Harsimran Singh. Dr. Sinclair. English 1102. Essay 3. 18

Harsimran Singh Dr. Sinclair English 1102 Essay 3 18 April 2017 Mind Games In â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado†, Edgar Allan Poe creates a diabolical psychopath who is fueled by the idea of vengeance. Poe analyzes the complexities of Montresor s behavior and probes into the inner workings of his dark, twisted mind. Akin to a game of chess, Montresor strategically executes his devious plan to extract revenge from Fortunato. The pieces at Montresor s disposal to successfully achieve revenge are his enormous pride and keen intelligence to psychologically manipulate Fortunato. The first piece of the chessboard is Montresor s pride. Even though Montresor is deeply engulfed by the thought of taking revenge from Fortunato, there is no clear motive†¦show more content†¦This stark contrast in their attire reveals who is control of the game. Fortunato can be seen as being easily manipulated, in which he later falls into Montresor’s trap. In addition, Montresor secretly plans Fortunato’s demise during the carnival setting. One would not expect a horrendous murder to planned at a joyous festival. Montresor uses his disguise so that no one would notice that he was with Fortunato at that night. Finally, the pieces of the chessboard fit together. With catalysts such Montresor s pride as his motivation for revenge and his shrewd scheme to corner Fortunato, he enacts his final tactic into play. The finishing blow that Montresor uses is his knowledge of reverse psychology. He psychologically manipulates Fortunato by persuading him to do the opposite of what he would normally do. There are two occasions in the narrative where Montresor uses reverse psychology. The first occurrence is his encounter with Fortunato. Montresor is well aware of the fact that Fortunato loves wine. Wine is his greatest passion. In this case, however, it will be his undoing, since Fortunato is already inebriated. His senses, then, are not as sharp than they might be under regular circumstances. In this brief meeting, Montresor attacks Fortunato’s greatest pride, which is his love for wine. Ultimately, Fortunato’s pride and arrogance leads him to his downfall. Montresor lies to