The Murderer and the Time Traveler

The Murderer and the Time Traveler

Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” (1846) and H. G. Wells “The Time Machine” (1895) involve a murderer and a time traveler. Poe’s Montresor murders a drunkard because of an insult. Wells’s Time Traveler is trapped in the year 802, 701 when his time machine is stolen. Montresor and the Time Traveler are both smart but differ in kindness and honesty.

Both Montresor and the Time Traveler are adept. They are particularly adept in their actions. For example, Montresor’s cleverness shows as he uses reverse psychology to incite Fortunato’s ego, Montresor’s victim, by mentioning a fellow wine expert, a reference to make Fortunato jealous because “‘there is Luchesi’” (Poe 3), making Fortunato even more willing to come with Montresor. Moreover, the Time Traveler’s adeptness occurs when he figures out that the Morlocks, whose “‘eyes were abnormally large and sensitive’” (Wells 62), had a weakness towards light and were nocturnal. His smartness helps him infer this since he knows that “‘abysmal fishes . . . reflected light in the same way’” (Wells 62). Thus, Montresor’s smartness helps him to murder Fortunato, and the Time Traveler’s smartness allows him to combat the Morlocks. Also, both exemplify their cleverness as they plan. Montresor’s smartness shows as he uses reverse psychology to assure that none of his attendants would be home as he tells them he “should not return until the morning,” knowing that the attendants would leave “as soon as my [Montresor] back was turned” (Poe 2), guaranteeing that there would no witnesses. Likewise, the Time Traveler shows his smartness when he chooses a crowbar rather than a “‘hatchet or a sword’” (Wells 80) because a crowbar would be much more useful “‘against the iron gates’” (Wells 80). Therefore, both use their cleverness to accomplish their objectives.

However, they differ in kindness as Montresor is cruel while the Time Traveler is kind. Montresor’s cruelty is shown when Montresor shouts “‘The Amontillado’” (Poe 5), mocking what Fortunato while he was drunk. Montresor’s cruelty is shown since Fortunato is trapped within the catacombs and is pleading for mercy. Contrarily, the Time Traveler’s kindness occurs when he saves Weena, an Eloi which was a “‘weakly crying little thing which was drowning’” (Wells 48). The Time Traveler’s kindness occurs hers since no one “‘made the slightest attempt to rescue’” (Wells 48) her. Montresor’s cruelty mocks Fortunato at his death and the Time Traveler’s kindness helps him make a new friend. Also, Montresor’s cruelty appears when he murders Fortunato because “he [Fortunato] ventured upon insult” (Poe 1), a vicious reaction to a minor slight. Conversely, the Time Traveler shows his kindness when wanted “‘to begin a massacre of the helpless abominations’” (Wells 89), who killed Weena but restrained himself out of kindness. Therefore, Montresor’s