The Cask of Amontillado
             The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge. So begins The Cask of Amontillado, Poe's horrifying tale of pride and retribution. Told by Monstresor, this story tells of how he lured his friend Fortunato into literally walking into his own grave. From the opening sentence the reader can perceive that Monstresor is proud and vengeful, and would do anything to save face. As the story progresses, Monstresor unravels the chilling tale of how he got his revenge, though vengence had been taken when no real offense had been given. In the midst of a great carnival Monstresor approaches Fortunato, claiming he has purchased a cask of Amontillado. He goes on to say that he doubted the authenticity of the wine, and was on his way to Luchresi's to ask him to taste it. Fortunato prided himself on his connoisseurship of wine. This pride eventually leads to his downfall, for he criticized Luchresis, saying he cannot tell Amon!
             tillado from Sherry. Thus Fortunato accompanies Monstresor to the latters family vault, where the nonexistent Amontillado was being stored. The vault, deep underneath the Monstresor estate, is ¡°insufferably damp¡± and ¡°encrusted with nitre.¡± The way Poe describes these catacombs further accentuates the morbidness of the situation. ¡°We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on, and descending again, arriving at a deep crypt, in which the foulness of the air caused our flambeaux rather to glow than flame.¡± The ominous tone of this story is characteristic of the gothic style of writing. Poe uses a good deal of symbolism in this story. For example, the Monstresor family coat of arms is ¡°a huge human foot d¡¯or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel.¡± The arms symbolize Monstresor and Fortunato, with the former being ...