Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” follows many of the axioms to which Poe’s writing is known. His last short story, “The Cask of Amontillado” deals with many elements commonly found in works of fiction. The point of view, setting, and the use of irony all work together to create a horrifyingly perfect short story that manages to be both entertaining and vile simultaneously. In terms of this essay N.I.S. doesn’t just stand for National Intelligence Service, but instead narrator, irony, and setting.
The story is told from the perspective of a first person narrator named Montresor. Montresor is a cold-blooded ruthless killer who is bent on revenge against Fortunato who Montresor says had caused him ‘a thousand injuries (Kirszner 190).’ …show more content…
The use of irony is interwoven throughout “The Cask of Amontillado” and the examples are too numerous to discuss in their entirety under the confines of this assignment. The setting as described previously is an example of irony. It is ironic that a festival celebrating freedom is the place where the two main characters of the story ultimately lose theirs. Montresor wants to be free to tell his story, to brag about defending his pride, but due to the circumstances he is forced to wait fifty years before he can. It is ironic that in exacting his revenge, he, too, loses his freedom to do what it is he wants most. An example of verbal irony would be at the end of the story when as Montresor is entombing Fortunato, Fortunato suggests that they leave together “Let us be gone (Kirszner 194)” and Montresor answers in the affirmative. Whether Fortunato is intoxicated or in shock about what is happening is something the reader is left wondering. However, it is readily evident that Montresor was not going to suddenly develop a conscious and take mercy on Fortunato. Yet another example of irony is in the name choice that Poe chose for his victim. The word fortunate from which the name is derived means “having good fortune; receiving good from uncertain or unexpected sources; lucky” (Dictionary.com). Throughout this work it becomes apparent that Fortunato is anything but lucky. Whether he is an innocent victim or falls prey to his own pride and flaws, he seems anything but what one would consider fortunate.
While a relatively short work in “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allen Poe is able to develop a compelling plot line with centered on a main, though flawed, character who also serves as the narrator. The story occurs in a gruesome location which adds to the suspense. The entire plot is interlaced with irony with adds another complex layer to this
The story is told from the perspective of a first person narrator named Montresor. Montresor is a cold-blooded ruthless killer who is bent on revenge against Fortunato who Montresor says had caused him ‘a thousand injuries (Kirszner 190).’ …show more content…
The use of irony is interwoven throughout “The Cask of Amontillado” and the examples are too numerous to discuss in their entirety under the confines of this assignment. The setting as described previously is an example of irony. It is ironic that a festival celebrating freedom is the place where the two main characters of the story ultimately lose theirs. Montresor wants to be free to tell his story, to brag about defending his pride, but due to the circumstances he is forced to wait fifty years before he can. It is ironic that in exacting his revenge, he, too, loses his freedom to do what it is he wants most. An example of verbal irony would be at the end of the story when as Montresor is entombing Fortunato, Fortunato suggests that they leave together “Let us be gone (Kirszner 194)” and Montresor answers in the affirmative. Whether Fortunato is intoxicated or in shock about what is happening is something the reader is left wondering. However, it is readily evident that Montresor was not going to suddenly develop a conscious and take mercy on Fortunato. Yet another example of irony is in the name choice that Poe chose for his victim. The word fortunate from which the name is derived means “having good fortune; receiving good from uncertain or unexpected sources; lucky” (Dictionary.com). Throughout this work it becomes apparent that Fortunato is anything but lucky. Whether he is an innocent victim or falls prey to his own pride and flaws, he seems anything but what one would consider fortunate.
While a relatively short work in “The Cask of Amontillado” Edgar Allen Poe is able to develop a compelling plot line with centered on a main, though flawed, character who also serves as the narrator. The story occurs in a gruesome location which adds to the suspense. The entire plot is interlaced with irony with adds another complex layer to this