Download - The Cask of Amontillado
![Page 1: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
THE CASK OF AMONTILLADO
By Edgar Allan Poe
![Page 2: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
Why should we read it?
First of all, you’ll understand this meme once you’ve read it:
Secondly, the story deals with universal themes like vengeance and conscience, trust and betrayal, human folly (foolishness).
Finally, Poe is a master of suspense. Notice how he establishes mood and plays with ironic and symbolic elements in the story.
![Page 3: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
Before we begin reading, let’s get a little
background information to aid our
comprehension. Let’s start with the title. What is a cask of amontillado
anyway?
![Page 4: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
A cask is a large wooden barrel used to store liquids, typically alcoholic ones.
![Page 5: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
Do not confuse it with a casket. A casket is used to store people, typically dead ones. (Read Edgar Allan Poe’s “A Premature Burial” to catch the humor of that line).
While you should never confuse these two containers, do notice the shared root word “cask.” Edgar Allan Poe was a master of horror and language. The word similarity was surely not lost upon him.
![Page 6: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
Okay, but what is Amontillado?
A variety of sherry (fortified wine). It is named for the Montilla region in Spain.
More wine terms from the story:
Medoc – a type of French wine
Pipe – a large cask that holds 126 gallons.
Flagon - a large usually metal or pottery vessel (as for wine) with handle and spout and often a lid.
![Page 7: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
More vocabulary and background information.
![Page 8: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
Sconce and flambeaux – Flambeaux is a fancy way of saying torch. The sconce
refers to the wall attachment that holds the torch.
![Page 9: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
Catacombs – a subterranean (underground) cemetery of galleries with recesses for tombs —usually used in plural.
There are different styles of catacombs. Some can look like this one. Notice there are recesses for the bodies.
![Page 10: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
But some can look like this…
Bones and skulls actually form the walls.
![Page 11: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
Roquelaure – a cloak reaching to the knees
![Page 12: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
Motley - the multi-colored dress of a jester
![Page 13: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
Niter, a.k.a. saltpeter, causes respiratory tract irritation if inhaled.
Saltpeter, the common name for potassium nitrate, a white, crystalline solid composed of potassium, nitrogen, and oxygen. It is also called niter. Saltpeter commonly occurs as a crust on the soil and on the surface of rocks in dry climates and in the soil of limestone caves. Its name is derived from the Latin sal petrae, salt of the rock. Naturally occurring saltpeter is found in very limited quantities.
![Page 14: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
The story’s setting: Italy during Carnival
![Page 15: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/15.jpg)
![Page 16: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/16.jpg)
![Page 17: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/17.jpg)
Montresor’s coat of arms:
Nobody provokes me with impunity.
In other words, nobody gets away with insulting/harming me without punishment/revenge.
Does the foot or the snake represent Montresor?
Is the snake biting the foot because it has been stepped on or is the foot crushing the snake because it has been bitten?
![Page 18: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/18.jpg)
Irony found in names:
Fortunato means “fortunate one” or “lucky one” in Italian.
The type of Medoc they are drinking? It is called De Grave.
![Page 19: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/19.jpg)
Dramatic Irony - The audience or reader knows more than the character. Consequently, we may ascribe a different meaning to the character’s words than what he intended.
In “The Cask of Amontillado,” do we know something that Fortunato does not? Are there times where Fortunato says something or Montresor says something and we take it very differently than how Fortunato takes it?
![Page 20: The Cask of Amontillado](https://reader035.vdocuments.site/reader035/viewer/2022070400/56813550550346895d9caec1/html5/thumbnails/20.jpg)
Pay attention to the plot and the setting. Do you notice any allusions (references) or parallels to Hell and Satan? Can you find any symbolism or allegory (a tale with a literal and symbolic meaning)?