Edgar Allan Poe is often called the father of short stories because he was the first to talk about the different elements of a short story. Each element of his short story was carefully thought out to develop and amplify his effect more. In "The Cask of Amontillado? the single lasting impression that Edgar Allan Poe chose was horror. The many different elements of the story such as characterization, point of view, sound effects, foreshadowing, and plot were carefully constructed as to intensify the effect of horror for the reader. .
The setting was a major factor in enhancing the impression of horror. Montresor led Fortunato down into the catacombs of the Montresors to his grave. That detail is so important that Edgar Allen Poe devoted a good deal of his story to the journey downwards. "I took from their sconces two flambeaux, and giving one to Fortunato, bowed him through several suites of rooms to the archway that led into the vaults. 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 upon the damp ground of the catacombs of the Montresors.?"We continued our route in search of the Amontillado. We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on, and descending again- The fact that they were going down is almost foreshadowing, Montresor is leading Fortunato to his own death, and his own hell. .
The catacombs were dark and musty. "We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on, and descending again, arrived at a deep crypt, in which the foulness of the air caused our flambeaux rather to glow than flame.?In the crypt in which Montresor walled up Fortunato, the air was old, musty, foul, and suffocating. Montresor chose a place to kill Fortunato where no one would be able to hear his screams or find him, for the catacombs were extensive and Montresor chose a deep and hidden crypt.
