his life. In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor struggles with his ego and superego just as Poe did throughout his life. The story starts off with the murderer telling what he did with satisfaction. The murderer’s name is Montresor, and he has a brilliant, devious plan to murder Fortunato. He tells his plan step by step of how he commits this dexterous murder. How far will someone go to seek revenge?