Ending with the most foul death, "The Cask of Amontillado" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" feature vengeance and painstaking cruelty. Driven to the point of madness and revenge sought for trivialities, the narrators tell each story from their own personal story. The delivery of their confessions gives chilling depth to the crimes they committed and to the men themselves. Both men are motivated by their ego and their obsession with their attackers. Driven by his own delusions, each man seeks violent revenge against his opposition in the form of precise, premeditated homicide. Carefully, cautiously, the Montresor plotted precisely how he would take revenge on Fortunato. A lot of time and energy was devoted to this plan, choosing the moment that would be best: during the carnival, when the city would be celebrating, its servants tended to run away and join the celebration, when both could disappear silently without notice or question. No detail is forgotten; it provides no deterrence. He goes through to the end with such confidence that he never stumbles or hesitates in carrying out his plan. The Montresor indicates that he never gave. To continue this ploy, he even goes so far as to express false concern for Fortunato during their time in the catacombs. Blaming niter and humidity, the Montresor suggests turning back so as not to jeopardize Fortunato's poor health, although he has no intention of doing so. Never, until the very end, did Fortunato have reason to suspect that there were evil plans afoot. The narrator of “The Tell-Tale Heart” took the time to plot meticulously. He sneaks into the old man's room at night, preparing until he is ready to carry out his plans. His discontent lies... middle of paper ... us on deadly vengeance. In each case, it is a punishment carried out in a cruel and callous manner. The men who perform these actions are cold, calculating and contemplative. They strove to take revenge for what tormented them: Fortunato and his insults to the Montresor and the old man's piercing and frightening gaze for the man of "The Tell-Tale Heart." Driven to the point of madness by their own obsessions, they plot to murder their attackers. The stories are each told by the man who actually committed the crime. Each man's madness becomes clearer and clearer as he recounts his confession; the Montresor with the flawless ease with which he dictates his story and the man of “The Tell-Tale Heart” with his irregular and rough delivery. Their distinct mental instability calls into question the reliability of the report they submit..