The Fallibility of Knowledge in Poe's 'The Cask of Amontillado'
The level and fallibility of knowledge in Edgar Allan Poe's The Cask
of Amontillado (1846) parallels the social class of the story's
characters.
Those with the least knowledge of what will happen are found at the bottom of the class hierarchy; they are Montresor's servants (“attendants”) whose absence from his "palazzo" has been "insure[d]" by his instructions that they are "not to stir from the home" while he is gone; Montresor knows they will do the opposite the minute he leaves the house. The servants behaviour implies they take their employer at his word, a fallibility that allows them to be easily manipulated and kept completely unaware of the story's main event.
The next level of knowledge is demonstrated by Fortunato, a bourgeoisie character. He is depicted as ". . . a man to be respected and even feared." but also as a fool (he is dressed in "motley") and a "quack"; a man who pretends to special knowledge both as a connoisseur of wines and as a Mason (a semi-secret organization of professionals, craftsmen and tradesmen that uses the symbols of builders and architects as fraternal signs). His lack of special knowledge is demonstrated by his claim that "Luchesi cannot tell Amontillado from Sherry." seemingly unaware that Amontillado is, in fact, a sherry; albeit a very expensive one. His lack of real knoweldge is evident when he calls Montresor, who was "wont [,] to smile in his face", his "friend" and when he happily mistakes Montresor as a fellow Mason, asking him for a "sign" (Masons are known for their secret handshakes and signals). Instead of displaying a symbolic signal Montresor pulls out a real symbol, a "trowel" (a bricklayer's tool), demonstrating his knowledge of Masonic beliefs, and Fortunato's future. While the servants fallibility keeps them in the dark as to important events, Fortunato's fallibility will cost him his life.
The character with the highest level of knowledge is Montresor, the narrator. He is the aristocrat with the family motto, crest, "attendants", and "palazzo" who easily manipulates the lower servant class and has the power of life and death over Fortunato, representative of the middle-class. While he appears omniscient in the story there is a clue that Montresor, like Fortunato, has a "weakness"; his faith in his own knowledge. His fallibility in this area is demonstrated when he refers to "Amontillado" as an "Italian vintage". The wine is actually made in Cadiz, Spain; a city whose citizens are prone to revolution (being embroiled in one as Poe penned his story), and a subtle reminder that the days of the aristocracy are numbered; perhaps, "[f]or the half of a century. . .".
Those with the least knowledge of what will happen are found at the bottom of the class hierarchy; they are Montresor's servants (“attendants”) whose absence from his "palazzo" has been "insure[d]" by his instructions that they are "not to stir from the home" while he is gone; Montresor knows they will do the opposite the minute he leaves the house. The servants behaviour implies they take their employer at his word, a fallibility that allows them to be easily manipulated and kept completely unaware of the story's main event.
The next level of knowledge is demonstrated by Fortunato, a bourgeoisie character. He is depicted as ". . . a man to be respected and even feared." but also as a fool (he is dressed in "motley") and a "quack"; a man who pretends to special knowledge both as a connoisseur of wines and as a Mason (a semi-secret organization of professionals, craftsmen and tradesmen that uses the symbols of builders and architects as fraternal signs). His lack of special knowledge is demonstrated by his claim that "Luchesi cannot tell Amontillado from Sherry." seemingly unaware that Amontillado is, in fact, a sherry; albeit a very expensive one. His lack of real knoweldge is evident when he calls Montresor, who was "wont [,] to smile in his face", his "friend" and when he happily mistakes Montresor as a fellow Mason, asking him for a "sign" (Masons are known for their secret handshakes and signals). Instead of displaying a symbolic signal Montresor pulls out a real symbol, a "trowel" (a bricklayer's tool), demonstrating his knowledge of Masonic beliefs, and Fortunato's future. While the servants fallibility keeps them in the dark as to important events, Fortunato's fallibility will cost him his life.
The character with the highest level of knowledge is Montresor, the narrator. He is the aristocrat with the family motto, crest, "attendants", and "palazzo" who easily manipulates the lower servant class and has the power of life and death over Fortunato, representative of the middle-class. While he appears omniscient in the story there is a clue that Montresor, like Fortunato, has a "weakness"; his faith in his own knowledge. His fallibility in this area is demonstrated when he refers to "Amontillado" as an "Italian vintage". The wine is actually made in Cadiz, Spain; a city whose citizens are prone to revolution (being embroiled in one as Poe penned his story), and a subtle reminder that the days of the aristocracy are numbered; perhaps, "[f]or the half of a century. . .".