The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe

 

An efficacious story on “revenge with impunity” and “premature burial”. For me, it is a perfect “story of VANITY!”. A revenge which laid hidden for half-a-century, and is revealed to the readers by the redresser & narrator (the main character), Montresor.

We as a reader turn into a confidant, to his macabre tale of revenge! The victim, Fortunato, unaware of the sinister scheming against him, is sealed in the walls of the moist family catacomb.

 

The story begins with the main character, Montresor, mentioning about his silent endurance of 1000 injuries and vowing a revenge with impunity-

“THE thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge.”

“I must not only punish, but punish with impunity”

Here, the insult borne, is related to the prideful knowledge of Fortunato on wine. We notice that Montresor, can get easily insulted/offended!

 

Montresor is quintessential of patience. Searing in revenge, he bides time for seeking revenge till the carnival season arrives, a season of “supreme madness”, when the half-drunk Fortunato, costumed as a jester with tinkling bells around his head, is all unguarded and vulnerable. Montresor decoys Fortunato into the ghastly plot, by mentioning his doubts on the genuineness of the pipe of Amontillado( a type of wine), that he recently purchased. Fortunato, who prides himself as an expert of wine, is lured into the plan. The victim’s vanity, is used as a perfect bait by Montresor! Getting hooked on, he is led to the family catacombs. The funeral atmosphere, is ironically alternated with the jingling jester bells of Fortunato! Fortunato is chained/fettered in the recess of the deepest crypt. Subsequently Montresor starts to lay a wall of stone and mortar (being a premeditated scheme, the items lay pre-prepared), and buries his enemy alive! A perfect tale of “premature burial”. While he does so, he relishes the mental torment of his victim, whom he then leaves alone in the dark, waiting in terror for his death!!

 

I lovingly bestow 5-stars on this story of vanity & revenge. Few of the striking factors that lured me to do so are-

1.   Fortunato’s vanity of his expertise on wine, turns into his weakness and reason of death.

2.   Montresor, is seen to be an overtly emotional being, who gets easily offended and harbours the insult, till he can punish his insulter with impunity. He makes sure not to be caught, but slyly brings to fruition the sinister plan.

3.   Patience! Generally, when one is burning in revenge, he/she tries to expedite the revenge and get solace. But here we see Montresor waiting on patiently till the carnival season arrives. He is pretty much sane (I personally don’t see any insanity in him, but for balanced hot-headedness). He bides his own time, till the perfect hour arrives!

4.   Throughout the story, he calmy and peacefully voices his murderous plan of revenge. This contrast was striking!

With the narration and the words used by the narrator, he very well comes across as a man of stature and education!

5.   There is more to the story – the mold, the coat of arms, the masons, read it to explore!

6.   The final revelation is – Montresor is reciting the story 50 years later, and still holds no remorse and guilt, and firmly believes that he was wronged! At the end he eerily says "In pace requiescat!" or "May he rest in peace."

 

The story ends at an ironic contrast of the killer’s solicitude!

 

My favorite part is the closing line of the story, as it holds tons of emotions and can be deciphered in various ways. The revengeful narrator/redresser, 50 years later, shows his concern for Fortunato and wishes his soul to rest in peace, is giving us his boastful narration of revenge with impunity and still not contrite, and closes on a note of solicitude and brag! He is blowing his own trumpet.

 

Ironically the story opens on a note of vanity of Fortunato on his knowledge of wine, and closes on another note of vanity of Montressor on his story of revenge with impunity! I LOVED IT TO THE CORE!