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In the poem, Poe describes that the old man has an "eye of a vulture—a pale blue eye, with a film over it". Vultures are often associated with death and darkness, meaning that when the main character looked at him, he could see his death and his own madness staring back at him. In addition, vultures are known to have good eyesight, so the old man having an "eye of a vulture" could mean that he had the ability to see into the main character's soul and see his madness. This is why the main character is angered so much by the old man- he hates that he being seen through.

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The first black cat, Pluto, is symbolic of evil or temptation. Black cats are often seen as counterparts to witches, witchcraft, and bad omens. The initial feelings that the cat inspires within the protagonist are good and pleasant, perhaps similar to how initial sin can feel good and seem to harbor good outcomes, "Pluto—this was the cat’s name—was my favorite pet and playmate." However, the protagonist spirals as time goes on, growing angrier, more violent, and hateful toward the cat, "I grew, day by day, more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others... The fury of a demon instantly possessed me. I knew myself no longer... I took from my waistcoat-pocket a pen-knife, opened it, grasped the poor beast by the throat, and deliberately cut one of its eyes from the socket!" This could be a parallel to the feelings that might follow sin or giving into temptation/evil.

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The protagonist hanging the cat on the limb of a tree is symbolic of his self-realization/knowledge that he is performing evil and has become evil. He notes, "...hung it because I knew that in so doing I was committing a sin—a deadly sin that would so jeopardize my immortal soul as to place it—if such a thing wore possible—even beyond the reach of the infinite mercy of the Most Merciful and Most Terrible God." This God-fearing man has given into a horrible sin knowingly and admits that his evil does not deserve the grace of God.

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The wife is symbolic of faithfulness and decency throughout the text as a contrast to the decline of the protagonist, "I married early, and was happy to find in my wife a disposition not uncongenial with my own." (while he was still of his right mind) "...my wife, who...possessed, in a high degree, that humanity of feeling which had once been my distinguishing trait, and the source of many of my simplest and purest pleasures." She offers light within a story full of darkness.

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Fire is often symbolic of divinity so perhaps the house burning down was a divine punishment from God. Fire has also been used to burn witches at the stake, as their souls were purified this way. "On the night of the day on which this cruel deed was done, I was aroused from sleep by the cry of fire... My entire worldly wealth was swallowed up, and I resigned myself thenceforward to despair." This seems to be a punishment from either God for the protagonist's sins or from the cat as a means of revenge. I think the fire occurred as a sort of cleansing from his actions. It gave him a new start as a way to move on from what he had done. However, he did not take advantage of this and fell back into his destructive behaviors.

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I think the eye being cut out of the first cat is symbolic of the protagonist's fear of being seen, "I took from my waistcoat-pocket a pen-knife, opened it, grasped the poor beast by the throat, and deliberately cut one of its eyes from the socket!" Eyes are symbolic of clairvoyance, omniscience, and/or a gateway into the soul. Perhaps the cat was able to see the darkest parts of the protagonist and that's what drove him to gauge out the thing that was allowing it to do so, "I experienced a sentiment half of horror, half of remorse, for the crime of which I had been guilty; but it was, at best, a feeble and equivocal feeling, and the soul remained untouched." It seems almost as if the protagonist experiences more relief than remorse in this situation.

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The second cat is symbolic of the protagonist's guilt from the sin he committed against the first, "It was a black cat—a very large one—fully as large as Pluto, and closely resembling him in every respect but one." This cat is so similar to the first that it seems to be a near reincarnation sent to haunt the protagonist as he descends to madness. To further support the resemblance of this cat to the first, "it also had been deprived of one of its eyes" precisely as the first had been when the protagonist gauged it out.

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In the story, the narrator lures Fortunato into the catacombs which he will trap him in through wine. The wine represents Fortunato's foolishness and the wine is luxurious, representing his desire and need for luxury and high quality. This is symbolic of his pride and greed, which ultimately lead to his death, directly reflecting the narrators pride, greed, and need for revenge.

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His name is "Italian and Spanish: from the personal name Fortunato, a continuation of the Late Latin name Fortunatus, derived from the Latin adjective fortunatus 'prosperous, happy' and borne by many Christian saints." This is symbolic of the irony displayed within the story, he is originally true to his namesake, being very prosperous and merry, but as he has become too comfortable and cocky with his wine and merriment, he allows himself to be taken advantage of and tricked into his death.

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When we meet Fortunato, he is at a carnival and dressed as a jester, with jingling bells. "He had on a tight-fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells." This is symbolic of his foolishness. A jester is a foolish man, and the narrator plays on that because, throughout the plan, it relies mainly on Fortunato remaining ignorant. If he used any common sense throughout his being led to his death, he likely would have caught on and saved himself.

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The catacombs are surrounded by bones. "Its walls had been lined with human remains, piled to the vault overhead" This is obvious symbolism of Fortunato heading into his death, surrounded by dead people underground.

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In the story, the main character acts to kill the old man during the dead of night. Poe writes "Many a night, just at midnight, when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me". This quote shows that it was during the night that "the terrors", or satanic influence, were the most potent and were strong enough to make him act. This is important because of the symbolism of the nighttime. Night time is known to be the time of the day when spiritual visitations are the strongest, specially from demonic powers.

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"Putting on a mask of black silk, and drawing a roquelaire closely about my person, I suffered him to hurry me to my palazzo." While Fortunato is in the lively costume of a jester, the narrator adorns a costume of black and bears a striking resemblance to the grim reaper, who collects souls and brings them to death, which is fitting in the story where he is leading Fortunato directly to his death, and the underworld.

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"I passed down a long and winding staircase, requesting him to be cautious as he followed. We came at length to the foot of the descent and stood together on the damp ground of the catacombs of the Montresors." A staircase represents a descent away from God and righteousness. As the narrator leads Fortunato down deeper into the catacombs, it is a representation of getting closer to the underworld/death.

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Fortunato is a Freemason, and when he makes one of their secret gestures, the narrator pulls out a trowel to prove he is a mason, even though it is a different type. "You are not of the masons." "The Freemasons are an international, fraternal society that was established to support its members’ moral and spiritual values. The group has been historically composed of extremely wealthy men and engaged in secret rituals. During Poe’s time, the group was considered sacrilegious." In historical context, it creates a symbolism of Fortunato being an unlikeable and foolishly wealthy character.

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Eyes are also symbol of God or a divine being. The main character is mad (as shown by his ramblings) and can often hear "many things in hell". This means that presence of hell and Lucifer could be resisting the presence of God, and hating the nearness of it enough to wanting to kill the old man.

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Right before the main character was about to kill the old man, the beating of the old man's heart kept beating louder and louder. At the end, the heart also keeps beating louder and louder until he reveals his crime, when it then falls silent. Poe wrote "I felt that I must scream or die! and now—again!—hark! louder! louder! louder! louder!". This intense beating of the heart represents the guilt and evil that gradually grew larger throughout the story. It grew so much that eventually the main character couldn't take it anymore and confessed his crime.

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In the story, it was on the eighth night that the main character finally committed the murder. Poe wrote "eighth night I was more than usually cautious in opening the door. A watch’s minute hand moves more quickly than did mine. Never before that night had I felt the extent of my own powers—of my sagacity". It was on the eighth night that the culmination of his madness finally brought him to the bring from simply waiting and watching to actually taking action and murdering the old man. This makes the number eight symbolic, as eight can represent new beginnings, and in the story the eighth night was the beginning of the main character's guilt and eventual doom.

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"A watch’s minute hand moves more quickly than did mine." This quote shows how time was passing faster than the narrator was, and how no matter how slowly he was going, the time was still moving. The ticking of the watch is symbolic of the inevitability of death, as there was no stopping or slowing it.

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"I had finished a portion of the last and the eleventh"

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The wife coming back to life at the end of the story is symbolic of Christ's resurrection after he was crucified, "The corpse...stood erect before the eyes of the spectators...I had walled the monster up within the tomb!" The use of the word tomb is often synonymous with Christ arising from the dead and leaving the tomb he was laid in.

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Poe writes "And this I did for seven long nights—every night just at midnight". In the story, the narrator was always active in his crimes at midnight as the demons in him became even stronger. The time being midnight holds weight as it is a symbol for darkness and danger. In this story, both the main character and the demons in him represent that darkness and danger that come during the night.

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Granite is symbolic of diplomacy, discretion, cooperativeness and negativity. As the two men are walking into the underground cellar, the protagonist remains diplomatic, full of discretion, and negative energy. He hides his true intentions from his friends all while the friend remains entirely cooperative. "'Enough," he said; "the cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall not die of a cough."/"True—true," I replied; "and, indeed, I had no intention of alarming you unnecessarily—but you should use all proper caution. A draught of this Medoc will defend us from the damps.'"

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This literally translates to "No one attacks me with impunity." The protagonist's family motto is entirely symbolic of the relationship he has with his friend. He intends retribution against Fortunado for insulting him.

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Protag haunted by cat. Haunted = ghost, ghost = spirit, spirit = alcohol. Protag is an alcoholic hence his violence and rage all the time.

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In the garden, the cat is hung from the tree. "Upon the alarm of fire, this garden had been immediately filled by the crowd—by some one of whom the animal must have been cut from the tree and thrown, through an open window, into my chamber" This is symbolic of the garden of Eden.

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Symbolic of his downfall as it is his bragging that causes him to get caught. “'I delight to have allayed your suspicions. I wish you all health, and a little more courtesy. By the bye, gentlemen, this—this is a very well constructed house.' [In the rabid desire to say something easily, I scarcely knew what I uttered at all.]—'I may say an excellently well constructed house. These walls—are you going, gentlemen?—these walls are solidly put together;'"

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Kate Mitsuda, Alayna Kitch, Charlotte Tobler

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Kate Mitsuda, Alayna Kitch, Charlotte Tobler