Englishthe Betrayal of Fortunato

Dalton Booker

Dr. Dubuisson

English 1102

23 October 2014

The Betrayal of Fortunato

        In “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe, the relationship between two characters, Fortunato and Montresor, and Fortunato's eventual death at the hands of the man he believes to be his friend are central. Both are powerful men of society in what seems to be Renaissance Italy, yet Montresor believes that Fortunato has committed a “thousand injuries” (Poe 1) upon him, as well as having “ventured upon insult” (Poe 1), which is what drives Montresor to take his horrific vengeance. And what a horrific vengeance it is. Montresor waits and waits, convincing Fortunato that he is his friend before luring him into the catacombs beneath Montresor's estate and the rest of the city that Montresor uses as a wine cellar before chaining and bricking Fortunato up in an alcove, deep within the catacombs where nobody will ever be able to find him, and leaving him do die in several possible and horrific ways. “The Cask of Amontillado” is an incredibly effective horror story, focused on the fear of betrayal by one you trust.

        At the beginning of the story, Montresor is speaking to the reader, describing the reasons he cruelly murdered Forunato, though the specifics of his deeds are not revealed until the end of the story. Instead, he simply monologues about the idea of revenge, that “I must not only punish but punish with impunity. A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself felt as such to him who has done the wrong.” (Poe 1). This reveals, from the start, just how horrible Montresor is. He already is consumed by the idea of vengeance, and what's more, he proves himself a hypocrite, as it is clear that he himself is overtaken by the idea of retribution.

        The story then proceeds into a flashback as Montresor recounts how he committed his crime. He details Fortunato's weakness for wine, saying “He prided himself on his connoisseurship in wine” (Poe ?). Montresor takes advantage of this lust for good wine, and tells Fortunato during Carnival that he has come into possession of a pipe, or large cask, of Amontillado, a fine wine. He takes advantage of Fortunato's pride, telling the other man about the wine, then claiming that a third party, someone named Luchesi, would be better suited to verifying the authenticity of the wine, which Montresor claims to suspect may be counterfeit due to the quantity. Fortunato, in his pride, insists that, despite a cold, is the best man for the job and plays right into Montresor's hands, insisting that he be the one to test it, despite Montresor's feigned complaints.

        And so the pair descends into the catacombs beneath Montresor's estate. Here, Montresor takes a sick pleasure in offering Fortunato several chances to return to the surface. First, Forunato is taken by a severe cough, due to a combination of his cold and the damp conditions in the catacombs, given to the formation of niter. Montresor points this out, further reinforcing the setting on the Renaissance, as it was used as a cough treatment in those times. However, he instead gives Fortunato more wine, further intoxicating him under the guise of giving Fortunato a drink to keep him going. The pair continues deeper into the catacombs, further sampling Montresor's stocks of wine, until eventually Fortunato makes a “grotesque gesture” (Poe 4) According to Fortunato, this is a masonic gesture, and because Montresor does not recognize it, he is “Not of the brotherhood.” (Poe 4) Montresor responds to this by producing a trowel from his cloak, jokingly using this to proclaim that he as well is a mason, though of a more literal variety.

        Finally, Montresor and Fortunato reach where the Amontillado allegedly is. It is in a recess, walls lined in bones. Fortunato, spurred on by the promise of fine wine, and trusting Montresor, who he believes to be his friend, enters the alcove. However, there is naught there but chains, and Montresor takes advantage of this, likely having arranged this previously, as well as Fortunato's drunken state, to chain the poor man to the wall. Fortunato is too drunk, and shocked by this turn of events, to try to resist, and is eventually unable to prevent Montresor's efforts. Montresor takes advantage of this to begin bricking up the alcove, trapping Fortunato and leaving him to die.