Cask of Amontillado and Unreliable Narrator
Mental Disorder and Poe's Unreliable Narrator

Edgar Allan Poe is most known for his fascinating tales of the macabre and grotesque. Many of Poe's short tales are told from an unreliable perspective in which the narrator tells the events that have occurred as he interprets them. Furthermore, these tales of the macabre often explore the concepts of paranoia and murder. These themes are prevalent in "The Cask of Amontillado," the tale of Montressor, a man who lures his supposed friend, Fortunato, to his death because of an unknown slight against him. Several elements make the narrator a fascinating and unreliable character including his psychological state and the imp of the perverse; unlike in "The Imp of the Perverse" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" in which the narrators accept they are inflicted with some sort of mental disorder, in "The Cask of Amontillado," Montressor is not admit guilt,…...

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Works Cited

Liliefeld, Scott O. And Hal Arkowitz. "What 'Psychopath' Means." Scientific American.

December 2007. Web. 14 November 2012.

Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Cask of Amontillado." Electronic Text Center. University of Virginia

Library. Web. 14 November 2012.

Cask of Amontillado, Edgar Allan Poe uses vivid dialogue to give his characters life. He begins his tale by speaking directly to the reader. He pulls the reader in by saying that "You, who so well know the nature of my soul, will not suppose, however, that I gave utterance to a threat" (Poe, 191). The reader knows that the main character is speaking to him. And the reader understands that the tale will be one of darkness. The main character is looking for revenge. He seeks to punish. The reader knows that the punishment will be brutal.
The main character has thought out his plan carefully. He says that he has not let on to Fortunato that he is angry. The main character was full of venom as he smiled in Fortunato's face. He lets the reader in on his grave secret. The tone is one of a conspirator. The…...

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Works Cited

Poe, Edgar Allan. Complete Stores and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe. New York: Doubleday.

Cask of Amontillado" Edga Allen Poe uses a numbe of elements to incease the shock value of the mude pepetated by Monteso. The victim is Fotunato, whom Monteso attempts until the vey end to convince of nothing but his own fiendship and goodwill. Thee ae seveal elements of setting and situation that aid Monteso in his intention to mude Fotunato. The shock value of this event is futhe enhanced by the motive, which appeas petty at best. Pehaps it says something of Monteso's natue that he is motivated by nothing bette than an unspecified insult to mude a man by enclosing him alive behind a stone wall. Thoughout the stoy Poe shows how the setting, situation, and Fotunato's own flawed natue contibute to his mude.
The most devious method that Monteso uses to lue Fotunato to his eventual death is the petense of his continued fiendship. Fotunato's own tusting natue…...

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references to the latter's expertise in matters of culture and art, and by offering him more wine. When they reach their destination, both Fortunato and the reader find that the "pipe" of Amontillado was in fact to be Fortunato's final resting-place -- the cask. The depth of Montresor's cruelty and deception then shows itself in the last lines of the story, where he echoes with relish Fortunato's final cries of despair.

The title of Poe's story then reflects Montresor's true intentions, even as the speaker himself does, from the beginning. His actions throughout the story shows him to be a cruel and perhaps even petty man, murdering a so-called friend for a reason no better than an insult. This is also indicative of Montresor's value system and state of mind, which is as dark as the catacombs and the niche in which he eventually buries Fortunato alive. Poe thus succeeds in shocking his readers through his use of the dark and foreboding setting, which is then echoed in the mind and actions of the narrator.

Cask of Amontillado to the U.S. National Debt
Comparing the Symbolism in The Cask of Amontillado by E.A. Poe to the U.S. National Debt

In The Cask of Amontillado, Edgar Allan Poe addresses a man who lures his friend down to a cellar with the promise of a fine wine and then walls him up and leaves him there because he feels the friend has wronged him (Poe's, 2003). Metaphorically, the national debt that the U.S. currently has is "walling up" the country and will kill the United States financially if something is not done to lower the level of debt that is currently seen. By walling up the U.S. with debt, there will be no escape from financial struggles and other difficulties that are always faced when there is too much debt and not enough income (Wright, 2008). The American people are becoming trapped by what their government is doing,…...

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References

Bonner, William & Wiggin, Addison. Empire of Debt: the Rise of an Epic Financial Crisis. New York: Wiley. 2006. Print.

Grayson, Erik. Weird Science, Weirder Unity: Phrenology and Physiognomy in Edgar Allan Poe. Mode 1: 56-77. 2005. Print.

Meyers, Jeffrey. Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy. New York, NY: Cooper Square Press. 1992. Print.

Poe's Prose: The Cask of Amontillado. Poe Perplex. 2003. Online.

Somehow, this made the story illustrate Fortunato's character and somehow has given me some thoughts on Fortunato's character, reasoning why Montresor bears bitterness to Fortunato.
The next scene in the story is the place where the crime will happen, at the catacombs of the Montresors, a place underneath the Montresor palazzo and where a lot of deceptions and verbal ironies were suggested. This includes the concern to Fortunato's health that Montresor shown behind the fact that he means harm to Fortunato. Another irony during the nearing death of Fortunato was the fact that he was wearing a funny costume of a court jester and yet he was unsuspecting that Montresor is already making a "fool" out of him. Moreover, the fact that Fortunato was the one who unknowingly insisted to go to the place of his death is a painful and yet humorous irony of the story.

Overall, The Cask of…...

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Reference

Poe, Edgar Allan. The Cask of Amontillado (Text). http://bau2.uibk.ac.at/sg/poe/works/cask_amo.html

Symbolism in "The Cask of Amontillado"
Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Cask of Amontillado" contains many rich symbols.

It is a story deeply shrouded in mystery and destruction for the character of Fortunato, and although Fortunato does not realize it, he is going to meet in his fate on the night of the carnival. hat is worse, is that he will meet this untimely death at the hands of someone he believes to be a friend.

Fortunato's friend Montressor is not really his friend at all, and he lures Fortunato down into the catacombs and dungeons in order to show him a cask of Amontillado that he has acquired. Believing Montressor to be his friend, Fortunato follows him into the catacombs. The first noticeable symbol in the Poe's story is the black silk mask and cape that Montressor puts on before he enters the catacombs. It is representative of the death and…...

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Works Cited

McClelland, Robert. A Critical Analysis of the Cask of Amontillado. 2002. 18 March 2003. http://robert.mcclelland.net/port/amontillado.html.

Poe's Prose: The Cask of Amontillado. 2003. Poe Perplex. 18 March 2003.  http://www.usna.edu/EnglishDept/poeperplex/amontil.htm .

The Cask of Amontillado: The Dangers of Pride. 2002. Essaybank. 18 March 2003. www.essaybank.co.uk/free_coursework/2633.html

Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
Poe's short story - The Cask of Amontillado - is a violent tale of retaliation. The story's evil narrator, Montresor, vows to take revenge on Fortunato for offending him. In his opinion, his thirst for revenge is completely acceptable, in line with his notions of personal pride and reputation. Yet, he is aware of the fact that his action will be considered wrongful by the public, as evidenced in the tale's ending -- Montresor narrates his story as retribution (in a way). He aims at exacting vengeance in keeping with his family's motto, which appears on their crest: "Nemo me impune lacessit" (translated as "No one attacks me with impunity.") The crest depicts "a huge human foot d'or, in a field of azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are embedded in the heel." To Montresor, it was imperative that his…...

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Works Cited

eNotes. The Cask of Amontillado Analysis. 2016. Web. 26 June 2016

Lewis, Michael Jay. "Refining a Fortunato Amontillado." The Explicator 69.4 (2011): 179-183. Web. 26 June 2016

Platizky, Roger. "Poe's THE CASK OF AMONTILLADO." The Explicator 64.1 (1999): 206-209. Web. 26 June 2016

Spark Notes. "The Cask of Amontillado" (1846). 2016. Web. 26 June 2016

Montressor
Poe's the Cask of Amontillado

A Legal Brief against Montressor

In Poe's tale, Montressor does not necessarily convey the motives for killing Futunato directly; there is no mention of exactly what Futuanto did to Montressor to make him mad with revenge. However, the fact that revenge was the underlying motive could not be clearer in the story. Fortunato undoubtedly did much psychological harm to Montessor which is evident in the phrase mentioned when he refers to the "thousand injuries of Fortunato." Whatever the injuries actually were, it was these that lead the perpetrator to commit pre-meditated homicide. He believed that the injustices inflicted upon him were worthy of the ultimate revenge as states that "I must not only punish, but punish with impunity."

The actual crime was undoubtedly a vicious and well planned homicide. Motressor leads Fortunato down to the catacombs by playing to his ego and requesting his expertise and knowledge about…...

Introduction
If anyone was ever a master of gothic horror it was Poe.  “The Cask of Amontillado” is one of Poe’s most famous short stories:  brutal, quick, vengeful, and unabashedly horrific, the story represents all that is most terrifying and prideful about the human condition.  In this article, we’ll give you a dozen topics you could use to write a paper on this story.  We’ll also give a summary, analysis, a short list of characters (hey, there are only 2), some good quotes, and an overview of the themes.  Get ready—get set—get gothic!



Related Topics

The Revenge Plot

Montresor identifies his thirst for revenge in the opening of the story.  The rest of the narrative is the playing out of the revenge plot, which unfolds slowly and deliberately.  The reader is never fully aware of what the revenge will be until the very end, which is why the story is so effective at leaving…...

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Resources

Poe, Edgar Allan, 1809-1849. The Cask of Amontillado. Charlottesville, Va. : Boulder, Colo. :University of Virginia Library Electronic Text Center ; NetLibrary, 1993. Print.

Essay Topic Examples 1. The ower of Revenge in "The Cask of Amontillado":
     Investigate the central theme of revenge in Edgar Allan oe's "The Cask of Amontillado." Discuss Montresor's motivation for revenge, the premeditation of his plan, and how the concept of retribution drives the narrative forward. Examine the psychological aspects of revenge and its effects on both the victim and the perpetrator.

2. Symbolism and Irony in oes Tale of Vengeance:
     Explore the rich use of symbolism and irony in "The Cask of Amontillado." Analyze how the setting, character names, and objects such as the wine, the trowel, and the catacombs contribute to the story's thematic depth. Delve into how oe uses irony to enhance the horror and create suspense throughout the story.

3. Gothic Elements in "The Cask of Amontillado":
     Examine how Edgar Allan oe utilizes classic elements of Gothic literature in "The Cask of Amontillado" to evoke fear and dread.…...

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Primary Sources

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Cask of Amontillado.” The Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore, The Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore,  

Baraban, Elena V. “The Motive for Murder in ‘The Cask of Amontillado’ by Edgar Allan Poe.” Rockerbyeagle, Rocky Mountain Review of Language and Literature, 2004, pp. 47-62. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/1566551.

Jacoby, Jay. “Fortunato\'s Premature Demise in ‘The Cask Of Amontillado’.” The Edgar Allan Poe Review, vol. 3, no. 2, 2002, pp. 64-70. Penn State University Press, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41639748.

Delaney, Bill. “Poe\'s The Cask of Amontillado.” The Explicator, vol. 64, no. 1, 2005, pp. 33–35. Taylor & Francis, LTD.,  https://doi.org/10.1080/00144940509596959 .

May, Charles E. “‘The Cask of Amontillado’: A Masquerade of Motive and Identity.” Studies in Short Fiction, vol. 4, no. 2, 1967, pp. 119-126. Newberry College, https://dbprng00ikc2j.cloudfront.net/working/SSFI/ssfi_1967_0004_0002_0119_0126.pdf.

http://www.eapoe.org/works/tales/caskc.htm .

Essay Topic Examples
1.The Theme of Revenge in "The Cask of Amontillado":
    Explore how Edgar Allan oe uses the theme of revenge to drive the plot and character development in "The Cask of Amontillado," analyzing Montresor's motivations and the moral implications of his actions.

2.Symbolism and Irony in oe's Tale:
    Discuss the use of symbols like the cask, the carnival, and the catacombs, and how irony is employed to enhance the story's chilling effect.

3.Character Analysis of Montresor and Fortunato:
    Analyze the personalities, backgrounds, and interactions of Montresor and Fortunato, focusing on how their traits contribute to the story's outcome.

4.The Role of Setting in "The Cask of Amontillado":
    Examine how the setting of the story, from the carnival atmosphere to the dark catacombs, influences the mood, theme, and narrative progression.

5.oe's Use of Unreliable Narrators:
    Investigate how Montresor's narration might be unreliable, exploring what this reveals about his character and the reliability of the story's events.

Essay Title Examples

1.Beneath the…...

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Primary Sources

Primary Sources

Edgar Allan Poe\'s \"The Cask of Amontillado\"

MLA Citation: Poe, Edgar Allan. \"The Cask of Amontillado.\" The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, Vintage Books, 1975, pp. 274-280.

\"The Cask of Amontillado\" by Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Analysis

MLA Citation: Kennedy, J. Gerald. \"The Cask of Amontillado\" by Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Analysis. Studies in Short Fiction, vol. 26, no. 3, 1989, pp. 301-308.

The Gothic Elements in \"The Cask of Amontillado\"

MLA Citation: Magill, Frank N. \"The Gothic Elements in \'The Cask of Amontillado\'.\" Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition, Salem Press, 2004.

However, we get no inclination that Fortunato is in any way better situated than Montressor -- only that he has insulted him. Montressor's vanity has been stricken, and he will strike back. But there is the sense in Iago that he wants something the Moor has -- whether it is power, Desdemona, ability, etc. There is a look in his eye, a sound in his speech, a hint in his words that he is jealous of the Moor. Does this transfer to Montressor, a latter-day representation of the evil Iago? Is it fair to say so? Is it even fair to say jealousy is at the root of Iago's hatred? Critics for centuries have puzzled over the mystery of Iago's hate. "Motiveless malignance" is all the better they have been able to name it. Therefore, one might not wish to prosecute the perpetrator Montressor by laying the blame at jealousy.…...

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Works Cited

McHugh, Diana. "The Destructive Effects of Jealousy." Literary Reference Center,

2005. Web. 22 Feb 2011. .

Ruhl, Sarah. "Six Small Thoughts on Fornes, the Problem of Intention, and Willfulness." Theatre Topics -- 11.2 Sept 2001: 187-204. Print.

Shakespeare, William. "Othello." The Complete Signet Classic Shakespeare. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1972. Print.

Edgar Allen Poes story "The Cask Amontillado" You write, setting, theme story, point veiw, plt, language signifagace story. THE CASK OF AMONTILLADO Edgar Allan Poe (1846) THE thousand injuries Fortunato I borne I, ventured insult I vowed revenge.
Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado" - analysis

Edgar Allen Poe's 1846 short story "The Cask of Amontillado" puts across an account involving a vindictive character who tries to reinforce his self-esteem by luring the person he considers his enemy into a situation that would do him justice. It is difficult to determine whether the aggressor actually has the reasons to punish his enemy or if he is simply insane and uses an unspecified event as a motive to go through with committing his crime. However, his insanity is controversial when considering the complex nature of the plot and the obvious feeling of satisfaction that the protagonist experiences as he acknowledges that his enemy…...

The most ironic thing we read in "The Black Cat," is the narrator's unstable state of mind. e should know that our first clue to his madness is his intent to assert that he is not. He writes, "Mad I am not" (Poe Black Cat 182), as he begins to pen one of the most insane narrations ever written. It is as if he is trying to convince himself of this lie. His alcoholism only makes matters worse as he wavers between extreme emotions. One moment, he loves the cat and the next moment, he hates the cat. He kills the cat to rid himself of it and, ironically, it haunts him. Of course, we cannot mention the story without mentioning how the narrator kills his wife in an effort to kill the cat. e can say that even this act is ironic because the narrator is so open…...

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Works Cited

Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Cask of Amontillado." Complete Tales of Mystery and Imagination. Minnesota: Amaranth Press: 1984.

The Black Cat." Complete Tales of Mystery and Imagination. Minnesota: Amaranth Press: 1984.

Platizky, Roger. "Poe's the Cask of Amontillado." EBSCO Resource Database. Site Accessed August 01, 2008.  http://search.epnet.com 

Stevenson, Robert. "Literature: 'The Works of Edgar Allan Poe.'" GALE Resource Database. Site Accessed August 01, 2008  http://www.galegroup.com

If you think it is Amontillado, then it surely is." Instead, Fortunato seals his fate, because with all of his actions, he validates the notion that Montresor actually needs his opinion. This is the great injury Fortunato has committed, over and over: he believes that his skills at judging spirits are the equal of, or possibly superior to, those of Montresor. It reminds me of the wicked witch who is compelled to condemn Snow White to death because a magic mirror tells her Snow White is prettier than she, the witch, is.
Montresor has taken precautions all along the way to make sure he will be able to handle his friend when the time comes, plying him with alcohol along the way, so that by the time Fortunato gets to the end of the final passage, he is unsteady on his feet, either from the wine, or his illness, or…...

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Bibliography

Poe, Edward Allen. "The Cask of Amontillado." Accessed via the Internet 9/13/05.  http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccer-new2?id=PoeCask.sgm&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&tag=public&part=1&division=div1