What are the motifs in The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe?

There are several repeating motifs throughout The Case of Amondillado by Poe. One of them is the use of the celebration of Carnival; a time like Mardi Gras or Halloween when people dress up in costumes and enjoy a certain liberation from their usual personas. This allows someone to act in a way that they normally might not.

Secondly, there is the motif of the snake ready to strike. In fact, Montressor's family crest has a snake on it. He likens himself to an animal readying itself for the attack.