Literary Analysis On The Cask Of Amontillado
Albernisha Bernard
Hart, Instructor
November 27, 2012
Literary Heritage
Reading Analysis Paper
The Cask of Amontillado The very famous Edgar Allan Poe, author of this short story, “The Cask of Amontillado,” has been described in many different ways (which is quite an understatement for such the rare kind of man that he was), but one common description among the accredited seems to be isolated. Also in this tale, the narrator and main character, Montresor, is quite isolated. They both seem to be distant from rules and reality, but for the both of them, not having to endure lasting punishments justifiable by the law in which they lived is very much in their reality. Because of the many similarities among them, like this one (isolation), …show more content…
That is what is given. So psychologically, Poe wants to commit a devious crime, but he tries to disguise this desire with a lesson-to-be-learned conclusion, hence Montresor being tormented by guilt for about fifty years. Also Poe’s mind was full of dark, depressing thoughts, stemming from his dark, tragic life, which allowed for his dark, gruesome themes in many of his tales. A significant amount of other stories support this theme like “The Pit and the Pendulum” and “The Tell-Tale Heart,” which in both contain terror and/ or some certain …show more content…
In a useful discussion of the subject, Austin Warren wrote, "For many writers, myth is the common denominator between poetry and religion. . . . Religious myth is the large scale authorization of poetic metaphor." This is relevant for Poe, for he shared the then-current notions concerning the connection between the ideal artist and his source of inspiration; His ideal artist was a kind of god, and practiced godlike creation. But clearly Montresor is not the ideal artist. What he created is a murder plot. Yet that plot has the characteristic "look" of the beautiful creations in Poe: it is complex, it is ornate, and it is bizarre. It will ''take" all those terms which Poe uses to characterize ideal beauty. Poe's ideal poet creator plays god; Montresor, too, plays god, and were the story more overtly concerned with moral issues, one might even be able to say that god-playing is his
Hart, Instructor
November 27, 2012
Literary Heritage
Reading Analysis Paper
The Cask of Amontillado The very famous Edgar Allan Poe, author of this short story, “The Cask of Amontillado,” has been described in many different ways (which is quite an understatement for such the rare kind of man that he was), but one common description among the accredited seems to be isolated. Also in this tale, the narrator and main character, Montresor, is quite isolated. They both seem to be distant from rules and reality, but for the both of them, not having to endure lasting punishments justifiable by the law in which they lived is very much in their reality. Because of the many similarities among them, like this one (isolation), …show more content…
That is what is given. So psychologically, Poe wants to commit a devious crime, but he tries to disguise this desire with a lesson-to-be-learned conclusion, hence Montresor being tormented by guilt for about fifty years. Also Poe’s mind was full of dark, depressing thoughts, stemming from his dark, tragic life, which allowed for his dark, gruesome themes in many of his tales. A significant amount of other stories support this theme like “The Pit and the Pendulum” and “The Tell-Tale Heart,” which in both contain terror and/ or some certain …show more content…
In a useful discussion of the subject, Austin Warren wrote, "For many writers, myth is the common denominator between poetry and religion. . . . Religious myth is the large scale authorization of poetic metaphor." This is relevant for Poe, for he shared the then-current notions concerning the connection between the ideal artist and his source of inspiration; His ideal artist was a kind of god, and practiced godlike creation. But clearly Montresor is not the ideal artist. What he created is a murder plot. Yet that plot has the characteristic "look" of the beautiful creations in Poe: it is complex, it is ornate, and it is bizarre. It will ''take" all those terms which Poe uses to characterize ideal beauty. Poe's ideal poet creator plays god; Montresor, too, plays god, and were the story more overtly concerned with moral issues, one might even be able to say that god-playing is his