The Symbolism In The Cask Of Amontillado By Edgar Allen Poe

It is often said that irony is the vital literary element to a story because it gives the story character. Whether it changes the mood, creates suspense, adds foreshadowing, engages the reader or something else, irony can do many things for a story.

To begin with, Montresor taking revenge on Fortunato is quite evil. When Montresor trick Fortunato down to the cellar by using Fortunato’s ego and taste in wine it is very cool and calculating. In the text Montresor says, “ As you are engaged, I am on my way to Luchesi. If anyone has a critical turn, it is he. He will tell me--.” (Montresor 58) This plays off of Fortunato ego saying somebody else had a better taste in wine then he did. In like manner, Montresor was very happy and excited to see Fortunato during carnival. Which is just an act to lure Fortunato to the catacombs. Montresor says in his head, “ I continued, as was my wont, to smile in his face, and he did not perceive that my smile now was at the thought of his immolation.” (Montresor57) Furthermore, Montresor offers many times for Fortunato to turn back because of the cold or of his health. The short story states, “ Come sais Montresor, we will go back; your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as once I was.” This is cruel because once Fortunato gets to the bottom of the catacombs he will never get to turn back.

The story “ The Cask of Amontillado” provides various amounts of moods as they walk through the catacomb. In Edgar Allan Poe’s story, the main character known as Montresor, goes through creepy situations and events with the intoxicated, Fortunato. As this story goes on talking about them walking through the catacomb, there’s at most four moods created throughout the story. Those consists of eerie, suspenseful, scary, and dramatic. These moods are to be spoken about when Montresor does something awful to his acquaintant, Fortunato.

Carnivals are places people dress up to go and rid their normal habits of a regular day and this clown costume, if you will, is a way for Montresor to become even more devious. If a carnival is set to represent celebrations, then this murder is his celebration as he pours back the humiliation, he felt, on his friend. This can be proven as Montresor himself said, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge……At length I would be avenged” (Poe 533). Within the settings of these pieces are words and objects that get Poe’s point of no return and death across to its readers.

Montresor does this by flattering and acting concerned about the health of Fortunato when really his only concern is killing Fortunato. While in the wine cellar, Montresor says to Fortunato, “Come, we will go back; your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as once I was. You are a man to be missed. For me it is no matter. We will go back; you will be ill, and I cannot be responsible. Besides, there is Luchesi-.” Montresor does an excellent job of being Fortunatos’ friend and at the same time convinces him to continue drinking and telling him, “A draught of this Medoc will defend us from the damps.” Montresor was not trying to defend either one of them, his only purpose was to place Fortunato into a higher state of drunkenness. Montresor causes Fortunato to become so drunk that while he was being chained to the wall by Montresor, “He was too much astounded to resist.” “The Cask of Amontillado” is filled with many ironies and also life lessons; such as know who your real friends are. Fortunato thought his real friend was Montresor when, in reality, Montresor was anything but his friend. Not only did Montresor fake his sincerity towards Fortunato, he was also vengeful and very intelligent in his actions to kill Fortunato.

<br>The way the narrator treats his enemy is one of the clearest examples for ironic elements. When the characters meet, Montresor realises that Fortunato is afflicted with a severe cold, nevertheless he makes a point of him looking "remarkably well". Montresor acts in the most natural and friendly way towards the man object of his revenge, and even praises his "friend's" knowledge in the subject of wines. Also upon their meeting, Montresor begins a psychological manipulation of Fortunato. He claims that he needs his knowledge to ascertain that the wine he has purchased is indeed Amontillado. Furthermore, he acknowledges that Fortunato is engaged in another business (i.e.: the celebration of carnival), so he would go to Luchresi, who, one is made to believe, is a competitor of Fortunato's. To these words, Fortunato is forced by his pride to accompany Montresor to the vaults (where the Amontillado is kept), dissipate his doubts and also to prove his higher status than Luchresi as a connoisseur of wine. In fact, during their way down under in the catacombs, the twisted mind of Montresor, dares to give Fortunato the chance to go back, due to the almost unbearable dampness and foulness rampant in the vaults and Fortunato's state of health. The narrator clearly knows about the stubborn nature of Fortunato, and is

William Doxey believes, "we are told from the beginning that Fortunato's weakness is his pride in his connoisseurship in wine. It is his pride that hooks him"(266). Both Marie Bonaparte and William Doxey believe that it is Fortunato's weakness for wine that gets him in trouble. Montresor also mentions his rival at wines, "As you are engaged, I am on my way to Luchesi. If anyone has a critical turn it is he"(150). When asked about his cough, "Fortunato replies, not with courtesy, but with prideful determination: 'Let us go never the less'"(Doxey 266). Very often a man's prideful remarks or decisions can get the best of him. It seems that Fortunato could not let himself be outdone. There is the theory of perversity that Montresor tried to use to get Fortunato down into the vaults. J. Rea explains, "A part of Poe's theory of perversity is that we want to hurt or kill or to bury alive someone because he has been good to us. It is an unbelievable desire"(59). She also believes, "Montresor inaccurately measures Fortunato's intellect and succeeds in his plan only through the accident of the similarity of perversity and courtesy"(62). She believes that the courtesy of Fortunato, insisting that his cough is nothing to worry about, is what lets them continue their trip to his death. Rea states, "Perversity always makes one do what he should not;

“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe is a story full of irony. Irony is defined as a literary technique in which what appears differs radically from what is actually the case. In addition, irony can be divided into three groups: dramatic, verbal, and situational. Dramatic irony is when the readers notice something before the characters do. Verbal irony is when the characters say something that differs significantly from what they really mean. Situational irony is when the actual result is different from what was initially expected. In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Poe combines all of these ironies to tell the story and to construct the personalities of the characters in an entertaining way.

Culturally responsive classrooms are important in our schools because we are a culturally diverse society. There is a relationship between culturally responsive classrooms, inclusive education, and specialized instruction. When teachers provide a culturally responsive classroom, this in turn creates an inclusive environment for students of all cultures. Additionally, being culturally sensitive, responsive, and inclusive within the classroom will help teachers provide specialized instruction for culturally diverse students. Culture plays a large role in a student’s behavior and academic performance (Lerner & Johns, 2015). Ignoring one’s culture, and essentially their identity, could cause problems with students who are from a different culture

The cast of Amontillado was written by Allan Poe at a time when he felt he was being unjustly attacked. Most critics believe that the cask of Amontillado was written by Poe against his critics in the Mirror. I believe the cask of Amontillado is a story of Revenge and Hatred against some friends whom be believed had wrongfully accused him. A review of Allan Poe as a person and his experiences in life is essential a clear understanding of "The Cask of Amontillado". Hence, I will apply a cultural method of interpretation.

“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, is a story driven by revenge as Montresor carries out his plan to avenge his families “Motto”. Not to mention the families honor would be repaired, by the death of Fortunato. What a “Perfect Season” to put forth his morbid plan; “The Carnival Season, The Season of Madness”. Therefore, there are many symbols hidden within The Cask of Amontillado to explain the emotions of the story, such as, “the period”, “character Names”, and “Fortunato’s Costume”.

As the story progresses, Montresor devises a careful plan to lure Fortunato to his death trap, but he is careful enough not to place himself at risk. He approaches him at a carnival, and plays on his victim’s weakness for wine by offering to show him a brand of wine akin to the light Spanish sherry, Amontillado (8). The narrator presents an interesting description of his encounter with Fortunato at the carnival; at first expressing dislike for his friend’s behavior by claiming that he approached him with too much warmth since he was drunk, but then he adds that he was extremely delighted to see Fortunato at that particular moment. This illustrates the depth of Montresor’s desire to exert revenge on his friend, since the sole reason of his pleasure at seeing Fortunato is that he knew his plans had taken off, and he anticipated the satisfaction of the act of brutal revenge.

What could drive someone to commit an act as unfathomably cruel as burying another person alive, many readers wonder. Although the answer to this question has escaped readers for centuries, an application of Freudian psychology helps to unearth some answers. Freudian psychology subscribes to the notion that the subconscious –the part of our brain that, unbeknownst to us, controls many of our behaviors–is divided into multiple parts. Montresor is the protagonist in The Cask of Amontillado. He would be an anti-hero or quite possibly the villain protagonist. Fortunato would be the antagonist. Since Montresor was the narrator, very little information was given in regards to Fortunato. In the beginning , when Fortunato is first introduced into the story, he is dressed like a fool. Fortunato’s addiction to wine led him to vulnerable to Montresor’s compelling offer of the Amontillado.

The Death penalty practices are one of the controversial issues that have been over debate in the United States in the past years (Anckar 7). Individuals, groups, and scholars have raised a number of the political spectrum about the application of the death penalty as the best method of reduces and controlling criminal activities in the society (Steiker, and Jordan 197). According to a number of social studies and reports, it is clear that capital punishment has been used unfairly against minority groups, against the poor as well as against individuals of particular ethnic, religious as well as racial groups in the United States (Anckar 11). This indicates that the death penalty is mostly applied discriminatory and badly in the society. Despite this, there are also those who argued that the death penalty is one of the best methods that can be used in reducing criminal activity and crime rates in the society (Steiker, and Jordan 193). This is because capital punishment usually allows the elimination of criminals in the society completely. There are also various religious beliefs and political policies in various countries globally that support death penalty as the best way of punishing stubborn believers and individuals in the society (Anckar 21).

Coaching is a powerful tool based on the use of one-to-one discussions to enhance an individual’s skills, knowledge or work performance. Coaching targets high performance and improvement at work and usually focuses on specific skills and goals, although it may also have an impact on an individual’s personal attributes. I have outlined a brief description of 2 coaching models GROW and OSCAR in Appendix 1.