The Cask of Amontillado

“The Cask of Amontillado” rests among Poe’s mysterious and macabre Gothic tales of horror. Poe’s work is largely inspired by Romanticism as well as the occult. His works typically present a psychological intensity, a quality very apparent in this story.

The reader is first introduced to an unnamed narrator who launches into his story by swearing vengeance for the “thousand injuries of Fortunato” he has borne (161). The theme of revenge thus emerges from the story’s outset. Additionally, the reader can only wonder what injustices Fortunato committed; up to the end of the story, this question remains unanswered. Thus, the narrative arrives through an unreliable narrator—later introduced as Montresor—as there is no evidence to justify his murderous measures. There is a radical disparity between the weight of his actions and the weight of his evidence, and the question arises of his psychological stability.

More evidence for the narrator’s unreliability is in his rampant falsities throughout the story, presenting the theme of deception and calculation. Montresor lies to Fortunato about having Amontillado, and he previously told his attendants not to stir in the house so as not to be interrupted in his vengeful plot. He also insincerely suggests he and Fortunato return to the fresh air when Fortunato suffers from the potassium nitrate covering the catacomb walls. The entirety of Montresor’s actions constitute a performance, a ruse to cement Fortunato’s demise.

The story is shot with irony. For example, Fortunato’s name is ironic because of his ultimate and lethal misfortune. His jester’s garb is ironic in many ways, one of which involves the implicit comedy of the role when the character’s situation is anything but comic. Finally, irony occurs when Fortunato remarks that Montresor is not a Freemason, and Montresor assures him that he is “[a] mason” (164). Rather than Freemasonry, Montresor refers to being a mason—one who builds using stone materials. His action of immuring Fortunato showcases the ironic wordplay.

Another textual theme is morbidity, as witnessed in the two characters slowly making their way down to the catacombs and ultimately to Fortunato’s doom. The entombed bodies of the Montresor family surround the two, making death a prominent theme while the crypt foreshadows events to come. Poe creates thematic morbidity through foreshadowing, as with Fortunato’s fitful coughing from the potassium nitrate on the catacomb walls. His ailment portends his demise.

The Montresor coat of arms and motto also play into the text’s interpretation. The family’s coat of arms shows the image of a golden foot crushing a snake, and the motto states, “No one attacks me with impunity” (211). Thus, the coat of arms and motto symbolize Montresor’s motivation and express his tenet and intentions. One interpretation of the blazon is that all who dare cross the Montresor family will be crushed under the foot of vengeance. On the other hand, the roles could be reversed, with Fortunato metaphorically stepping on the snake by insulting Montresor, and the snake—Montresor—embedding its fangs into that foot, indicating the perpetrator will receive punishment in equal measure.

A final hermeneutic element is the extended metaphor as Montresor plasters in the final stone. A cask is a barrel used to store alcohol, and the valve where the tap is placed is called a “keystone.” The word “keystone” also refers to the final, top stone in a vault or tomb. As an extended metaphor, the cask refers to the vault, each possessing a keystone. Thus, the “cask of Amontillado” ultimately refers to the vault of Fortunato’s destined entombment.