The Cask of Amontillado Analysis

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In addition, throughout the short story, there are two uses of symbolism that truly stand out. The first being The Montresor family coat of arms, which pictured upon it is “A huge human foot d’or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel.” (Poe 6). Which is symbolic of Montresor and Fortunato’s relationship; being that Fortunato is the serpent in the grass who through insult bit Montresor, and now Montresor’s large foot of gold is to crush him as a result. Moreover, the motto on the coat of arms is “Nemo me impune lacessit” which means no one attacks me with impunity ("Merriam-Webster"), which provides a reason as to why Montresor feels the need to punish Fortunato with impunity for his insult, which Montresor views as an attack. The second symbolism used in the short story is the last and eleventh tier of stone which Montresor built. Throughout the story, we become aware that Montresor falsely states to be a mason as in a member of the brotherhood, but in the end, when he buries Fortunato alive behind the work of his stonework he literally is a mason, as in a worker in stone. The eleventh tier of stone he built is symbolic towards the brotherhood of Freemasonry, as the eleventh degree of Freemasonry “dwells on good citizenship, and that Evil doings should be punished.” (Degrees of the Masonic Rite (PHA)). Thus, the evil doing of Fortunato’s insults towards the Montresor family were punished.

In Summation, Fortunato wounded Montresor through an insult, and although we are not made aware of what exactly the insult was, we know Montresor is out to seek revenge. Assisted by Fortunato’s weak points which made him vulnerable to what was to come, all Montresor had to do was keep Fortunato inebriated and enticed to reach the Amontillado in order to satisfy his plan.

Works Cited

Biography.com Editors. "Edgar Allan Poe." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, 27 Oct. 2016. Web. 31 Jan. 2017. .

"Degrees of the Masonic Rite (PHA)." United Supreme Council NJ, USA, Inc. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2017. .

"Nemo me impune lacessit." Merriam-Webster. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2017. .

Poe, Edgar Allan. The Cask of Amontillado., 1846. Elegant Ebooks. Web. .

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