Theme Of Irony In The Cask Of Amontillado

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"THE thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge." (Poe 179). This opening line also opens us up to the narrator's purpose in the story. It also points out that the only reason the narrator wants revenge is due to insult and not injuries leading us to believe that the narrator cared more for his pride than any injury he has endured. Revenge is something that can be moments after you decide you want revenge to planning it for months in advance, it can range from just being annoying to being violent. In “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe Revenge shows a driving force that pushes the Narrator to carry out his revenge. Through the extensive irony, symbolism, and foreshadowing…show more content…
One instance of verbal irony can be pulled from both the protagonist and the antagonist's name. Fortunato's name in Italian meaning lucky or fortunate, and compared to Montresor he is. Especially when Montresor mentions that "You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as once I was." (Poe 181) leading us to believe that his family used to be just as prominent as Fortunato’s some time ago. This could have given rise to insult from Fortunato. He could be considered lucky in the sense that near the beginning as his dear friend finds a case of rare wine and he has the chance to validate its authenticity. But as we know is not the case later on in the story. On the other hand, the Narrators name, Montresor’s name means my treasure and his prize possession, in this case it is the cask of Amontillado that he uses to achieve about his revenge on the antagonist. Another occasion where situational irony is shown is every time Fortunato begins to cough the Narrator tries to discourage him from continuing down into the catacombs because he’s “worried” for his health but ends up murdering him later on. Montresor does this to make sure Fortunato would never suspect him of wanting revenge. Poe never gives up too much information about why he would want revenge, thus forcing us to question the narrator’s
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