Reading Cluster #1 Essay Example For Students

Reading Cluster #1 Essay Tanner Cain 5th Period / Stiner Cluster #1 The Cask of Amontillado: Analyzing Short Stories and Novels: _plot: 1) In The Cask of Amontillado, the exposition is the part where Montresor is relating to the incidents from 50 years ago when he got his revenge against Fortunato. The rising action occurs whenever Montresor lures Fortunato away from the carnival and tricks him to go into the catacombs. The climax occurs whenever Montresor mentions Luchesi, and Fortunato calls him an ignoramus. Then, Montresor chains Fortunato up in the darkest depths of the catacombs. The falling action occurs whenever Montresor is blocking Fortunato in the wall. The resolution occurs when Montresor finishes by saying that he murdered Fortunato and his body has remained within the bricked room for the past 50 years. 2) The complication in The Cask of Amontillado occurs whenever Montresor tries to lure Fortunato into the catacombs, but he does this by exciting Fortunato about the rare wine; the Amontillado. This builds suspense because Poe wants to audience to guess whether or not Fortunato will take the bait hidden in the discussion of the Amontillado, and; of course, he does. The complication puts Montresors plan into action. By luring Fortunato into the catacombs, he has him right where he wants him. The complications are very emotional and intellectual, because Montresors plan was very intricate and required quite some planning and charisma to lure Fortunato away from the carnival and into the catacombs. However, the emotional aspect yields to the state in whic h he committed these actions. It was out of an angered state of mind, because Montresor wanted revenge because of the way Fortunato wronged him. The main conflict is more between sharply differentiated good nd evil, because even though the narrator (Montresor) commits a heinous murder, he is still considered the good guy because he is fighting against the wrong-doings committed by Fortunato, who in this case is considered the bad guy, even though Fortunato had no idea what was going on. It is also kind of hard to argue that point being Fortunato was raging drunk. 1) Montresor is the protagonist. Fortunato is the antagonist. 2) Montresor is an intelligent, proud, and relentless person obsessed with getting revenge in a cruel and unusual way. Fortunato is insensitive, proud, and greedy drunk that trusts too much in thers, which leads to his demise. These characters are complex. We see complexity in Montresor by his ability to plan his revenge and use trickery to lure Fortunato into his trap. Fortunatos complexity is found in his ability to insult others; in this case, Montresor; and by his foolish trust in others which ends up killing him. Both, Montresor and Fortunato would be considered examples of foil. 3) The characters are shown as foil in The Cask of Amontillado, because by the end of the story they seem to change places. At the beginning, Fortunato is free and Montresor is trapped by revenge. Then, Montresor takes revenge by trapping Fortunato inside the catacombs, which gives him a sense of freedom. However, by the end of the story, Montresor realizes that what he did what horrific and he finds himself trapped again, but this time it is by guilt. Literary Devices: 1) Some symbols in The Cask of Amontillado include Fortunatos name which means the fortunate one in Italian. This is ironic device because in the end we see that Fortunato meets his demise and is not quite as fortunate as him name suggests. Another symbol is Fortunatos Jester outfit. The Jester was a fool that ings during the middle ages would exploit for entertainment. His outfit suggests that he is a fool, and we see that he is because he foolishly falls into Montresors trap. Another symbol is the coat of arms that represents Montresors family. The motto clearly states that No one attacks me without punishment. This symbolizes the revenge Montresor is going to take out on Fortunato. 2) Imagery is a big part of The Cask of Amontillado. For example, Poe uses the catacombs as a device of foreshadowing. The catacombs are dark damp, they contain walls lined with skeletons, and it is very claustrophobic. It isa crypt. This implies that the cellar is place of death which hints at the audience that something horrible is about to occur. Symbolism is also a big part of the story. For example, the coat of arms that represents Montresors family means that No one attacks me with impunity. This is a symbol of Montresors frame of mind. are several examples shown throughout the story. First, Fortunatos name is Italian for the fortunate one. However, his demise is not so fortunate as his name suggests. Second, Fortunatos costume is that of a court Jester. His festive carnival costume contrasts with his ghastly demise that awaits him. Finally, in the end Montresor finds himself trapped in this state of guilt because of the revenge he took out on Fortunato. This ironic because revenge was trapping Montresor and he believed murdering Fortunato would set him free. However, he finds himself trapped yet again by guilt after the fact. 4) Poes style of writing includes irony and pun. Both of these are extremely prevalent in The Cask of Amontillado. Irony contributes to the overall spine tingling power of the story, as well as the true meaning of the symbols used to convey the true meaning behind Poes words. Theme: ) Revenge does not free emotions, it only traps them. 2) Montresor is the person who wants revenge. He believes that if he takes his revenge out on the person who hurt him, then his spirit will be free again. Fortunato is the person Montresor is going to take his revenge out on. He is a foolish drunk who believes nothing he says can hurt anybody. Therefore, he is very free-spirited. Montresor robs Fortunato of his free spirit by murdering him, because he believes that revenge will set his spirit free. However, he finds himself to stay trapped in guilt, Just as Fortunato is trapped in the catacombs. The structure of Montresors plan contributes to the effort he is willing to make to set himself free from pain. However, Montresor goes through all this work to rob Fortunato of his freedom only to find his spirit has still not been freed. 4) The setting of the catacombs conveys the evil and darkness of Montresors plan. This shows the overall heartlessness Montresor has in order to get what wants, and that is revenge. 5) Irony contributes to this theme presenting the question of whether or not Montresor is really free at the end, despite his belief that revenge will set hime free. Foalktales EssayIn the Bible, the serpent is one of the main identities of the devil. It Just so happens that the mysterious traveler in the woods carries a staff with a serpent carved into it. This informs the reader of the antagonists true identity the devil. 3) Irony is found throughout the story. Some examples, include Faiths name. The word faith is defined as a strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof. This is very ironic because when Goodman Brown is in the woods he sees faith amongst the devils followers. Another example of irony is found in Goodman Brown and the fact that he has no problem with talking to the devil in the woods, but he looks down on the townspeople when they speak to him also. Finally, at the end of the story, Goodman Brown begins to look at people differently in an attempt to keep imself spiritually full, but he actually ends up dying a spiritually deficient man. 4) Hawthorne has a tendency to write sentences that contain an over abundance of information. This creates strands of long, Jumbled sentences that you almost have to read twice if you do not pay attention the first time through. Hawthorne uses this to demand attentive reading. 1) People are not always who they say they are. 2) Goodman Brown is a spiritual man who is Just starting his spiritual walk and believes the people in his town, who are spiritually strong, will help him on his walk. He is tempted by the devil in his Journey in the woods and falls away is spirituality. He also sees his fellow townspeople in the woods as well. leads him to believe that these people are hypocrites, because they plan attend the devil/witch service. Another person he sees is his wife, Faith. At beginning of the story she wears pink ribbons to represent her purity, but from This to the when Brown sees her in the forest he sees that she has turned evil and her pink ribbons then fall from the sky. journey into the dark forest symbolizes him succumbing to temptation which causes his life to enter a downward spiral. He also begins to see people for who hey really are, but as he does this he becomes bitter towards them. This reveals to the reader that even though Goodman Brown finds that people are not as they always seem, he resembles his fellow townspeople as well. ) The setting of the work describes the inner darkness of Goodman Brown. Even though he seems like your typical Puritan of the time, he is troubled by past and seems to keep going back to his once faithless life. His past resembles the forest which is a dark place and that it is full of regret. 5) Allegory is present in the theme when speaking of the devil disguised as the mysterious traveler, the town, and the da rk forest. The town stands for good, while the dark forest stands for evil. The devil obviously stands for evil as well and adds to the overall evil that comes with the dark forest. Symbolism is used to describe the main characters and allows the reader to see their true character. For example, Hawthorne uses this to describe Brown a young man who leaves his world of innocence and realizes that evil is indeed very widespread and existent in his world. Imagery is important in bringing this devilish tale to life. Hawthorne creates an environment in which characters can roam freely and purposely, while keeping he historical backdrop of the Puritan landscape. For example, Hawthorne uses adjectives such as dreary, darkened, and gloomiest help provoke mental pictures of 17th century Puritan life. 1) The two settings (the forest town) represent good and evil. The town was a place where good, church-going people lived faithful and morally for God, while the forest was viewed as a place of evil since no structure existed there trees grew in all directions, animals ran wild, etc. ) so supposedly Satan existed in the wilderness and that is where they always went to do their rituals supposedly. ) The title mfoung Goodman Brown is the name of the main character. A goodman is also another name for a middle class Puritan man. Young Goodman Brown is a young but established man, he is neither at the top or bottom of society. The title tells us that this is going to be a story of newly- inducted, middle-class Puritan man. 3) Hawthorne creates a dark but serious mood by using vivid imagery to describe the evils that go within the forest and by using a devilish tone throughout the leads Goodman Brown through during his Journey in the dark forest. The described are meant to be sinister evil occurrences. events