Why do the servants stay on Montresor's property?
They stay on because they have a roof over their heads and get something to eat. (They probably also get plenty of wine to drink!) The servants do not "abscond" because Montresor tells them to stay at home; they do so because he tells them he will be gone all night.
Why is Montresor a rather pathetic figure?
Montresor is a rather pathetic figure because he is poor and lives all alone in a huge palazzo. He has no wife or children, although he might have had a family who died. Since he is a poor man, as he tells Fortunato when they are down in the catacombs,...
What does Montresor’s astute observation reveal about his character?
This astute observation reveals that Montresor is an expert on human nature and duplicity. Being of the same mind as his servants, Montresor is aware of their true intentions and anticipates that they will abandon their duties as soon as his back is turned. Montresor's plan works and no one is home when he returns to his palazzo with Fortunato.
Who is Montresor and where does he live?
Montresor own the palazzo in question and apparently lives alone there except for his servants. He deliberately chose the night of the Carnival for his plot.
How does Montresor ensure that they will be alone in the house?
Montresor makes sure that his servants will not be at home to hinder his plot by giving them explicit orders not to leave, and he makes sure that Fortunato will follow him into the wine cellar by playing on his pride and by urging him not to go.
Why did Montresor tell his servants not to leave the house?
Why does Montresor tell his servants that, even though he will not return until morning, they are not to leave the house? Deep down, he wants to be stopped. He thinks he may need their help. He knows this will make them leave.
Why were there no attendants in Montresors home?
Why were there no attendants at the narrator's home? Fortunato was coughing, and his health was too precious to risk. Why did Montresor say the two men should turn back from the vaults?
Why does Montresor get Fortunato drunk?
Why does Montresor make sure Fortunato drinks a lot of wine? Montresor makes Fortunato drink a lot of wine so that he doesn't suspect anything to be going on, because his in drunk. It makes it easier for Montresor to get his revenge. Fortunato is not in the right state of mind and he doesn't know what is going on.
Why does Montresor warn Fortunato about the air in the vaults?
Why does Montresor repeatedly warn Fortunato about the bad air in the vaults? He wants to make sure that Fortunato does not suspect him.
Why does Montresor tell his servants even though he will not return until morning?
Why does Montresor tell his servants that, even though he will not return until morning, they are not to leave the house? He knows this will make them leave. Who is the narrator in "The Cask of Amontillado"?
How did Montresor ensure that no servants would be around to witness the crime?
How did Montresor ensure that no servants would be around to witness the crime? He would be gone all night and told them to stay there. Fortunato, who has been drinking and enjoying Carnival, is wearing a jesters hat.
How does Montresor lure Fortunato into his home?
How does Montresor use him to lure Fortunato to the narrator's vaults/catacombs? He lures him by asking him to help see if the pipe is actually amontillado. Why were there no attendants at Montresor's home? He said to go and celebrate and not come back until the morning, which is when he will return.
What is the motto of the Montresors?
During their walk, Montresor mentions his family coat of arms: a golden foot in a blue background crushing a snake whose fangs are embedded in the foot's heel, with the motto Nemo me impune lacessit ("No one provokes me with impunity").
What were Fortunato's last words?
1. “For the love of God, Montresor!” In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Fortunato addresses this plea—his last spoken words—to Montresor, the man who has entombed him alive.
What made Montresor's heart grew sick?
Why did Montresor's "heart grow sick"? The dampness of the catacombs. In the last portion of the story, Montresor often repeats Fortunato's words.
What does Montresor look like?
He is dressed as in all black with a coat, and so he kind of looks like a grim reaper. This directly relates to the story and it symbolizes kind of how Montresor acts with the events of the story because in the end he gives Fortunato a painful death.