Literary Devices In The Cask Of Amontillado And The Story Of An Hour Essay Samples

There is never an opportune moment for death. Death occurs when people least expect it. Edgar Allen Poe in his “The Cask of Amontillado” and Kate Chopin in her “The Story of an Hour” talk about how death comes at inopportune moments - when it is least expected. Death is the central theme in both of these works, with the protagonists wishing for someone else’s death. The results however are completely different. Even though the protagonists wish for the other person to die, they really do not have a strong reason for them to die. Montresor talks of an alleged insult but the nature of it is not known. Louise Mallard wished her husband’s death only so she could live freely and independently. In both the stories, death is treated in a cavalier manner and comes at an inopportune moment. Poe and Chopin use dramatic irony and foreshadowing in their short stories to let the reader know what is in store at the end.
Dramatic Irony and foreshadowing are the literary devices used by the authors in the short stories. In “the Cask of Amontillado”, Fortunato till the end thinks that he is going to taste the wine when the audience clearly know from the beginning that Montresor wishes to kill him for having been insulted. Montresor says,“ It must be understood that neither by word nor deed had I given Fortunato cause to doubt my good will. I continued, as was my in to smile in his face, and he did not perceive that my to smile now was at the thought of his immolation (Poe 1).” Fortunato has no inkling of his imminent death while the audience from the very beginning are privy to the thoughts of Montresor. The dramatic irony in “The Story of an Hour” lies in the death of Louise Mallard. When Louise dies at the end of the story, the doctor’s diagnosis is “heart disease-of the joy that kills (Chopin 2).” The audience knows throughout the story that Louise does not die of joy. Rather she dies of shock over the news that her husband is still alive. There are also instances of foreshadowing in the short stories. In Poe’s story the word cask closely resembles casket. Just as the alcohol is stored in a container, fortunato is going to be buried in the crypt. Montresor also takes Fortunato through the crypt filled with the bones of his ancestors further foreshadowing imminent death. Louise has long thought of her husband’s death and when it eventually happens, she is happy but she also has another feeling that she can little describe. She decides its happiness at his death but it proves to be a foreshadowing of her own death. Although death is a predominant theme in both the stories, the protagonists do not really have any solid reason to wish for the death of the other person.
Both Montresor and Louise have selfish and flimsy excuses for wishing the other person’s death. Montresor wants to kill Fortunato because he has been insulted by him. The audience are however not told what is the nature of the insult and if it is serious enough to kill for. The narrative is also in a matter of fact manner and not dramatic. In The case of Louise, she wants her husband dead because she feels oppressed in her marriage life. Her husband is not a badman and does not mistreat her but she still feels stifled in her marriage. His love for her and the way of getting things done doesn’t sit well with her. She wishes he’d be dead so she can live just for herself.
Even though the protagonists wish for the death of other people, the results are different in the two short stories.Montresor gets his wish but Louise dies in the story and her husband remains alive. Death also comes at an inopportune moment for the characters. Fortunato follows Montresor into the crypt believing that he is going to taste the wine. He does not know that he is going to dies. Death for him comes at a time when he least expects it. His thoughts for the nights are of a happy ending when he gets to taste the amontillado, but montresor has other plans for him. Even till the end he thinks Montresor is playing a joke on him. He never realizes he is being buried alive. In the case of Louise, it is when she thinks she is going to be free that she dies. She is so happy on hearing about her husband’s death and the life she can lead for herself. When the husband eventually turns up alive, it is too much for her to bear. She dies of shock.
Thus Poe and Chopin uses dramatic irony and foreshadowing to talk about the eventual death in the short stories. Their protagonists do not have a valid reason for wishing someone else death, The endings are however different in both the stories.