Final answer:
In 'The Cask of Amontillado' by Edgar Allan Poe, irony is used when Montresor shows a trowel, hinting at his plan to entomb Fortunato, who takes it as a jest due to intoxication, not realizing he'll soon be sealed with the Montresors' ancestors.
Step-by-step explanation:
In Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado, irony plays a significant role, particularly in paragraph 1 of chunk 2. The scene features the character Montresor, who has vowed revenge on Fortunato and is leading him to his doom under the guise of showing him a rare wine, the Amontillado.
The irony stems from various elements: Montresor’s pretense of friendship, Fortunato’s ignorance of the true intentions, and the conversation about the Amontillado, which never actually exists.
When Montresor produces a trowel, an instrument of masonry and symbol of his actual intentions, he briefly reveals his plan, yet Fortunato, being intoxicated and unsuspecting, takes it as a joke. Additionally, when Fortunato toasts to the buried repose of the Montresors' ancestors, he is unaware that he will soon join them.