Who Is Montresor In The Cask Of Amontillado

In the words of author Richelle E. Goodrich, “Vengeance is a monster of appetite, forever bloodthirsty and never filled” (Goodreads). In life, people tend to ignore the saying forgive and forget in favor of a more human alternative; revenge. Sometimes being wronged can drive people mad consequently making them do things that they would never do in their right mind. In “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, the character of Montresor feels he was insulted and desires retribution, causing him to become maniacal and manipulative. Poe develops the character of Montresor by using irony, viewpoint, and character motivation to demonstrate the strong desire for vengeance. Poe’s application of dramatic and verbal irony creates Montresor’s sick
sense of humor and adds to his overall personality. According to Fortunato, “[His cough was] a mere nothing; it will not kill [him]” (Poe 61). Montresor’s quick response of, “True-true” contradicted the already stated fact that Montresor is planning to murder Fortunato himself, therefore making this statement dramatic irony (Poe 61). The use of irony in this situation proves to the reader that Montresor harbors a sadistic sense of humor and is able to laugh at the grotesque crime he is about to commit. Additionally, Montresor insists that Fortunato must “Go back; [his] health is precious” (Poe 61). The irony in this statement is that Fortunato must remain where he is if Montresor is to complete his crime. He is able to fabricate this statement because Fortunato will not recognize the verbal irony and it will in fact make him desire to come more. This sarcastic comment provides additional evidence to the fact that Montresor possesses an evil sense of humor. The motivation behind the murder of Fortunato provides more evidence to the unstable being of Montresor.
Throughout the entire story, Montresor provides no explanation for his need to get revenge other than, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato [he] had borne as [he] best could; but when [Fortunato] ventured upon insult, [he] vowed revenge” (Poe 58). Though the whole story is told from the viewpoint of Montresor, he never tells the reader what Fortunato did that hurt him. This could be for two reasons, the first being that it pained him too much to talk about it. But, the second and more likely solution is that the insult was far less severe than Montresor’s revenge makes it out to be. This lack of motivation helps develop the character for the reader and help them understand how volatile and dark he is. In addition to the strange desire for unjustifiable revenge Montresor does not seem to ever regret his actions except for once, “[He] began to grope with it about recess; but the thought of an instant reassured [him]” (Poe 64). Throughout the story, Montresor showed little emotion other than anger towards Fortunato, even as he is trapping and killing him. The idea that a single instant could provide a rationale for murder is insane to the average person. This illustrates Montresor as much more sinister than the average person and adds to the ominous being of his
character. Poe uses first person narration to allow readers to see Montresor’s complex thought process and manipulating nature. There are many instances in the story that prove that Montresor had carefully planned the murder of Fortunato. Starting from the very beginning, Montresor told the reader that “[He] continued… to smile in [Fortunato’s] face, and [Fortunato] did not perceive that my smile was at the thought of his immolation” (Poe 59). This dark action is the first sign that not only is the murder long and thought out, Montresor is also manipulating Fortunato into believing that they are friends. Once he had developed this trusting relationship, it was not difficult to lewer Fortunato into the catacombs. In addition, Montresor intentionally selected a time when Fortunato would be intoxicated and unable to make sound decisions. This was a very calculated move and created a huge advantage for Montresor. Because of Fortunato’s drunkenness, he is less suspicious when Montresor brings him into the catacombs and also provided less of a struggle as Montresor entrapped him. The reader is able to tell that this was part of the plan because Montresor not only commented on how intoxicated Fortunato was, he also gave Fortunato more to drink along the way. Montresor also capitalized on Fortunato’s other weakness that “He prided himself on his connoisseurship in wine” (Poe 59). He did this in two ways, the first is that he was able to convince Fortunato that he kept wine in the catacombs. Because Fortunato was knowledgeable about wine, he knew that the conditions in the catacombs would make sense for keeping wine. Secondly, Montresor was able to use Fortunato’s pride to his advantage by using flattery. When he was trying to make Fortunato follow him he commented that, “Some fools will have it that his taste is a match for your own” (Poe 59). This statement has two purposes, the first being that it is a complement to Fortunato. This makes him feel important and make him want to taste the Amontillado. This means that he will come along with Montresor on his own free will which will make the murder easier for Montresor. Secondly, Fortunato feels threatened by Luchesi and will not want to lose his position as the best wine taster. He will not want anything to stop him from proving himself and his special talent. Montresor used these tactics to make Fortunato’s pride his destruction. The use of viewpoint in all of these situations discloses the mental process behind Montresor’s manipulation. The character of Montresor is formed by the combination of dark irony, motivation, and viewpoint. Throughout the story, Poe uses small details to paint an image of Montresor for the readers of the story and show them the power of vengeance. As history has proven time and time again, people often fixate on the wicked things others have done to them instead of moving forward with their life. This fixation can eat away at the person until they go mad and make an irrational decision, because as Richelle E. Goodrich said, vengeance is a monster with a never ending hunger (Goodrich).