Montresor Perfect Crime

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Pages: 5
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Baylee Tims (Midland High School)
Mrs. Williams
Composition II
08 Feb. 2016
Pity within the Perfect Crime
In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor commits the perfect crime; he murders Fortunato, and leaves him to rot in the family catacombs without anyone even knowing that Fortunato is missing. Many readers struggle to understand why Montresor, the narrator of “The Cask of Amontillado,” is telling his story fifty years after committing murder. Some readers may believe that Montresor is finally telling his story to reveal that he is never caught; others may perhaps believe that Montresor is confessing to his crime because he is being eaten by guilt. Although both of the claims as to why Montresor waits so long to confess is still unknown, based …show more content…
Whatley states, “He has lived fifty years with Fortunato underneath him. Fortunato, like the pinned down serpent on Montresor’s coat of arms, delivers the last shot, perhaps the best in the common sense expression: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Montresor’s deathbed confession blesses Fortunato, revealing that some good comes out of the pain of evil and life can be a win/win situation,” (Whatley, 58). Montresor’s deathbed confession reveals that Montresor possesses a conscience because he is freeing himself from the death of Fortunato and even blesses him while lying on the deathbed. “Like Fortunato who pleads to be freed in his loneliest moment, so also Montresor in his last moment extends an act of simple impulse. He remembers Fortunato and says a restful goodbye to him,” (Whatley, 57). If Montresor is a sociopath, an antisocial person who lacks a conscience, he would not remember Fortunato and say a restful goodbye to him neither feel pity for his victim after he received his closure.
The reason behind Montresor’s late confession of the murder of Fortunato is still unknown. However, based on the story and other sources, it is inferred that Montresor receives closure from the murder, but begins to feel pity for his victim. Several years later, while lying on his deathbed, Montresor finally confesses to his murder, ultimately confessing that he got away with the perfect crime. Montresor is a sane human being and is not guilt-ridden by the crime because he does not have a change of heart once Fortunato is walled up in the catacombs, only pity for his “poor
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