Theme and Elements of the Cask of Amontillado, Book Review Example

“The Cask of Amontillado” was  written by Edgar Allen Poe in 1846.  It was developed as a short story in “Godey’s Lady’s Book”.  The setting was in a unnamed city in Italy, the period was not indicated but assume somewhere in the 18th Century. The theme of this story is about revenge. During the 19th Century the people seemed to have a great interest in this subject matter and as such this was a popular tale.  Poe was rather a dark or grim writer and this story was unveiled from the perspective of the murderer.

Characters in the Story

The story focuses around two main characters that of “Montresor” (Murderer) and his victim “Fortunato”, both men of noble birth.  Montresor was extremely angry over some unspecified insult from Fortunato and as a result plans his murder.  His aim or plan being to distract him during carnival time, when the festivities find the man in a drunken stupor, wearing the disguise of a jesters attire.

The Plot

Montresor captures the attention of Fortunato by describing a procurement of a very valuable cask of sherry “the Cask of Amontillado” and requires Fortunato’s expert opinion on the quality of the wine. From this point he lures Fortunato through a series of subterranean passages beneath his Palazzo.  When the two men reach the cellar containing the wine, Montresor grabs Fortunato and chains him to the wall and then proceeds to build a new wall and seal him in leaving him to die.

In re-telling his story some 50 years later Montresor says he has never been captured and in so far as he knows the body of Fortunato still hangs suspended in the niche where it was bricked in all those years ago.  The unrepentant murder stating ” In pace requiscat” ( may he rest in peace). The story undoubtedly had an influence on later writers ..  ” this story and Poe’s other short fiction had an undisputed influence on later fiction writers. In the nineteenth century, Poe influenced Ambrose Bierce and Robert Louis Stevenson among others. Twentieth-century writers who have looked to Poe include science fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft and horror author Stephen King.” (Anon, 2009).

Analysis and Symbolism

The theme and plot of the story is based upon murder and revenge.  It is not a mystery or detection story, the mystery resides in the actual motives for which Montresor committed murder.  Montresor indicated that he received a “thousand injuries”, although no substantive reasons were provided. The reader is left to determine the cause of the motives, including the probability that Montresor was in fact insane.  There are some contradictions in the story, for example: Fortunato is introduced to the readership as a wine expert .. ” he becomes so drink he would be unable to identify the Amontillado and treats De Grave, an expensive French wine, with little regard by drinking it in a single gulp” (Moffit, 1972)

The tale also indicates that Montresor was of noble birth and yet he demonstrated brick laying skills, more normally associated with  the working class.  It is known that the author had knowledge of the subject matter in his personal life and as such appreciated the visual horrors of such an abstraction to his audience.  ” Poe worked in the brickyard late in the fall of 1834″ (Silverman, 1991)

Vincent Buranelli made a number of observations about the story and in more general terms about Poe’s morbid fascination with death.  He expanded by saying how this had influenced musicians of the time including Debussy.. ” According to Vincent Buranelli, Poe’s short stories also influenced the music of Claude Debussy, who was “haunted” by the atmosphere of Poe’s tales, and the art of Aubrey Beardsley, as well as the work of other composers and artists in the United States, Great Britain, and in Europe.” (Buranelli, 1977)

The gothic style of Poe’s writing has a distinct sense of morbidity about it .. ” The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge. You, who so well know the nature of my soul, will not suppose, however, that I gave utterance to a threat. At length I would be avenged ” (Unknown, 2009)

The analysis of the phrase is interesting. It suggests a building of in sufferance from the relationship with Fortunato culminating in a final insult that threw Montresor into a fit of rage and ultimately to a plot of murder.  For this to build into such a state illustrates the apparent lack of dialogue and trust between the two supposed friends.  This also leads the reader to question the state of mind of Montresor and indeed question his very sanity.

Richard P Benton ( a noted writer on Poe ) asserted that the character for Montesori was in actual fact based upon “Claude de Bourdeille, Count of Montresor” a political conspirator in the court of King Louis X111.  (Pollin, 1970)

Works Cited

Anon. (2009). The Cask of Amontillado Summary & Study Guide. Retrieved 10 15, 2009, from E Notes: http://www.enotes.com/cask-amontillado

Buranelli, V. (1977). Edgar Allen Poe. In V. Buranelli, Edgar Allen Poe (p. 166). Macmillan Publishing.

Moffit, C. L. (1972). Poes Wine List. In C. L. Moffit, Poes Wine List, Vol 2 (p. 41). Unknown .

Pollin, B. R. (1970). Notre Dame Paris in Two Tales. In B. R. Pollin, Notre Dame Paris in Two Tales (pp. 24-27 refer). Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press.

Silverman, K. (1991). Edgar A Poe: Mournful and never ending remembrance. In K. Silverman, Edgar A Poe: Mournful and never ending remembrance (p. 130). New York: Harper.

Unknown. (2009). Daily Lit. Retrieved 10 15, 2009, from Cask of Amontillado: http://www.dailylit.com/books/cask-of-amontillado