Cask Of Amontillado

4 Pages 986 Words

In Pace Requiescat
(Rest in Peace)
Edgar Allan Poe creates a mood of horror in “The Cask of Amontillado” through the setting, the main character, and the internal conflict he faces. Taking place in the catacombs beneath Montresor’s residence the reader is given an image of death; fraught with his decision to punish Fortunato for the various insults that have tarnished his family name, Montresor is torn between his need for revenge and the pending guilt that haunts him the remainder of his days. Poe illustrates a horrendous setting filled with ironic symbolism to convey his tale of ultimate revenge.
First, Edgar Allan Poe utilizes the setting to create an image of dread for the reader. Beginning “one evening during the supreme madness of the carnival season” Poe quickly moves the reader under ground to the catacombs beneath Montresor’s home. The carnival can be all but forgotten as Robert Louis Stevenson points out, “… the whole spirit of “The Cask of Amontillado” depends on Fortunato’s carnival costume of cap and bells and motley” (Stevenson). Poe utilizes the carnival two fold as it not only sets Fortunato at a location which he will surely indulge beyond his capacity making him easily deceived by Montresor as well as providing rationale for Fortunato to be dressed as a jester complete with bells. The jingling of the bells demonstrates the constant belittling Montresor perceives from Fortunato which feeds his need for retribution. The story continues down to the dark recesses of Montresor’s catacombs that serve both as his family’s crypt and wine cellar. Poe illustrates a dark cavern with damp stone walls, covered with nitre, that are barely illuminated by lanterns. Upon reaching Montresor’s destination, Fortunato’s final resting place, Poe gives the reader the last clue as to the dread about to take place, “in depth about four feet, in width three, in height six or seven”. The main room ...