SUMMARY
"The Red Death had long devastated
the country. No pestilence had ever been so fatal,
or so hideous."
SUMMARY
Edgar Allen Poe’s short story “The Masque of the Red Death” takes place in a fictional country. Unfortunately, there is a disease known as the Red Death that spreads rapidly throughout the land. The Red Death causes symptoms such as sharp pains and profuse bleeding at the pores; Poe writes “No pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous”. The Red Death murdered its victims all within half an hour of exposure. Despite the terrible disease that was roaming the country, Prince Prospero, who is the main character of the story remained joyful and dauntless (fearless and determined). To protect himself and the rest of his nobles from the plague, he locks the gates of his palace. After a few months, Prince Pospero decides to host a masquerade ball. In honor of the ball, he decorates each room a different color. The room on the far east is decorated blue with blue stained-glass windows. Moving to the west, the order of the colors are purple, green, orange, white, and violet. The seventh room is black with scarlet windows. In this room is a giant clock that scares the guests every house as it chimes. The guests avoid the dreary room due to its dark vibe that is given off.
At midnight, a mysterious figure shows up. The figure wore a mask and clothes that were splattered with blood. The guests suspected he was a victim of the Red Death because of his clothes and the blood splotches on his face. Prospero is upset with the intruder and chases the intruder throughout his house. The guests block the intruder from entering their colorful rooms. Finally, Prospero corners the masked figure in the creepy black room with red windows. As soon as the stranger looks at Prospero, Prospero dies. The guests arrive to the black room and unmasks the intruder. Once the figure is unmasked, the guests discover that there is no body beneath the mask. After this realization, every person in the house becomes infected with the Red Death and dies.
At midnight, a mysterious figure shows up. The figure wore a mask and clothes that were splattered with blood. The guests suspected he was a victim of the Red Death because of his clothes and the blood splotches on his face. Prospero is upset with the intruder and chases the intruder throughout his house. The guests block the intruder from entering their colorful rooms. Finally, Prospero corners the masked figure in the creepy black room with red windows. As soon as the stranger looks at Prospero, Prospero dies. The guests arrive to the black room and unmasks the intruder. Once the figure is unmasked, the guests discover that there is no body beneath the mask. After this realization, every person in the house becomes infected with the Red Death and dies.
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DEATH IS INEVITABLEEdgar Allen Poe is known for his rather dark and twisty poems/short stories. Therefore, a theme in Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death” story is “Death”. The story suggests that death is a lingering faith. Regardless of wealth or power, death is inevitable. The theme of death was constant throughout the story. As the story begins, we are introduced to the Red Death and its gruesome effect it had on the people in the story. When Prince Prospero and his guests attempt to cheat death by locking the palace gates and throwing a masquerade, Prospero ignores the fact that his people were dropping dead due to the Red Death. In the end, the Red Death abducts every person in the household and kills them. When the last guest dies, the loud clock ceases to strike.
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EQUALITY IN SOCIETYAnother theme that Poe possibly incorporated was the fact that everyone was equal. I thought that this was a theme in the short story because Prince Prospero used his wealth and power to protect himself along with the rest of his nobles/upper class citizens. Since the disease did not yet reach his palace, he tried to lock the gates and escape the plague. He attempts to protect the abbey and party, instead of worrying about the death spreading disease. However, in the end, the upper class ultimately ended up getting the same faith as everyone else.
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"And now was acknowledged the presence of the Red Death." |