Irony and Foreshadowing
In Romeo and Juliet and “Cask of
Amontillado”
Literary Device: Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing: when the author includes words and phrases
that give the reader a hint of something that will happen.
Foreshadowing doesn’t reveal plot twists or spoil the suspense;
rather, it suggests an upcoming outcome to the story.
• Does Shakespeare use foreshadowing in the Prologue of
Romeo and Juliet?
• Right before he goes to Capulet’s party, Romeo says, “my mind
misgives / Some consequence yet hanging in the stars”(1.4.113114).
• Is this foreshadowing?
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)
● American writer during the
Romantic period
● Best known for his short stories and
poems
● Inventor of the detective fiction
genre
● His works are characterized by
mystery and the macabre (grim or
ghastly elements)
Foreshadowing in Edgar Allen Poe’s
“The Cask of Amontillado”
Poe reveals that Fortunato has a
weakness for wine, and this will play a
major part in Montressor’s plan.
Literary Device: Irony
A difference between the appearance
of things and reality, or when the
opposite of what we expect happens.
Ex: You study all week for a spelling test, then
mis-spell your name on the test.
Literary Device: Dramatic Irony
When the reader knows what will
happen but one or more characters do
not.
In Poe’s story, Montressor says, “Your health is
precious.” The murderer only pretends to show
concern for his victim’s health. The reader of
the story knows this, but the victim does not.
Dramatic Irony
Dramatic Irony gives you that tense feeling when you know
a character is headed for disaster...
Or that excited feeling when something good is going to
happen to a character…
• But they don’t know it yet!
Literary Device: Hyperbole
Hyperbole: A figure of speech in which
exaggeration is used for emphasis or effect.
Example: Poe does not tell us exactly what Fortunato has
done to deserve Montressor’s wrath, but Poe deliberately
exaggerates the number and severity of Fortunato’s
offenses by having Montressor complain about “the
thousand injuries” Fortunato has done to him.
Cask of Amontillado vocabulary
catacombs:underground cemetery
precluded: kept someone from
impunity: exemption from punishment
retribution: punishment that is fully deserved
recoiling: pulling back in horror
endeavored: tried hard to achieve
obstinate: stubborn
succession: one after another
Additional vocabulary
•Amontillado: a light Spanish sherry
•nitre: also known as saltpeter, a white mineral
•“nemo me impune lacessit” = “no one attacks me with
impunity.”