The Cask Of Amontillado By Edgar Allen Poe

Edgar Allen Poe is best known for his short stories because of the immoral and haunting atmospheres that began his trademark over the centuries. A literary genius before his time, Poe’s own death leads to the fascination of his appeal for the last century and a half by readers of his fiction. Edgar Allen Poe was criticized during his time for producing works that elicited the reader to become engaged with the macabre. Fortunately, his works have been in print continuously since 1844 (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012) and readers the world over have enjoyed his short stories of haunting tales of murder and the mystical. “The Cask of Amontillado” is an example of Edgar Allen Poe’s dramatic and successful use of setting, plot, and point of
Poe was a master at creating a setting which would captivate the reader just as much as the characters and plot in his stories. “Poe is unperturbed by societal notions of morality and religion” (Whatley, R., 2012p. 58) and this can be seen in the careful murder of Fortunato by Montresor. In “The Cask of Amontillado”, Poe is delivering the confession of the main character Montresor, perhaps on his deathbed to a priest. However, Montresor is not asking for forgiveness, more he is relieving the guilt he may have over his actions fifty years before. Whatever the reason, the retelling of the story is vivid with the use of deliberately crafted details within his setting to enhance the morbid details of the tale. “The Cask of Amontillado” is set in the catacombs beneath Montresor’s home. The dark of night hides the disappearance of Fortunato and Montresor without causing alarm. The dark and damp catacombs also set the stage for a feeling of morbid fascination within this short
Though never learning just how Fortunato has insulted and injured Montresor, the reader is captivated by the unfolding of Montresor’s plan of revenge. The story takes place during the carnival season and the costume of Fortunato also led to the unusual setting of the story as well. The jingling of the jester bells on his cap, Fortunato is giddy in the catacombs with Montresor hoping to taste the Amontillado. The nitre was critical to the setting within this story. The reader knows that someone suffering from weakened lungs could die alone from over exposure to the elements within the catacombs. However, Montresor offers Medoc and De Graves to still the soughing of Fortunato. The translation of these two wines are medication and graves (Bordeaux Marathon, 1993), Poe knew that these details would add to the richness of his setting by purposely choosing these wines specifically. Surrounded by the bones of Montresor’s ancestors also adds foreboding nature of the setting. Poe has chosen the perfect setting for Montresor to carry out his plan for revenge upon