Use Of Situational Irony In The Cask Of Amontillado
Most readers remember Edgar Allan Poe for his vivid use of situational irony. In the short story Cask of Amontillado, Poe employs this technique by introducing us to the narrator, Montresor. He explains that he told his servants that he would “not return until the morning” and had given them “explicit orders” to remain in the home in his absence. He makes this clear when he says, “I had told them that I should not return until the morning, and had given them explicit orders not to stir from the house.” For this reason, he knows that they would not be there and his house would be empty when he returned with Fortunato. One would expect servants to listen to their master’s order, especially when it is given so explicitly, but their behavior defies