ComparingCask of Amontillado with The Rats in the walls

Compare the narrator in Poe's "Cask of Amontillado" with the narrator of "The Rats in the walls."

The style and mode of narration in any story determines how appealing a narrator becomes to his or her readers. Additionally, this has much to do with the size of readership that the narrator garners. It is worthwhile that a narrator chooses a narration style that reflects the context of the story, captivating and which gets the reader engaged and involved throughout the narration.

This narration will have significant implications for the reviews as well as comments that the reader will make which translate to more or fewer people seeking to read the narrators story. The narrators in "Cask of Amontillado" and "The Rats in the Walls" share much in common about their styles, approaches, themes, and appeal to the reader although they differ substantially in some respects.

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"Rats in the Walls" is narrated by the last survivor of Delapore family who moves from Massachusetts to his ancestral homeland, Exham Priory in England. On multiple instances, the Delapore and his cats hear the scurrying sounds of rats behind the ways and upon investigation find a city below the subcellar of his home, which has existed for centuries and the dwellers of this underground city fed on human flesh (Lovecraft 4).

The narrator in "The cask of Amontillado" is Montresor, seemingly a gentleman, but in reality, a vindictive and vengeance filled person. (Poe 1). Montresor commits a murder and is unrepentant and guiltless of his deed because he thinks that all, he did and does is right. Most of the time, Montresor is dedicated to his viewpoint which is quite cold, vengeful, brutal, and conniving. He lures his friend, Fortunato, to tunnels and tombs underground, drugs him and locks him in chains, walls him and leaves him in his position to die slowly (Poe 5).

Montresor and Delapore exhibit a great deal of quality in their narration style. The tales are given from their points of view and involve crimes, and horrendous acts that get the reader aroused and somewhat scared. They keep a great deal of suspense to maintain the reader and ensure he or she follows to the end.

Both narrators, however, could be questioned regarding reliability although they have various levels of any security that could be noted (Lovecraft 8).They seem to have some mental problems which make them act in ways unnatural and do things that would naturally be abominable to sane people. The fact that we have difficulties trusting the narrators question their reliability.

Montresor, first, tells the story of the crime he commits fifty years later saying that he was never caught for this. Now, trusting someone telling things that happened many years ago can be difficult because in many cases, things surface a short time after they have been done. Confessions are made, or details unveiled not very long after.

Walling his friend and leaving him to die with little to no remorse characteristically defines the possibility of soundness implying that he could probably not be entirely sane. This could make him be considered unreliable (Poe 8). Delapore, similarly, exhibits a high level of unreliability.

He presents the story in a way that the things happen in the supernatural realm. This elicits fiction rather than reality, and the details raise many questions because few readers would be accustomed to the nature of things that unfold throughout the narration. Eating human flesh would be an act expected of animals or an unbalanced mind.

There is an element of mental issue with the narrator, and this would make him unreliable (Lovecraft 10). Constant sounds of rats in the walls which are never found raise questions as to whether substantial evidence can be gathered to support the points raised in the narration.

The default the tone by the narrators is one that conveys abject panic, fear, and impending doom. The mood they employ precedes or supersedes events which could reasonably justify it. Mostly, they share much in common in the narration technics, emotions, feelings, and atmospheres.

However, they also differ in some ways. Delapore narrates in a setting of a family background rich in mystic scenarios. This is evident in the declaration of the finding of bones in the underground of the Priory(Lovecraft 14). Montresor narrates from a setting of being insulated which leads him to revenge (Poe 1).

The motivations behind the narration are entirely different Delapore is motivated by the desire to unravel a family background which influenced him to act and behave in the way he did. Montresor is affected by the desire to resolve the dampness of his surroundings which exert pressure on him to react in a manner to repay for what has been done against him.

The levels of the unreliability of the stories also differ. Delapore is somewhat fictitious in his narration and to some extent narrates from an insane person. Delapore is profoundly unreliable because the details are hard to prove in the real world from which the readers view the content of the narration (Lovecraft 16).

Montresor can be termed unreliable, but the extent is not as deep because there are actual details which offer significant proof of turn of events with a human element. While for the most part, he remains unrepentant and self-justifying of the crime he commits, there is a portion where he notes his heart grew sick after he had only a brick left to seal Fortunato forever. However, he withdraws from guilty and accuses his surroundings instead.

The narration is better regarding reliability as compared to Delapore. The narrative by Montresor is mostly a revenge mission which happens in the real world giving greater credit to the details (Poe 14). For Delapore, the narration based on the occult is something that questions the credibility and reliability of the details. Overall, however, there is much held in common with a few differences inherent for the narrators the nature of narration and story details.

Works cited

1. Lovecraft, Howard Phillips. The Rats in the Walls. New York: WS via Publish Drive, 2018. Print
2. Poe, Edgar Allan. The Cask of Amontillado. Publisher Not Identified, 2016.

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