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Symbolism in "The Cask of Amontillado"
Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Cask of Amontillado" contains many rich symbols.
It is a story deeply shrouded in mystery and destruction for the character of Fortunato, and although Fortunato does not realize it, he is going to meet in his fate on the night of the carnival. What is worse, is that he will meet this untimely death at the hands of someone he believes to be a friend.
Fortunato's friend Montressor is not really his friend at all, and he lures Fortunato down into the catacombs and dungeons in order to show him a cask of Amontillado that he has acquired. Believing Montressor to be his friend, Fortunato follows him into the catacombs. The first noticeable symbol in the Poe's story is the black silk mask and cape that Montressor puts on before he enters the catacombs. It is representative of the death and evil that will soon find Fortunato (The Cask, 2002).
Montressor's entire reason for luring Fortunato into the catacombs is to get even...
He believes that Fortunato has insulted him and his family, and although he pretends not to be angry he knows that he must get even with Fortunato, and he decides that killing him is the only proper way to accomplish this. Some of the symbolism related to this comes from Montressor's family coat of arms. Depicted on it is a foot crushing a serpent that has been its heel. According to Montressor, he is the foot and Fortunato is the serpent (The Cask 2002). The only way to avenge the wrong that Fortunato has placed against his family is to crush him. Of course, Montressor is not going to physically crushed Fortunato. Rather, he is going to see that he dies a horrible and slow death walled up in the catacombs below.
The Cask of Amontillado itself is a symbol, which warns those who have wronged someone to be wary of gifts from them (The Cask, 2002). Fortunato should have realized that Montressor was not going to simply overlook the insult to his family, but Fortunato, being of good disposition and happy…
Works Cited
McClelland, Robert. A Critical Analysis of the Cask of Amontillado. 2002. 18 March 2003. http://robert.mcclelland.net/port/amontillado.html.
Poe's Prose: The Cask of Amontillado. 2003. Poe Perplex. 18 March 2003. http://www.usna.edu/EnglishDept/poeperplex/amontil.htm.
The Cask of Amontillado: The Dangers of Pride. 2002. Essaybank. 18 March 2003. www.essaybank.co.uk/free_coursework/2633.html
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