Introduction
Universal themes that characterize human nature always remain relevant, even while their context may change. Two hundred years ago, people were concerned with becoming rich and powerful, and today, many still set this as ultimate in their lives. In Edgar Allan Poe’s work, the transcendent themes of good versus evil, love, courage, revenge, and others remain relevant to this day and find reflection in popular culture.
One of the most recent Netflix hits, The Fall of the House of Usher, bears many references to the work of Poe and the story “The Cask of Amontillado” in particular. The plotline involving Roderick Madeline Usher and Rufus Griswold is intertwined with one of the best works of Poe that centers on vengeance. The universal themes of revenge, deception, pride, and power all run through both storylines, which points to their relevance regardless of the time period.
“The Cask of Amontillado” encapsulates the depth of human nature and shows the extremes to which a person can go to fulfill their inner desires. In the show, which draws from many of Poe’s works, the filmmakers reflected on the flawed human condition, with every episode bearing the names of the gothic author’s stories. The culmination of the show, when viewers are shown how two main characters, Madeline and Roderick, killed Rufus Griswold to overtake the Fortunato pharmaceutical company, shows the direct link between Poe’s short story and the series. In both plotlines, the victims were killed by being entombed by a wall, and while the reasons for the killing were different, all three characters involved in the act were driven by a deep hatred and desire for revenge.
Revenge
Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Cask of Amontillado” has been praised for its immaculate use of imagery and symbolism, allowing it to derive various meanings and interpretations. In the short story, the author consciously does not reveal the reasons for Montresor’s hatred for Fortunato (Francisco 127). The narrative is a description of the revenge murder on the part of the murderer himself, who vaguely mentions insults or teasing on the part of Fortunato, but no specific examples are given (Buyukkarci 37). He says, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge” (Poe 1). This clue shows that a person could get overwhelmed with hate and the desire to avenge the person who offended them, and logic is not always a factor. Montresor’s pride and hubris have led to his downfall as a person because he resorted to the worst act imaginable – murder.
In the Netflix series, Madeline and Roderick were seeking retribution against their father, and Griswold was only an obstacle in their way. The siblings were brought up by their deeply religious mother while their father, William Longfellow, the CEO of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, was married and cheated on his wife with Eliza Usher. He refused to acknowledge that the children were his and was consistently aggressive toward them in fear they would reveal the truth to his other family. Madeline and Roderick inherently blamed their mother’s death on Longfellow, and after both of their parents graphically died, they started considering their plot for retaliation. From the ethical standpoint, they thought Fortunato Pharmaceuticals was their inheritance, but since they were never claimed as Longfellow’s children, they would have to overtake the company in their own way.
Duality of Human Behavior
The calmness and the calculated quality of the Usher siblings’ and Montresor’s exterior, contrasted with the brutal actions and intentions, point to the duality of human behavior. They all skillfully wear masks and hide their true intentions and emotions just to strike at the best moment possible. From the very beginning of Poe’s story, Montresor emphasizes his friendship with his future victim, referring to Fortunato as a friend, expressing concern for his health, and pretending to be genuinely concerned for his well-being. By doing so, he is able to create a false sense of camaraderie and dull Fortunato’s vigilance.
Madeline and Roderick choose a similar approach and ingratiate themselves with Griswold, who began running the company after their father’s death. Roderick starts working for the company as a minor clerk and goes up the ladder by proving to Griswold that he can be trusted with secrets, including unethical conduct and deceit of clients. The pivotal moment when Griswold realizes that Usher is a reliable worker is when a public attorney questions him about Fortunato’s actions and lies in favor of the company. From that point on, Roderick is given the ‘green light’ to climb the career ladder. Not realizing, Griswold takes part in the plan of his own demise.
Power and Control
When plotting and carrying out their murderous conspiracy, the characters in both the story and the show play with power and control to achieve their final goal of revenge. Specifically, to maintain control over his victim, Montresor exploits Fortunato’s vanity and uses reverse psychology to lure him into the vaults. Fortunato has always bragged about his connoisseurship of wine, and when he learns that Montresor acquired a cask of Amontillado, he is eager to give his opinion. Moreover, Montresor plays with Fortunato through a psychological trick; he says that he could ask another expert for an opinion, but the latter is too vain to pass along the opportunity to show his expertise.
Montresor also exerts power over his rival by taking advantage of his intoxication and creating a false sense of security. It was carnival season when he decided to carry out his plan, and Fortunato, already being drunk clouded his judgment and made him more likely to be manipulated. Even as the two go deeper into the catacombs, Montresor has a friendly banter with Fortunato, thus masking his intentions. The victim, in turn, is in complete control of his future murder and is blissfully unaware of the impending danger.
In the Netflix show, the siblings use power in a similar way. They praise Griswold for being a tough boss and the only person who could lead the company toward prosperity. Roderick seems supportive of his boss and never shows any signs of disdain for him to ensure that their plan is never disclosed until the last moment. Even though Griswold suspects that the Ushers are Longfellow’s children, he does not reveal this until the very end, most likely because he believes that he can trust Roderick and help him advance in the company.
As the company has a New Year’s party, which happens to be carnival-themed, another nod to “The Cask of Amontillado,” Griswold gets fairly intoxicated and in a perfect condition to be led into a place where he would never be found. He consistently praises Roderick for saving the company and says that he is the best thing to happen to Fortunato. At that point, Madeline is the one to carry out this part of the plan as she seduces Rufus and makes him think that he has a chance with her. As Griswold is drunk and merry and has taken a sip of drugged Amontillado, the young woman leads him into the construction site of the company’s new part of the building, where he loses consciousness and collapses.
The apparent influence of Poe’s story on the plot of the series is seen in the unsettling manner of Fortunato’s and Griswold’s death. Both of them are captured in a niche to be boarded by a wall of bricks, essentially being buried alive. Montresor notes that he hears “a succession of loud and shrill screams, bursting suddenly from the throat of the chained formed, seemed to thrust me violently back. For a brief moment I hesitated, I trembled” (6).
Similarly, Griswold wakes up and realizes that he is chained and being bordered by bricks; he starts screaming for help and then tries to negotiate with the Ushers to spare him (Pednekar). Rufus’s pleads are replaced with rage and vice versa, but no one hears him as the rest of the company is busy celebrating New Year’s Eve. However, the obsession of Montresor, Roderick, and Madeline with finalizing the act is inherently Poe’s theme (Winters 6). Ultimately, Fortunato and Griswold get boarded up for eternity while their murderers carry out their ultimate goal of revenge.
Discussion and Conclusion
The influence of Poe’s work on modern literature and cinematography, especially those ascribing to the Gothic horror style, is rooted in the universal themes that the writer explored. An important uniting feature of the series and the short story is the confessionary nature of the narratives – both Montresor and Roderick tell the truth about their actions, and there is no coming back from that (Elhefnawy 103). Human beings are inherently flawed, as Poe oftentimes showed in his writing, and the ways in which they handle conflict can be either destructive or formative. The characters in both narratives chose the destructive route – instead of discussing or negotiating differences with their opponents; they thought that murder was the only solution to their problem. Such stories will get repeated over and over again as the weakness of character and inability to reach a consensus with others leads people toward this harmful and detrimental decision.
In Netflix’s “The Fall of the House of Usher,” the human condition is depicted through the adverse impact that fear and overthinking could have on one’s actions. Roderick and Madeline are driven by the trauma of losing their mother when they were young and the hatred for their father, who refused to acknowledge them. Montresor is driven by his hatred for Fortunato, and it does not even concern him that such hatred is not substantiated. For the siblings, the act of murder presents a gateway to the world of power and business success, while for Poe’s character, it provides closure. Even though the Netflix show modernizes Poe’s stories to make them relevant to viewers, the fact that it is possible to draw on the writer’s themes and issues even today speaks volumes of his contribution to culture.
Works Cited
Buyukkarci, Orhun. “Is It the Door Through Death What Scares Us? An Analysis of The Cask of Amontillado Between Semiotics and Narratology Interface.” Journal of Narrative and Language Studies, vol. 9, no. 16, 2023, pp. 34-56.
Elhefnawy, Nader. “Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado.” The Explicator, vol. 76, no. 2, 2018, pp. 103-105.
Francisco, Jesusa. “To Live but Die Inside: A Lamentable State of Montressor in “The Cask of Amontillado.” OKARA Jurnal Bahasa dan Sastra, vol. 15, no. 2, 2021, pp. 126-140.
Pednekar, Rati. “The Fall of The House of Usher Fans Might Have Missed This Edgar Allan Poe Story.” Gamerant. 2023. Web.
Poe, Edgar Allan. The Cask of Amontillado. Ryerson University, 2021.
Winters, Michelle. “Poe’s Challenge t s Challenge to Sentimental Literature Through Themes of Obsession, Paranoia, and Alienation.” Culminating Projects in English, 162. Web.