Overlapping Spaces: Illusion or Reality——Analysis of Spatial Metaphor in The Cask of Amontillado

Abstract

Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado breaks the traditional narrative structure of time and space and has a unique spatial construction. This article is from a perspective of spatial metaphor, finding that: Poe creates a spatial metaphor composed of three dimensions: physical, psychological, and social. Within the continuously overlapping spaces, he gradually reveals the relationship states between humans and nature, humans and society, and humans and themselves. This not only deepens the complexity of the story plot but also prompts readers to contemplate the desires deep within the human psyche through the use of language.