Notes

An author known for all things mysterious and macabre, Edgar Allan Poe published one of his last and most interesting stories in November of 1846. His life was filled with tragedy and suffering, which encompassed and framed each story that he wrote. The Cask of Amontillado is known for its tale that ends with the immurement of the enemy of the main character through his impairment from alcohol, but it accomplishes this in an interesting way. The Cask of Amontillado propels the themes of mortality and drugs and alcohol through an assortment of irony.

The story opens with a quote from the narrator and main character, Montresor, "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge." This sets off a chain of dramatic irony throughout the story, making Montresor's invitation seem suspicious. Even the name of the short story, "The Cask of Amontillado," functions as more irony, alluding to Fortunato's imprisonment in a dark "casket" in the Montresor family crypt. Throughout the story, the first sentence lets the reader know what will happen to Fortunato, but it does not give a real reason. This makes the story seem like a reverse murder mystery, but the audience must figure out the reason instead of a detective. The quote's meaning is seen in the late beginning, especially when Montresor "smiles at the thought of his [Fortunato's] immolation." Both the smile and the quote work together to create foreshadowing onto Fortunato's unfortunate and untimely demise. Ultimately, the use of dramatic irony in the beginning of this story moves forward the plot and changes the setting to make the following events ensue.

Near the middle of the story, an unseen character enters the story: Luchesi. Throughout the story, Luchesi's

The most prominent theme throughout the work was the use of drugs and alcohol. Fortunato's sensory impairment, caused by alcohol, ultimately leads to his demise. He is presumed to be a wine connoisseur, according to the story, but

Nemo me impune lacessit. In Latin, this means, "No one attacks me with impunity."

"I will not die of a cough," were the words spoken by Fortunato mere minutes before he would die from asphyxiation at the hands of Montresor. The combination of dramatic and verbal irony near the end of the story