Pride In The Cask Of Amontillado

Clive Staples Lewis, the British poet, once wrote, “For pride is spiritual cancer: it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense.”(Lewis, 125). Otherwise stated, one who aims to destroy another’s life will eventually destroy his or her own life in the undertaking. In “ The Cask of Amontillado”, Edgar Allan Poe is a tale of terror between the two main characters Montresor and Fortunato. Montresor describes the days leading up to and the aftermath of his revenge against his fellow friend, Fortunato. Although Montresor is not punished, his actions still haunt him fifty years later. In “The Cask of Amontillado”, Edgar Allan Poe demonstrates how too much pride can lead to revenge, betrayal, and fate.
The main theme of “The Cask of Amontillado” is …show more content…
They both are miss led by pride and eventually devastated. Montresor has now destroyed the person who has caused him pain for years. In the end he did what he thought was right and what would make him feel better about himself. Montresor uses his secret plot to end Fortunato’s life. After fifty years, Montresor’s pride is so abundant that he still brags about his crime. He is still blind by the fact that his pride led him to such a cruel act. The message that Poe is trying to get across is that too much pride can lead one into doing terrible things. In addition, the story is trying to get out the message that trust is important, and without trust betrayal would not exist. If Fortunato did not trust Montresor by drinking the wine and coming into the vault, then there would have been no murder. The story relates to real life experiences, and how far someone will go as harming or betraying others just to make themselves feel better. Pride is often a flaw that can ruin relationships, contentment, common sense, or even be the deadliest of