Betrayal In The Cask Of Amontillado

QUESTION 1: THEME Betrayal, as defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is “to hurt someone who trusts [another], such as a friend or relative by not giving help or by doing something morally wrong.” This is shown in the stories The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, Sonny’s Blues by James Baldwin, The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Arthur Conrad Doyle, In a Far Country by Jack London, and An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce. In The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, betrayal is one of the main themes that are shown. The entire story revolves around Montresor betraying Fortunato by pretending to be his close friend, but leading him down the catacombs to his eventual death. As the two continue to descend down the dark tunnels, Montresor continues to implore Fortunato to return to the surface, as the dampness of the tunnels makes Fortunato suffer. Nevertheless Fortunato persists they carry on to the Amontillado. This act of “care” builds up Fortunato’s trust even more. When the two finally reach the final resting place for Fortunato, Montresor chains Fortunato to the wall, and builds a new wall up the hides Fortunato. This act of betrayal is called out by Fortunato, “For the love of God, Montresor” (Poe). Fortunato, although he is drunk, starts to realize he has been tricked. Betrayal is shown in …show more content…
In the story, the Stepfather to Julia and Helen tries to kill each of them. When Julia was killed, the stepfather “reached [Julia’s] side [when] she was unconscious, and though he poured brandy down her throat and sent for medical aid from the village…” (Doyle). This builds up a sort of trust between the stepfather and Helen. Even though he caused the murder, he still acted all innocent and tried to help Julia. This is negated later when Holmes find out the stepfather was the one to try and kill both daughters to save some money. Betray is shown in The Adventure of the Speckled