Comparing The Cask Of Amontillado And A Clean Well-Lighted Place
612 Words3 Pages
Symbolism and imagery are one of the most important literary devices that contain deeper meaning of the story. Through the symbolism and imagery of the story, the authors signify some ideas and the readers infer the hidden meaning. In “A Clean Well-Lighted Place” by Ernest Hemingway and “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, we can find several symbolic meanings and imageries that are related to the story’s theme. In “A Clean Well-Lighted Place,” Hemingway repeatedly uses a word “Nothing” and “Nada.” Does it mean just nothing? The answer is no. Nothing includes lots of meanings such as worthlessness, vanity, and futility. However, in this story, the word “Nothing” clearly symbolizes the old man’s affectivity. Furthermore, it forms…show more content… During the carnival, people conceal their real self and disguise using costumes. Montresor wants perfect crime that no one notices. This aspiration of him has a thread of connection with the purpose of carnival and costume. Moreover, Montresor wears black silk mask and it fragmentarily signifies his dark intention for the revenge. On the other hand, Fortunato who dies by the scheme of Montresor wears clown costume, which is conflicting dress with usual. Another thing that contains symbolic meaning is Montresor’s family motto and arms. “A huge human foot d’or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel.” “Nemo me impune lacessit.” Both imply Montresor’s revenge and the death of Fortunato. Actually, this topic of conversations is not important for them, because they are on the way to search Amontillado. In this point, we can deduce the author’s intention. Poe deliberately includes those conversations to allude the theme of the story. However, I wondered why Poe used a word “Cask” in the title while I read this story. Amontillado is the most significant device in the story as a trick that lures Fortunato away to the catacomb, but the cask is not an important element. This curiosity was solved after I finished reading. I predict the cask symbolizes Fortunato’s death, because Fortunato, who