“THE CASK OF
AMONTILLADO”
By Edgar Allan Poe
Narration and Point of View
POINT OF VIEW
Tells the reader

- Who?

- How much do they know?

- How reliable he/she/they are
FIRST PERSON NARRATOR
 “I” participant/character in the
story, only tells one point of view
therefore, issues with reliability

e.g. “When I saw Golden
Retriever, I had flashback of our
family dog, Sam, who – completely
unprovoked – savagely attacked me.”
T H I R D P E R S O N NA R R A TO R
 Third-Person Omniscient: - all knowing – Godlike perspective – may reveal
motivations, thoughts, and feelings of the characters, gives reader information.
 Third-Person Limited Omniscient: The narrator describes events from the
perspective and with the understanding of one, or sometimes, a select few
characters.
 Third-Person Objective Narrator: no knowledge; action and the characters'
speech are presented without comment or emotion.; presence is merely implied.
The reader has to interpret them and uncover their meaning.
EDGAR ALLAN POE
 Background information on Edgar Allan Poe
 Born January 19, 1809 in Boston. Died October 7, 1849
 Son of an actress and an actor. Mother died in 1811, sent to live with Richmond
merchant, John Allan and his wife, who had no children. He received a classical
education and attended University of Virginia for 11 months, until his gambling
debt at the university angered his guardian and Allan refused to let Poe continue. He
spent time in the army, at West Point, while continually studying and writing poetry.
In 1836, he married his young cousin, Virginia Clemm. She was 13, Poe was 27.
EAP, CONTINUED
Often uncomfortable in social situations, Poe would sometimes
indulge in a liquid stimulant. One glass of sherry could lead to
another and, although Poe was rarely intoxicated, he was often seen in
public when he was. This helped him earn the reputation as a drunk
and/or a drug addict, however, according to medical records he had a
brain lesion. Virginia died in January 1847. In September 1849, Poe
was at a party where he made a toast to lady celebrating her birthday.
He began drinking heavily and died soon after. The details of his
death are unknown, although there are many different and conflicting
stories. It is accepted that Poe had a weak heart and this may have had
played a role in his death.
UNITY OF EFFECT
 Poe’s theory/belief that he could create a specific emotion through his
writing; the definitive characteristic of a short story. If he doesn’t grab you
from the first sentence then he, as the author, has failed. Requires being very
aware of mood, every word is chosen deliberately.

Poe’s description: “If wise, [the author] has not fashioned his
thoughts to accommodate his incidents; but having conceived, with deliberate
care, a certain unique or single effect to be wrought out, he then invents such
incidents—he then combines such events as may best aid him in establishing
this preconceived effect. If his very initial sentence tend not to the outbringing of this effect, then he has failed in his first step. In the whole
composition there should be no word written of which the tendency, direct or
indirect, is not to the one pre-established design.”
DRAMATIC IRONY
when the reader/audience knows more than one
or more of the characters;
• look for examples of irony [cough, mason v. Mason,
etc.]
“THE CASK OF AMONTILLADO”
 Setting - begins in lighthearted spirit of carnival and continually
descends into darkness. Renaissance Italy.
 Carnival – A festival celebrating the coming of Lent (similar to
Mardi Gras: masks, celebrations, craziness, etc.)
 Characters:
• Montressor – French for “my treasure,” old family, traditional
• Fortunado: jolly, free thinker, fortune, fortunate one, fated. He is
costumed as the jester or fool.
D E F I N I T I O N S F RO M “ C A S K ”
Carnival – “Farewell to flesh.”
CASK
IMMOLATION
• To kill or offer as a
sacrifice
CATACOMBS
ACCOSTED
• To approach someone
with the intent of harming
them in some way
RECESS
VIRTUOSO
• A person highly skilled in something
SCONCES
MASON
A member of the “Freemasons,”
the oldest fraternity in the world
A person who builds with stones
TROWEL
NITRE
Potassium Nitrate - can
be deadly in large
quantities
IGNORAMUS
• An ignorant or stupid
person
QU E S T I O N S F O R D I S C U S S I O N :
 Why has the narrator waited fifty years to tell what he has
done?
 Under what circumstances is he reporting his deed?
 Why is Montresor angry with Fortunato? Does he have a
valid reason to seek revenge?
D I S C U S S I O N Q U E S T I O N S, C O N T.
 Why is the setting of the story appropriate?
 What does Montresor’s treatment of his house servants tell us
about his knowledge of human psychology, and how does it prepare
us for this treatment of Fortunato?
 How would you assess the mental stability of the narrator? Of
Fortunato?
 What are some examples of humor, irony, and pun in the story?
 How does Poe increase the elements of suspense as Fortunate is
gradually walled into the catacombs?