Exploring point of view and theme in "The Cask of Amontillado" In the short story "The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allen Poe, I want to explore the use of point of view to help drive the plot and help us understand the theme of revenge in this story. Through the use of point of view we can see the development of the characters' thoughts and as a reader we feel part of the crime that is committed. At the beginning of the story Montresor goes over his thoughts on Fortunato, for example that Fortunato has caused him "a thousand wounds" (Poe, 183) and "insults" (183) but the reader is never given examples of what he has played the Fortunato at Montrésor. As the story progresses, the reader is able to see the real plans of the Montresors and uses the main characters' thoughts and interactions with Fortunato to slowly develop the plot and theme of revenge within the story. With Poe using the Montresor's point of view to tell the story, it helps us determine the Montresor's thought process. As the story progresses, we get the feeling that something is wrong and that there is something deeper and darker going on in the Montresor's mind. We see Montresor exploit Fortunato's weaknesses. Through the dialogue we see Fortunato's pride played against him. When Fortunato catches a cold we see Montresor ask him if he wants to return to the party, when he knew that Fortunato would never want to return because he wants to prove that he knows wine better than anyone else. This develops the plot because as they get deeper and deeper into the catacombs the story becomes darker and darker as the Montresors' plans are slowly revealed. As they travel through the catacombs we see the rising action of the story until the climax of the story when they arrive at the wine and the Montresor carries out his plan. Poe uses point of view to give readers the impression that he knows a secret and this helps us feel more immersed in the story. It makes the reader want to know what Montresor's plans are and holds the reader's attention. The point of view also makes the act seem justified because at the beginning of the story we see a glimpse of the theme but don't fully understand it. The reader is slowly shown the sinister thoughts of the Montresor but we are quite sure why he is taking revenge on the Fortunato. We know that Fortunato did something at Montresor but we are never given an example. This leaves the reader waiting to find out what it is but it is never revealed. Due to the lack of information we are led to believe that whatever Fortunato did was worth Montresor's punishment by leaving him to die in the catacombs. Additionally, Fortunato's fate is believable due to the time period they are in. At that time they had to take justice into their own hands, so we are led to believe that Fortunato did something that was worth the revenge that the Montresors had planned. Revenge is a dark theme in general, but Poe seems to add even more darkness to the story by using the point of view of the murder and allows us to see the thought process as he is committing this heinous act.