Use of the Single Effect in A Cask of Amontillado Essay -- Cask Amonti

Use of the Single Effect in A cask of Amontillado  Edgar Allan Poes A barrelful of Amontillado is perhaps the most famous bilgewater of terror ever written. Montresor, the storys narrator, leads the reader through his revenge on Fortunato. Montresor entices Fortunato into the dark recesses of the family catacombs with the promise of a very fine wine. At the climax of the story, Montresor shackles Fortunato to a groin and seals him away forever behind brick and mortar. In all of Poes short stories he attempts to convey a certain unique or single feat. A Cask of Amontillado expresses its dark view of human intention by using elements of irony, foreshadowing, and metaphor. The first person point of view also lends itself to an exploration of the inner secrets of Montresor. The major guinea pig in the story is the deep hatred buried within the outwardly congenial Montresor. This makes it vital that the story be told with Montresors thoughts known to the reader. The tale simply would non work if it were told from Fortunatos point of view, or from a dramatic/objective angle. An omniscient view would function, but by knowing only Montresors thoughts the reader develops a assert in him, and this causes the storys theme to have a more personal effect on the reader. A Cask of Amontillado is replete with wry statements and situations. Fortunatos very name is ironic given his horrific fate. At the beginning of the story, when Montresor divulges his theories on proper revenge, he says, A wrong is unredressed when retibution overtakes its redresser. This is ironic (and a bit amusing) as Montresor is utterly consumed by his hatred of Fortunato. Then, during their descent into the catacombs, Montresor tries several times to con... ...ontresors sociable facade, then the catacombs below symbolize the hate within him. Poe gives explicit descriptions fo the foul caverns. They are insufferably go bad . . . encrusted with nitre. The founess of the air nearly extinguis hes their torches. Poe describes the white web-work which gleams from these cavern walls. Clearly Poes desired efect is to expose the evil that consumes from within. Each of the literary devices used in A Cask of Amontillado serves to reinforce Poes single effect. As Poe himself says in The Importance of the Single Effect in a Prose Tale, an author invents such incidents--he then combines such events as whitethorn best aid him in establishing this preconceived effect. The use of the first person perspective along with some irony, foreshadowing, and metaphor aid the delivery of Poes single effect in A Cask of Amontillado.