“cask of Amontillado”/Tragedy Quiz
Part 1: Comprehension of the story.
1. What is one reason that the reader knows Montresor is an unreliable narrator?
a. He is drunk on Amontillado
b. He is snobbish (stuck up) & wealthy
c. He doesn’t reveal anything about the past.
d. He is impatient & unable to think clearly.
2. How are Montresor and Fortunato alike?
a. They both like expensive wine.
b. They have affection for each other
c. They both have respect for Luchesi.
d. They both have a vengeful nature.
3. Which of the following quotations from the story BEST shows Montresor's TRUE
character?
a. "A draft of this Medoc will defend us from the damps."
b. “My dear Fortunato, you are luckily met. How remarkably well you are looking
today."
c. "I must not only punish but punish with impunity."
d. "And yet some fools will have it that his taste is a match for your own."
4. "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured
upon insult, I vowed revenge" Based on this quote alone, it is clear that the story is
being told from which point of view?
a. First Person
c. Third Person Limited
b. Second Person
d. Third Person Omniscient
5. Montresor carefully plans his revenge. He does all of the following to prepare EXCEPT
ONE. Which of the following is NOT one of the things his does to prepare for his
revenge?
a. Making sure his servants are not at home.
b. Attaching a padlock and chains to the wall of the catacombs.
c. Obtaining a real cask of Amontillado
d. Hiding the trowel beneath his cape.
6. What character flaw does Montresor exploit with Fortunato in order to convince him to
enter the catacombs?
a. Pride
c. Compassion
b. Apathy
d. Envy
7. Montresor stops working when Fortunato begins rattling his chains because Montresor
a. is exhausted.
c. wants to savor Fortunato’s torture.
b. feels remorse.
d. worries that someone will hear.
Part 2: Multiple Choice. Write the letter on the answer sheet.
8. Which literary device did Edgar Allan Poe rely upon when naming the character
"Fortunato"?
a. Mood
c. Plot
b. Tone
d. Irony
9. Fortunato follows Montresor deep into his catacombs, despite heavy foreshadowing of
the danger that is waiting for Fortunato
a. Plot
c. Rising Action
b. Exposition
d. Falling Action
10. Which is NOT an example of dramatic irony.
a. Fortunato’s name.
c. References to the Mason’s
b. Fortunato’s costume
d. Montresor’s family coat of arms.
11. The reader learns Montresor feels that Fortunato insulted him.
a. Plot
c. Resolution
b. Exposition
d. Falling Action
12. The _______ is when Fortunato is chained to the wall by Montresor.
a. Exposition
c. Rising Action
b. Resolution
d. Climax
13. How the playwright chooses to put words together.
a. Diction
c. Language
b. Articulate
d. Projection
14. Montresor shares with the reader that for at least 50 years nobody has disturbed
Fortunato's bones
a. Exposition
c. Rising Action
b. Resolution
d. Climax
15. Uncertainty or not knowing. Keeping the audience on the edge of their seat.
a. Inflection
c. Foreshadowing
b. Monologue
d. Suspense
16. “For the love of God, Montresor!”
“Yes,” I said. “For the love of God!”
This is an example of ______________.
a. Monologue
c. Tragedy
b. Empathy
d. Dialogue
Part 2: True/False. Please make sure you write your answer clearly on your answer sheet.
17. The falling action of the story is when Fortunato laughs nervously at what he hopes is a
joke by Montresor.
18. Character motivation is lengthy speech by a character who is revealing his/her thoughts,
either alone to the audience of to another character.
19. Projection is how loudly or softly an actor speaks.
20. Diction is the degree of clarity and distinctness in speaking. Could mean an accent.
21. Articulate is the act of producing a speech sound with vowels and consonants. Speaking
clearly.
22. Inflection changing the pitch or tone of your voice.
23. Sympathy is when audience members identify with and share the feelings of the
characters being presented on stage.
24. Character is when the actor must figure out the goals of their character.
25. Fortunato, in Montresor’s eyes, is the protagonist of the story.
Part 3: Word Bank. Each word can only be used once. Some words will not be used at all.
Verbal Irony, Cask, Setting, Situational Irony, Lent, Antagonist, Nitre, Tragedy, Conflict,
Narrator, Mood, Catacombs, Carnival, Amontillado
26. "Enough," he said; "the cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall not die of a
cough."
"True -- true," I replied….
This is an example of ____________.
27. Carnival, the palazzo and the catacombs are examples of ____________.
28. As the two men descend into the catacombs, and they reach a point at which they
discuss Montresor's coat of arms and the Montresor family motto “ Nemo me impune
lacessit”, which is Latin for "No one harms me with impunity." Based on Montresor's
comment at the beginning of the story that Fortunato has insulted Montresor to such an
extent that Montresor decides to kill him, we have to be both amused and slightly
horrified that Montresor's family motto is actually being acted out. This is an example of
______________.
29. As a reader we feel that Fortunato is the _____ of the story.
30. The person telling the story.
31. The driving motivation in this story is Montresor's desire for revenge. He must induce
Fortunato to accompany him into his underground vaults. But this presents many
difficulties because Montresor does not want to be suspected of the murder he intends
to commit. This is _______________.
32. A drama or literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers
extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a flaw, moral weakness, or inability to
cope with unfavorable circumstances.
Part 4: Short answer. Make sure you write in complete sentences and give details to support
your answer. 8 pts. each
33. Explain 2 themes found in “The Cask of Amontillado.”
34. Some readers argue that Montresor is insane. Using textual evidence, explain 2 pieces
of evidence that BEST supports the opinion that Montresor is insane (crazy).