Cluff

Tyler Cluff
Mrs. Williams
ENG101
9/30/14
Literary Analysis Essay: The Cask of Amontillado
Edgar Allen Poe lifted ceilings previously in place when he wrote The Cask of
Amontillado. This short story provides insight into the unforeseen mind of a sadistic criminal
and sheds light on the cocky, boastful nature of the crime committed. The very prevalent themes
of revenge and murder manifest themselves in numerous ways throughout the text and cast a veil
over an underlying ironic nature in the storyline. Poes dismal and depressing childhood set a
tone for many of his writings and it attributes to the dark nature of The Cask of Amontillado.
He was brought up in a foster home after his father left and his mother died at a very young
age(Webster, 2002). This troubled childhood provides a foundation from which he forged many
stories, bringing forth the deepest of his emotions. In the story, the main character Montresor
grows tired of Fortunados pranks and plots a very sadistic revenge. The complexity of the crime
goes to show just how sadistic Montresor really is in the story. He fabricates a full chain of
events tugging at the pride of Fortunado and his boastfulness of wine knowledge to lure him into
the catacombs so he can shackle him to a wall and let him die a slow death encased in a sealed
brick cell. This descent ties into Poes own life with his descent into depression and his own
crazy plan to gain the upper hand on his adversaries.
Fortunado was well known for his constant pranks and jokes. He always needed to be the
center of attention and most of the time, Montresor fell victim to the everlasting antics that made

Cluff

Fortunado who he was. Time and time again, Montresor played a good sport, laughing off the
tricks and pranks, never lashing back. But as a pot of water over fire, after being heated up over a
period of time, eventually it will boil over. In the terms of the story, Fortunado lit a flame under
Montresor, and slowly but surely Montresors emotions bubbled and built up and he reached a
boiling point. The nature of Fortunados crimes against Montresor may seem undeserving of the
revenge befallen of him, simple teasing and jokes all in good fun. But to Montresor, being
ridiculed in front of his peers repeatedly had caused emotional damage to him and left him to
look like a fool many times in public(Cite story?).
Montresors rage had led him to devise a very complex, evil plan of revenge. The sheer
detail to which he planned it adds to the previously unknown mysterious and evil nature of the
criminal mind. In his time, Poe was the first to dive deep into the twisted part of his mind and
give people a taste of what real evil was. Fortunado wasnt just murdered, he was fooled and
manipulated, distracted by alcohol, and left to die a slow, torturous death deep in the catacombs.
It went much further than murder in the story and no one at the time had been exposed to that
level of insanity. Poe exploited the naivety of his readers with The Cask of Amontillado by
letting them see what really went on inside a criminal mind for the first time. Montresors
revenge is designed at every well-planned step to give him a sense of satisfaction as he gains the
upper-hand on his adversary.
At each point in Montresors plan, he constantly turns to flattery and uses Fortunados
ego and pride against him. Montresor has a very good understanding of what drives Fortunado
and what he thrives on. His ego is his greatest threat because he was never able to see past
Montresors flattery to know that he was being tricked. The ironic nature of the story lies in the
fact that Montresor had constantly been used to satisfy Fortunados humor and now Fortunado

Cluff

was being used to satisfy Montresors need of retribution. He uses every step of the plan to show
Fortunado who really has the upper hand in their relationship, when Fortunado had grown
accustomed to being on top.
The descent that Fortunado and Montresor make into the wine cellar has significant
implications in the story. While the more obvious of themes may suggest the descent has an air
of death and the descent to Fortunados demise, and the descent into madness for Montresor, I
feel the need to look past the story itself and look at Poe himself. Poes own descent into the
catacombs began with his father leaving and his mother dying at a very young age. Enduring
through a tough childhood, dealing with the many hardships of an unloving foster home and not
being accepted by his foster family are similar to Montresor being ridiculed by Fortunado. It is
Poes own descent into madness and the building of the foundation for many of his dark stories.
The symbolism reaches much farther than the respective characters in the story for me.
After reading The Cask of Amontillado and reading further into the life of Edgar Allen
Poe, I have gained a better respect for what he did in his time period. As I previously stated, no
one at the time had really opened up to public about the evils that exist in a criminals mind. Poe
had the perfect formula of life experiences and hardships to create such masterpieces in a way
that no one had done before. He lifted ceilings previously set on writers and layered symbolism
in his stories flawlessly. The Cask of Amontillado is a classic story of revenge and murder that
at first glance may seem like nothing more. But after reading and understanding the text, you
begin to understand a sense of irony laced with humor, which is very difficult to imagine in such
a dark story like this. Only a master word smith like Poe could pull it off, and The Cask of
Amontillado encompasses many different themes flawlessly.