The story “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe represents two key themes: pride and revenge. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Man must develop for all human conflicts a method which rejects vengeance, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of this method is love." This story shows that Montresor, the narrator, rejects this thought and believes that revenge, even if deadly, is the best way to get back at Fortunato. In "The Cask of Amontillado" Poe uses Fortunato's pride and honor to find a way to get the revenge that Montresor desperately craves. Montresor believes in his mind that revenge is completely moral according to his personal ideas of pride, but he still understands that his actions of revenge would be wrong in the eyes of the public and finally Montresor realizes that revenge is only a temporary enjoyment followed for years. of remorse and guilt. In summary Edgar Alan Poe uses "The Cask of Amontillado" as a story to show pride as both a motivator and a way to get revenge. The story begins by telling us that Fortunato has hurt and insulted Montresor so he feels the need to take revenge. He then meets Fortunato, dressed in jester clothes for a carnival party. This makes Montresor more eager to call for revenge. Montresor feels that the carnival is giving Fortunato too much enjoyment from life and needs to make Fortunato feel like he is not as important as himself, which shows that both men are fighting for dominance and personal pride. Montresor then claims to have a barrel of "Amontillado" located in his catacomb under his house. Fortunato is a wine enthusiast and wants to go and taste it because he believes he has the best knowledge about wine, which shows his first...... middle of paper ...... the individual to have feelings of guilt and regrets. Montresor feels that his actions were justified at the beginning of the story and now that he has successfully carried out his revenge plan, he has gained nothing from his actions and has lived fifty years with a sense of guilt and remorse. This story can be applied to real life situations and the philosophy of revenge because when someone suffers and feels the need to take revenge, they feel good during the initial planning stages and actions, but when they finally end they are left with a feeling of regret. and sense of guilt. Works Cited King, Martin L., Jr. "Quotes on Revenge." Clever quote. Xplore and Web. April 16, 2014. http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/revenge.htmlPoe, Edgar A. “The Cask of Amontillado.” Introduction to literature. Boston: Pearson Custom Library, 2012. 206-12. Press.