Fortunato prided himself on his disposition of wine. This pride eventually leads to his downfall. Through the use of foreshadowing, irony, and symbolism the reader can see Fortunato being lead slowly, like a fool to his death by Montresor. When the two first meet, Fortunato wore the costume of a jester with a "...conical cap and bells," this is to show his foolishness in his pride in wine. Poe jokingly uses the name Fortunato, when he is anything be fortunate, to show the irony of the situation. Montresor baits Fortunato into coming with him by saying, "I have my doubts, and I was silly enough to pay the full Amontillado price without consulting you in the matter. You were not to be found, and I was fearful of losing a bargain….As you are engaged, I am on my way to Luchesi. If anyone [can tell genuine Amontillado], it is he." Montresor expertly manipulates Fortunato’s mind, using his pride in wine to get him to do whatever he pleases. As the moment of the burial approaches the atmosphere become increasingly dark and ominous. Montresor continually jokes about what he is about to do to Fortunato as they travel though the dark corridor. Fortunato says, "Enough, the cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall not die of a cough." To which Montresor replies, "True - true," little does Fortunato know that his death was so near.
The story is set in carnival season (like Mardi Gras), in an unknown European city. The story begins with a joyous atmosphere, this is soon replaced by a gloomy dark ambience as Montresor’s plan begins to unfold. As Fortunato follows Montresor into the catacombs; which are insufferably damp and incrusted with niter (white or gray salt deposit), the gloom sets in even father. The story is told in a gothic tone, which was characteristic of the time, “We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on, and descending again, arriving at a deep crypt, in which the foulness of the air caused our flambeaux rather to glow than flame.” At this point the reader really gets a since of where the two really are, and obtains a since of actually being there. Edgar Allen Poe is an expert of using imagery to create horror in the minds of his readers. He allows readers to walk along side the characters as they progress though the story, or in some case’s (“The Tell Tale Heart”) become one.
This story is told from the perspective of Montresor who vows revenge against Fortunato, for dishonoring him with an insult. It is very effectively told from the point of view of Montresor because it allows the reader to immerse themselves in the mind of the killer. This gives the story a life of its own and allows the reader to really be there in the dreary dank corridor the two walk though.
“The Cask of Amontillado,” is a story of overzealous pride, revenge and premeditated murder. I shows that to much pride can be a very dangerous thing , when linked with someone of foul intentions. In the case the Fortunato, his pride in wine eventually lead to his death, deep within the vaults of Montresor’s wine cellar. And in the case of Montresor, his pride in his family seal "Nemo me impune lacessit.” eventually lead him to murder another man. The moral of this story is that pride is a very dangerous entity and if left unchecked can lead to much more gruesome consequences.
