Martinez 1

Sabrina Martinez
Eng. 101/Enh. 110
Mrs. Williams
10/2/14

The Cask Amontillado

Edgar Allen Poes use of irony is used throughout The Cask of Amontillado and thats what
contributes to a well thought out story. For example, the carnival atmosphere is full of laughter
and happiness, compared to the ugliness of darkness and death of what is to become, the drinking
of the wine seemingly as friends enjoying as they travel through the catacombs so Fortunato
unknowingly can continue the journey to his death, all of these make up for a perfect short story.
The Cask of Amontillado was written by Edgar Allen Poe. It's a short story about one
man's evil plotting and revenge. The story is told in first person. The narrator, Montresor, has
endured cruel jokes by Fortunato and he is determined to get revenge. The two seem to be
"frenemies", but deep down Montresor is really hurt by Fortunato's insults that on the night of a
festive carnival, Montresor takes action on his evil plot to kill Fortunato. In his obviously wellplanned plot, Montresor sends his staff away for the night to enjoy the carnival so there are no
witnesses. Montresor finds Fortunato dressed as a court jester at the festival enjoying himself,
and he is very drunk. Montresor tells Fortunato he has Amontillado, a very good brandy, in his
cellar. Montresor knows Fortunatos love for great brandy so he lures him to his home by
inviting him to drink the Amontillado with him.
At Montresors family home the wine cellar is below in an underground graveyard.
Montresor leads Fortunato deeper into the catacomb all along offering him wine to drink to keep

Martinez 2

him intoxicated. Along the way Fortunato coughs uncontrollably and Montresor offers to take
him home but Fortunato wants to continue saying, It wont kill me, to which Montresor
replies, Youre right, it wont. Montresor says this because he knows that he is going to be the
one to kill Fortunato.
The two reach the end of the hall where there is a hole in the wall. Montresor tells Fortunato
that the amontillado is inside. So Fortunato walks in and Montresor pins him to the ground,
chains him to the wall and begins to close up the wall with brinks trapping Fortunato inside.
Fortunato acknowledges his fate with a moan.
You from paragraph 1 is referring to the readers who knew Montresor. You who so well
know the nature of my soul (Poe) implies that the reader knows him well. Montresor is
confessing his crime to the reader apparently on paper documenting his crime. He takes pride in
knowing that its been 50 years since he killed Fortunato and has not been caught.
At the beginning of the story, Poe uses the carnival setting to make a stark contrast between
the freedom and gaiety of the carnival to the dark place of a catacomb where it is dark, moldy,
and confining. The carnival season in 18th century Italy and France was the highlight of the
year. Usually lasting a week or more, it was a time for parties, feasts, parades, and costumes.
(Overview: The Cask of Amontillado). From open freedom of a carnival full of frivolity and
movement to a tighter and tighter space moving further away from that freedom, Poe used this
setting to set the mood.
The reader may think at first that Montresor was successful in carrying out his devious plot to
kill Fortunato. But at closer consideration that may not be entirely true. At one point in the story
Montresor jabs the enclosure with a torch because he no longer hears anymore noise from

Martinez 3

trapped Fortunato. He then hears the juggling bells from Fortunatos costume. Montresor says
his heart grew sick (Cask of Amontillado) although he was quick to blame the dampness of the
catacombs for this feeling. At this point he realizes that he actually was capable of doing what
he did. Im sure he regretted what he did even though he successfully completed the crime.
Edgar Allen Poe uses humor in this story specifically when Fortunato & Montresor are
descending into the catacombs and Fortunato has a nasty cough but begs to go on when
Montresor is insisting that they go back. Fortunato says, I shall not die of a cough. (Poe) This
is humorous because we know that Montresor is planning to kill Fortunato and he knows how he
will die. Another example of humor that Poe uses is when Fortunato and Montresor are walking
through the catacombs and Fortunato says, I drink he said, to the buried that repose around
us. (Poe) Montresor says, And I drink to your long life (Poe). This is funny because we know
Montresor is being sarcastic when he says Fortunatos long life.
Fortunato was not a sympathetic character due to the fact that he doesnt have many friends.
I say this because of his friendship with Montresor and how he made him feel inferior to the
point of Montresor planning a devious way to kill him. He put other people down to make
himself feel better. He gives the impression that hes a rich snob. Fortunato never expected
Montresor to do such a thing.
I think an important lesson is that getting even isnt always equal to the offense. We must not
hold anger in or we could do something that we may regret. Think about this in the long run
instead of a short term satisfaction.

Martinez 4

Work Cited

Kelly, Joseph. Stories. New York, W.W. Norton & Company Inc. New York New York, 2008
second edition.
Overview: The Cask of Amontillado, Literature and its time: profiles of 300 notable literary
works and the Historical Events that Influenced Them. Joyce Moss and George Wilson. Vol.
2:Civil War to Frontier Societies (1800-1800s). Detroit: Gale, 1997. Literature Resource Center.
Web. 30 Sept 2014.

Martinez 5