Reoccuring Themes in Edgar Allen Poe's Short Stories
Reoccuring Themes in Edgar Allen Poe's Short Stories
In one of Edgar Allan Poe’s best-known tales of horror, “The Cask of Amontillado,” he suggests that pride can be a very dangerous thing. The story begins with Montressor’s vow of revenge, foreshadowing the future actions. “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could; but when ventured upon insult vowed revenge…” (Poe 1297). Through the use of foreshadowing, irony, and symbolism, Poe presents the inner motive drama of two men. One who will stop at nothing to get the revenge that he considers himself and his family worthy of, and another who’s pride will ultimately be the fall of his own death. Fortunato falls prey to Montressor’s plans because he is so proud of his connoisseurship of wine, and it is for the sake of his own pride that Montressor takes revenge on Fortunato. In this essay, I will show how Poe uses the theme of pride and many other literary techniques such as foreshadowing, irony, and symbolism, in order to create such a horrific and suspenseful masterpiece.
In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Poe uses foreshadowing in a most grim and dark way. The motto of the Montressor’s family is, “ Nemo me impune lacessit” (Poe 1299), which means, “No one wounds me with impunity.” This was what Montressor lived by and vowed to avenge his families’ blow by Fortunato, even though the reader never really finds out what the insult was. Then, when Fortunato says, “I shall not die of a cough” (Poe 1298), Montressor replies, “True-true” (Poe 1298). Instead, Montressor knows that Fortunato will disappear from the face of the earth with his vengeful scheme that will swallow Fortunato up, and have him die of starvation and dehydration. Fortunato is a proud man and does not think that his death will be due to something petty and cold. Rather, he believes that his life will end as a result of some courageous act and he will die a noble death. However, Montressor can only laugh at this thought because he knows that Fortunato’s death will be far from noble and his pride will soon be shattered when he is caught in the depths of the catacomb.
Poe does not intend for the reader to be sympathetic with Montressor because Fortunato has wronged him, but rather to judge him. Another, instance of foreshadowing comes with the trowel scene....