How Does Poe Create Suspense In The Cask Of Amontillado

In the short horror story “The Cask of Amontillado,” Edgar Allan Poe writes about a man who seeks revenge by murdering another man by luring him with alcohol. Then, he traps him in a cellar, leaving him to die. He creates suspense and a dark mood in this story by using many methods, but one that he did was to use first person to narrate the story. This is important because it adds another view of the story, creates a dark mood, and makes a more suspenseful scene. Edgar Allan Poe uses first person perspective to fully develop the suspense and mood in the Cask of Amontillado. In the story, the main character states that “‘I must not only punish, but punish with impunity”’ (Poe 58). He points out that he himself not only wants to kill the other man, but punish with impunity. In this example, …show more content…
The first person perspective creates a darker mood because the reader is seemingly experiencing it in real life. The suspense is developed since the reader is more anxious since the events seem more real to them. Another area in the story which Edgar Allan Poe utilizes first person perspective is “he did not perceive that my smile now was at the thought of his [death]”. The mood in this situation is developed more because the reasoning behind his smile is known and is a dark one. One can assume it is of good intentions when not in first person perspective but the reason is revealed in first person. With the revealed reason, suspense is developed further since the reason allows the reader to question what happens next. Another incident where first