Montresor is easily one of the most complex characters in any short story though on the surface his role in “The Cask of Amontillado” is relatively simple. Montresor commits a murder; the perfect murder. He creates a murder that leaves no evidence, is never discovered, and for which he suffers no retribution. The questions the story poses center not around how he did it or what he did but why he needed to have revenge and if indeed he was able to take his revenge without feeling guilty.
White (1989) has made the argument that Montresor was acting on behalf of his family in the tradition of the feudal lords of France and Italy. If his analysis is correct then one can assume that Montresor’s actions are similar to the actions of a soldier and that he would feel no more compunction for the murder than would a loyal soldier engaged in a just and valid war with a feared and dangerous enemy. Indeed Montresor describes Fortunato as a man “to be respected and even feared.” Is Montresor then performing only his duty, or is there a more sinister side to his actions?
Stepp (1976) offered the insight that Montresor addresses a person, the reader, “who so well know[s] the nature of [his] soul.” Stepp further concludes that by so doing Poe suggests that Montresor or his nature resides within each person who reads the story, otherwise how could anyone understand the nature of his soul. The implication is clearly that any person could, provided the correct provocation, perform an act as heinous as that which Montresor does. Although such a judgment upon humankind may appear extreme, it does offer a degree of insight into the personality of Montresor.
If we begin to look at Montresor not as a lunatic completely disparate from humankind then understanding his personality and motives becomes somewhat easier though certainly not possible with certainty. He is a jealous man. To Fortunato he says, “You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy as once I was.” Although Montresor may, and probably does have additional motives, envy is certainly among them. Envy which is common to many.
Kishel (1982) has argued that Montresor is a sort of sadist. He mocks Fortunato with his own words, hoping that he will hear his enemy begging for mercy in the same way that his family and fortune have been reduced to the status of beggars. Support for this claim is easy to find in the coldly calculating manner in which Montresor lures his prey into the dungeons. The laborious preparations are obvious. The mockery unnecessary.
However Delaney (2005) has taken a different view of Montresor’s activities. He has argued that Montresor’s repetition of Fortunato’s words are not in mockery or sadism but rather in remorse and pity. Delany has suggested that Montresor is not a creature so distant from any of us that he can in fact act with “impunity” but that he does feel a degree of guilt for his actions, otherwise why would he bother telling this story fifty years after the events transpired? Clearly it has weighed heavily on his mind. White would respond that Montresor is recounting a victory, much like a hunter would recount the tale of his successful hunt. In the end it is for the reader to decide.
Was Montresor a sadist? A soldier? Ridden with guilt? Clear of conscience? These questions are the questions that make Montresor such an interesting character. In the end he captures so many elements of what it is to be human that the reader cannot help but identify on some level with him though she might not agree with his actions or have the ability to condone them.
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