Readers of “A Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe view it with a mixture of fascination and confusion, arising from the conniving plot of murder carried out by the story’s main character, Montresor. A member of the European oligarchy, Montresor is insulted by another of the elite he considers a friend, named Fortunato. Montresor approaches Fortunato during carnival season about a pipe of wine known as Amontillado that he claims to have purchased in order to lure him to the catacombs beneath the Montresor estate. Fortunato is led down into the bowels of the earth, where he is shackled to a predetermined spot on the floor. Montresor immediately begins to wall up the alcove he has led his friend to, intending to bury him alive, in a sense.
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Fortunato shows no signs of knowing of these feelings, as shown by the easy willingness for close contact between them and the air of friendly affection. This attitude would be hugely different if such a scandalous thing were to be brought to attention, as this story is set in a nineteenth century aristocratic culture where appearance was of major importance. Concerning this theory, Montresor handles his “rejection” with an analogous scene of rape. After being entombed, Fortunato begins to scream in confused and terrified shrieks, startling Montresor and prompting him to unsheathe his rapier and thrust it inside the alcove. Feeling once again in control, Montresor begins to yell as well, surpassing his friend’s cries, dominating him. This is more of an interpretational theory; more so even than the many others. One inconsistency is the lack of the emotional instability that such a major revelation and subsequent rejection would bring forth in most people. A subtle, long-planned plot such as this would not have been an immediate thought of the rejected. However, as we are examining an obviously demented mind, it is more reasonable to think Montresor may deviate from assumptions in his imagined rejection. Perhaps the insult may lie in the very existence of Montresor’s feelings, on which he may blame Fortunato. Every theory brought on by the academic community relies on Poe’s intentions for the interpretation. Written in 1846, by a Georgian era author, “A Cask of Amontillado” is unlikely to purposefully follow such a narrative. Though Poe may have been relatively progressive, he would surely be ill versed in homosexual relationships, thus be unlikely to attempt a rendition of
Fortunato shows no signs of knowing of these feelings, as shown by the easy willingness for close contact between them and the air of friendly affection. This attitude would be hugely different if such a scandalous thing were to be brought to attention, as this story is set in a nineteenth century aristocratic culture where appearance was of major importance. Concerning this theory, Montresor handles his “rejection” with an analogous scene of rape. After being entombed, Fortunato begins to scream in confused and terrified shrieks, startling Montresor and prompting him to unsheathe his rapier and thrust it inside the alcove. Feeling once again in control, Montresor begins to yell as well, surpassing his friend’s cries, dominating him. This is more of an interpretational theory; more so even than the many others. One inconsistency is the lack of the emotional instability that such a major revelation and subsequent rejection would bring forth in most people. A subtle, long-planned plot such as this would not have been an immediate thought of the rejected. However, as we are examining an obviously demented mind, it is more reasonable to think Montresor may deviate from assumptions in his imagined rejection. Perhaps the insult may lie in the very existence of Montresor’s feelings, on which he may blame Fortunato. Every theory brought on by the academic community relies on Poe’s intentions for the interpretation. Written in 1846, by a Georgian era author, “A Cask of Amontillado” is unlikely to purposefully follow such a narrative. Though Poe may have been relatively progressive, he would surely be ill versed in homosexual relationships, thus be unlikely to attempt a rendition of