illustration of Fortunato standing in motley behind a mostly completed brick wall with a skull superimposed on the wall where his face should be

The Cask of Amontillado

by Edgar Allan Poe

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What mental condition does Montresor suffer from in "The Cask of Amontillado"?

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Montresor in "The Cask of Amontillado" likely suffers from sociopathy and paranoia. His lack of emotional response, sadistic behavior, and perception of Fortunato's "injuries" as grave threats suggest a delusional mindset. He methodically carries out the murder with apparent calmness and even shows a hint of remorse, indicating a complex psychological state. However, as an unreliable narrator, it's challenging to diagnose him definitively without objective evidence.

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Montresor appears to be a sociopath. In this he differs, perhaps, from other criminal personalities in the Poe canon. We don't see emotionalism or raging guilt in his character, as we do in the narrator of "The Black Cat," or "William Wilson." Nor is the violence of the story explainable in terms the reader can even partially sympathize with (as it is, for instance, in "Hop Frog," where Hop Frog takes revenge for the abuse inflicted upon him and upon the young girl Tripetta). The "thousand injuries" Fortunato has inflicted upon Montresor are not shown to us. And throughout the narrative, Montresor's mood is stable—almost robotic. At one point, when Fortunato is seized by a coughing fit, Montresor describes him as "my poor friend," as if Fortunato is indeed a friend, even though Montresor intends to kill him.

The method of killing is actually one of...

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the more sadistic instances of murder in Poe's written works. Even the old man in "The Tell-tale Heart" is killed instantly, rather than a slow death. Montresor seems unaware of his own cruelty, calmly building the wall that will seal his victim in a tomb.

The one peculiarity that apparently violates the psychotic, unemotional manner of Montresor is when Fortunato finally screams, "For the love of God, Montresor!" Montresor answers, "Yes, for the love of God!" In this reply, we see the strangest aspect of Montresor's mindset; up to this point he has carried out the murder with a manner akin to that of a scientific experiment. With this outburst, Montresor could be mocking his victim's obvious desperation. However, it is also possible that Montresor believes that God has vindicated him.

In addition to exhibiting sociopathic behavior, Montresor is clearly paranoid. One senses that the "injuries" Fortunato has inflicted upon him are nothing more than perceived slights, embedded in the delusional way in which Montresor views the world. He may even think he's done the rest of mankind a service in eliminating Fortunato. He ends the story by saying "rest in peace," which indicates that, although Fortunato was his enemy, Montresor somehow believes there was no ill will in the action he carried out a half-century before. This, perhaps, is the ultimate delusion his psychosis has brought upon him.

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Because Montresor is a textbook example of an unreliable narrator, I think it's difficult to say that we have any objective evidence or indication of the true state of his mind. While we might establish some of his emotions and perhaps understand his personality through his actions and emotional state, it probably goes too far to say that Montresor suffers from some generalized problem, such as a mental disorder, particularly without knowing the reasons for which he decided to murder Fortunato; after all, courts will consider crimes of passion under different terms than they would a crime between strangers.

It's pretty clear that Montresor is suffering from stress and the perception that he is being threatened in some way by Fortunato's insults. Without knowing what they are, we can't share in his judgment; we can only observe that Montresor seems to treat them as if they were a direct danger to his livelihood. 

On the other hand, we can probably imply that Montresor is exhibiting some of the symptoms that correspond to various social and psychological disorders, such as sadism, a victimhood complex, or delusions. It is particularly concerning that he seems to draw enjoyment from seeing Fortunato suffer, however, he also displays some remorse for his actions, suggesting he is not without a conscience. 

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