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Fortunato is Montresor’s unwitting victim, a jovial, prideful wine connoisseur. At the opening of the story, Montresor asserts that Fortunato has insulted him and describes him as “a man to be respected or even feared.” However, upon meeting Fortunato, it becomes difficult to imagine him as such a formidable foe. Some scholars even suggest that Montresor describes Fortunato’s love of wine as connoisseurship sarcastically to imply Fortunato is frequently drunk. Additionally, Fortunato wears a fool costume for the festival of Carnival, symbolically emphasizing that he is the pawn in Montresor’s trap, and potentially characterizing him as foolish even outside of costume. His breezy demeanor raises the possibility that any insult on his part was unintended. He may, like the foot in the Montresor family crest, have stepped on a snake unwittingly instead of attempting to do harm. What is clear is that Fortunato has a strong sense of pride. Although the amontillado alone clearly tempts him, when Montresor suggests that Luchesi could do the job instead, Fortunato refuses to back down, as if he must prove himself the better wine expert.
