Montressor constantly offers Fortunato a chance for escape, mentioning his sickness as a reason for not probing into the depths of the vault, yet Fortunato in his stubborn manner declines. Montressor the Mason. Montressor is a mason, but we do expect what he will use his Masonry skills for until the bitter end. Fortunato the Ignoramus. The fact of the matter is that Fortunato is the ignoramus, literally walking into his own murder.
Sounds appear throughout the story.
Often these are used to invoke irony, other times merely to provide the reader with a platform for becoming more engaged in the text. There is a recurring sound of Fortunato's bells. These jingle form the start of their meeting and carry on to the end, when they are the last Montressor hears of his disillusioned victim. Another use of sounds are the feeble cries of Fortunato as he realizes his demise. Montressor claims that they make him sick, but the reader has a difficult time believing him.