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The Cask of Amontillado
            by Edgar Allan Poe




       Cultural Literacy
             and
 Background for Understanding
“…but when he ventured upon
   insult, I vowed revenge.”

“The Cask of Amontillado” is the
narrator’s account of his ability to
    carry out a chilling plot of
  revenge against his offender.
Precision in time, place, and
setting preclude the idea of risk
and allow the narrator both the
  retribution he seeks and the
     impunity he demands.
Carnival
Carnival

• Carnival is a secular holiday, but it evolved
  from the Christian observance known as
  Lent.

• Lent is a solemn forty-day period of fasting
  prior to Easter.
CARNIVAL
• Traditionally, the fasting during Lent
  involves abstaining from eating meat.
• Modern interpretations of fasting may
  involve abstaining from anything one
  enjoys.
Carn + Val
       FLESH (Meat) + FAREWELL

In anticipation of the solemnity of Lent, the
  celebration of Carnival evolved.
Participants engage in excessive and extreme
  behavior to bid farewell to meat-eating
  (and merriment).
What happens during Carnival?
• Carnival is a time of EXCESS and
  INDULGENCE.
• BINGEING upon food and alcohol is common.
Partying in the streets and
masquerading are enjoyed.
The combination of alcohol and
costumes creates an atmosphere
 where people tend to let down
       their inhibitions.
European Carnival traditions
survive in the United States in the
      form of Mardi Gras.
“The Cask of Amontillado” is set
during the “supreme madness” of
            Carnival.

In such a riotous atmosphere, it is
easy to see how a crime could go
            unnoticed.
Lifestyles of the Rich

    Circa 1700-1800
The wealthy class enjoyed
      indulgences such as
• Gemmary
Painting
Palazzos (mansions)


•
Fine Wine (vintages)
Vineyards, where the grapes for
producing wine are grown, create
 picturesque settings for owners’
             estates.
The narrator plans for his revenge
 to take place in the catacombs
       beneath his estate.

      What are catacombs?
Catacombs: Cities of the Dead
At a certain point in European
history, catacombs, underground
burial chambers, became a viable
    alternative to cemeteries.
Catacombs are characterized by
  extensive tunnels leading to
chambers or recesses where the
    dead repose for eternity.
The wealthy could opt for family
catacombs beneath their estates.
The narrator of “The Cask of
 Amontillado” carries out his
revenge within the catacombs
    beneath his palazzo.
The narrator is able to lure his
 victim into the catacombs with
 the promise of amontillado, a
        fine sherry wine.
(The l’s are pronounced like the
          l’s in tortilla.)
The “supreme madness” of
Carnival aside, why doesn’t the
 suggestion of a journey to the
 catacombs for a taste of wine
 seem odd or suspicious to the
            victim?
The Storage of Wine
For wines to maintain their best
quality, they need to be stored at
    fairly cool and constant
          temperatures.
During the time period in which
 the story is set, modern electric
 refrigeration was not available.
   To protect wine collections,
connoisseurs adopted the practice
of storing wines under the ground
where temperatures remain ideal
            year-round.
Basements, cellars, and even
  catacombs serve as excellent
storage facilities for the precious
            vintages.
Herein, where wine bottles
intermingle with the bones of the
 dead, the narrator carries out his
         plan for revenge.
Edgar Allan Poe
• Author, not the narrator,
  of the story.
• Developed characters
  whose sanity is
  questionable.
• Universally credited
  as a significant
  contributor to the
  development of the short
  story as a literary genre.
“The Cask of Amontillado”
  A legend holds that the inspiration for "The Cask of Amontillado" came from a
story Poe had heard at Castle Island in Massachusetts when he was a private there
 in 1827 (Bergen 106). According to this legend, Poe was told the story of a brawl
in which one lieutenant named Drane killed another officer, named Massie, after a
      disagreement at cards. Some versions of the legend hold that Drane was
   subsequently buried alive by friends of Massie, but this report appears to be an
 inaccuracy influenced by Poe's story, as Drane is known to have been alive years
      later. A report of a skeleton discovered on the island may be a confused
    remembering of Poe's major source, Joel Headley's "A Man Built in a Wall,"
 which recounts the author's seeing an immured skeleton in the wall of a church in
                                 Italy (Mabbott 1254).
Sources

Coil, Suzanne M. Mardi Gras (photos by Michael Osborne). New York: Macmillan, 1994.
France: A Culinary Journey. San Francisco: Collins, 1992.
Poe, Edgar A. “The Cask of Amontillado” Literature. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ
      1998.
“Underground Paris: The Catacombs.” www.triggur.org.

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The cask of amontillado

  • 1. The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe Cultural Literacy and Background for Understanding
  • 2. “…but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge.” “The Cask of Amontillado” is the narrator’s account of his ability to carry out a chilling plot of revenge against his offender.
  • 3. Precision in time, place, and setting preclude the idea of risk and allow the narrator both the retribution he seeks and the impunity he demands.
  • 5. Carnival • Carnival is a secular holiday, but it evolved from the Christian observance known as Lent. • Lent is a solemn forty-day period of fasting prior to Easter.
  • 6. CARNIVAL • Traditionally, the fasting during Lent involves abstaining from eating meat. • Modern interpretations of fasting may involve abstaining from anything one enjoys.
  • 7. Carn + Val FLESH (Meat) + FAREWELL In anticipation of the solemnity of Lent, the celebration of Carnival evolved. Participants engage in excessive and extreme behavior to bid farewell to meat-eating (and merriment).
  • 8.
  • 9. What happens during Carnival? • Carnival is a time of EXCESS and INDULGENCE. • BINGEING upon food and alcohol is common.
  • 10. Partying in the streets and masquerading are enjoyed.
  • 11.
  • 12. The combination of alcohol and costumes creates an atmosphere where people tend to let down their inhibitions.
  • 13.
  • 14. European Carnival traditions survive in the United States in the form of Mardi Gras.
  • 15. “The Cask of Amontillado” is set during the “supreme madness” of Carnival. In such a riotous atmosphere, it is easy to see how a crime could go unnoticed.
  • 16. Lifestyles of the Rich Circa 1700-1800
  • 17. The wealthy class enjoyed indulgences such as • Gemmary
  • 21. Vineyards, where the grapes for producing wine are grown, create picturesque settings for owners’ estates.
  • 22.
  • 23.
  • 24. The narrator plans for his revenge to take place in the catacombs beneath his estate. What are catacombs?
  • 26. At a certain point in European history, catacombs, underground burial chambers, became a viable alternative to cemeteries.
  • 27.
  • 28. Catacombs are characterized by extensive tunnels leading to chambers or recesses where the dead repose for eternity.
  • 29.
  • 30. The wealthy could opt for family catacombs beneath their estates.
  • 31. The narrator of “The Cask of Amontillado” carries out his revenge within the catacombs beneath his palazzo.
  • 32. The narrator is able to lure his victim into the catacombs with the promise of amontillado, a fine sherry wine. (The l’s are pronounced like the l’s in tortilla.)
  • 33. The “supreme madness” of Carnival aside, why doesn’t the suggestion of a journey to the catacombs for a taste of wine seem odd or suspicious to the victim?
  • 35. For wines to maintain their best quality, they need to be stored at fairly cool and constant temperatures.
  • 36.
  • 37. During the time period in which the story is set, modern electric refrigeration was not available. To protect wine collections, connoisseurs adopted the practice of storing wines under the ground where temperatures remain ideal year-round.
  • 38. Basements, cellars, and even catacombs serve as excellent storage facilities for the precious vintages.
  • 39.
  • 40. Herein, where wine bottles intermingle with the bones of the dead, the narrator carries out his plan for revenge.
  • 41.
  • 42.
  • 43. Edgar Allan Poe • Author, not the narrator, of the story. • Developed characters whose sanity is questionable. • Universally credited as a significant contributor to the development of the short story as a literary genre.
  • 44. “The Cask of Amontillado” A legend holds that the inspiration for "The Cask of Amontillado" came from a story Poe had heard at Castle Island in Massachusetts when he was a private there in 1827 (Bergen 106). According to this legend, Poe was told the story of a brawl in which one lieutenant named Drane killed another officer, named Massie, after a disagreement at cards. Some versions of the legend hold that Drane was subsequently buried alive by friends of Massie, but this report appears to be an inaccuracy influenced by Poe's story, as Drane is known to have been alive years later. A report of a skeleton discovered on the island may be a confused remembering of Poe's major source, Joel Headley's "A Man Built in a Wall," which recounts the author's seeing an immured skeleton in the wall of a church in Italy (Mabbott 1254).
  • 45. Sources Coil, Suzanne M. Mardi Gras (photos by Michael Osborne). New York: Macmillan, 1994. France: A Culinary Journey. San Francisco: Collins, 1992. Poe, Edgar A. “The Cask of Amontillado” Literature. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ 1998. “Underground Paris: The Catacombs.” www.triggur.org.