Donita del Rosario
MHE9
Mrs. Sheard
2-12-06
3B
Imagery Essay for “The Cask of Amontillado”
“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe is a classic, but grisly, tale of deceit. The
main characters of the story are the devious Montresor and the unfortunate Fortunato. Montresor
is a cunning, middle-aged Italian, brought to his current state of intolerance by the thousands of
insults he’s received from Fortunato. Fortunato, on the other hand, is a wealthy, yet arrogant,
connoisseur, and former friend of Montresor. In Italy, during the Carnivale season of the 1500s,
within the underground catacombs, Fortunato is deceived into thinking a cask of Amontillado is
stored within. Eventually, Montresor takes out his suppressed revenge on Fortunato through
walling him alive in a niche. Edgar Allan Poe creates a haunting atmosphere for the story by
using descriptive phrases to convey terrifying images to the reader’s mind.
One of the methods Poe uses to create such a terrible atmosphere is by creating a
mysterious introduction. He fulfills this method by leaving details out of his introductory
paragraph and talking in generalizations. Montresor reveals, “At length I would be avenged; this
was a point definitively settled—but the very definitiveness with which it was resoved precluded
the idea of risk. […] A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redressor” (223).
Wondering why the previous phrases were of significance in the story, the reader is informed
only of revenge and its motive being present in the story.
A second methot used in order to add a cynical dimension to the story’s atmosphere
would be through satire. As part of Montresor’s preparations for his infamous deed, he ensure
the vacancy of his home by professing trsut in his servants, a “trust” he was aware they would
break, as said in the following excerpt: “There were no attendants at home […] I had told them
that I should not return until the morning and had given them explicit orders not to stir from the
Donita del Rosario
MHE9
Mrs. Sheard
2-12-06
3B
house. These orders were sufficient, I well knew, to ensure their immediate disappearance, one
and all, as soon as my back was turned” (235). The reader is given a willingness to laugh, though
uneasily, in the middle of this scheme to commit the perfect murder.
A third, very common, method used to thicken the atmosphere would be irony. In this
case, dramatic irony is used. While Fortunato is being lead straight to his own downfall down
though the catacombs, such irony is evident,
“We are below the river’s bed. […] Come, we will go back ere it is too late. Your
cough—‘
‘It is nothing,’ he said, ‘let us go on’ “ (237). As the reader yearns to warn Fortunato of
his upcoming fat, Fortunato himself is not aware of the terror awaiting him as he nears the cask
of amontillado.
Another of Poe’s methods, much similar to satire, would be foreshadowing. As Fortunato
begins his journey through the entrance to the catacombs, foreshadowing is demonstrated in their
dialogue:
“Come,” I [Montresor] said, with decision, “we will go back; your health is precious.
[…]”
“Enough,” he [Fortunato] said; “the cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall
not die of a cough” (235).
Though it is clear the cough did not kill Fortunato, the mere mention of killing casts a
shadow upon the figure of speech. Just this mention leads into actual killing in the story, shivers
gradually crawl down the reader’s back in time with the story.
Donita del Rosario
MHE9
Mrs. Sheard
2-12-06
3B
His fourth method to send horrible images to the reader’s mind would be through
imagery. Fortunato and Montresor have made their way far in the catacombs, while Fortunato
remains shackled to the walls inside a niche. Being restricted gave Fortunato only one option to
scream. Montresor is startled as he narrates, “A succession of loud and shrill screams, bursting
suddenly from the throat of the chained form, seemed to thrust me violently back” (238). The
reader is able to hear the ‘loud and shrill screams’ and is aware of their magnitude being able to
‘thrust me violently back.’
Edgar Allan Poe took advantage of the literary tools needed to bring a piece to life and
used them to create a bone-chilling tale of revenge. As both images and descriptions are being
sent towards the reader’s mind, the reader gradually feels more and more tense as the story quite
credible. From the beginning to the ending, the entire story kept the reader on the edge of his
seat. The negative ending made the entire story much more impactful and unforgetable. It was an
efficient way to tie up such a masterpiece without overdoing anything.