Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado" presents an excellent example of his stylistic originality through its mood and tone. From the opening sentences, Poe sets an anxious and suspenseful tone by right away pulling the reader into Montresor's vengeful obsession. This creates an air of tension as the story builds toward its climax, which Poe contrasts with satiric humor. He also sustains a mood of eerie foreboding throughout the story by using many overt symbols of death and decay.
