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Edgar Allan Poe's The Masque Of The Red Death

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The Masque Of The Red Death- Companion Piece “There were much of the beautiful, much of the bizarre, something of the terrible, and not a little of that which might have excited the disgust”- The Masque Of The Red Death. Introduction All throughout history, Edgar Allan Poe has been considered one of the greatest writers of all time. Maybe it was the way he captured words in a perfect way and turned them into a story. Perhaps it was the way he engaged his readers by writing stories that reflected upon his own life in a way that they could relate to. Whatever the reason, Poe is well known for his eerie and creative pieces, including The Raven, The Tell-Tale Heart, and a piece called “The Masque Of The Red Death”. Not only does this story …show more content…

One quote that really stood out at the beginning of the story was “no pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous. Blood was its Avatar and its seal --the redness and the horror of blood. There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men. And the whole seizure, progress and termination of the disease, were the incidents of half an hour.” Basically, this line was describing the terror, fear, and pain that was often associated with the Red Death. Another quote was “The Prince had provided all the appliances of pleasure. There were buffoons, there were improvisatori, there were ballet-dancers, there were musicians, there was Beauty, there was wine.” This quote shows how happy the Prince Prospero wanted the masqueraders to feel, even when they were locked inside his castle and nearing their …show more content…

After going back and analyzing what Poe had written, they might realize the true meaning of the story. They might believe that the story is really about a young Prince Prospero, who wants to save himself and his kingdom before they are all killed by a disease known as the Red Death, by locking them inside a secluded abbey where nothing is supposed to be able to get in. However, at the end of the story, the Red Death manages to prove the Prince wrong, and he shows up at the masquerade ball at midnight and murders the Prince. Poe also did something unique when he gave the Red Death human characteristics. Poe made the disease sound like an actual person who was trying to kill everybody in the kingdom, instead of just a disease. Also, the symbolism Poe used throughout the story, such as the ebony clock and the seven multi-colored rooms, might interest readers because they want to create an answer for what those objects stand for that they believe. Maybe, readers will comprehend the story more, if they go back and re-read, and become diligent about searching for words that they don’t know, and trying to piece together parts of the story that they don’t

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In Edgar Allen Poe’s, “The Masque of the Red Death”, the terror spreading throughout the guests of the party helps it seem as if the Red Death was slowly forcing itself into the masquerade. The masked figure within the story is described as “…unutterable horror” (Poe, 452). The vivid descriptions within the story produce anxiety and cause unease for the guests, adding to the underlying fear of the current red death pandemic. A quote that builds a lot of suspense is “…turned suddenly and confronted his pursuer” (Poe, 452). This chase forces the guests to freeze because a confrontation is about to happen.

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A comparison of both stories will show that Poe leveraged each characters fear, and in the end, that emotional anguish far outweighed the act of death itself. Prince Prospero in “The Masque of the Red Death,” provides an ideal solution to escape death. The plan encompassed a generous portion of his most favored members of the court, and a castellated abbey

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This story of death works out, because Edgar Allen Poe gives good use to author’s craft. Edgar Allen Poe uses imagery, symbolism, and setting to create an effective story. In the “Masque of the Red Death” Poe uses description to give imagery.

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The Masque of the Red Death is a short story written by Edgar Allen Poe, and was later adapted into a graphic novel by Gareth Hinds. The Masque of the Red Death is about a Prince named Prospero who invites a thousand of his friends into his castle to party and to escape the raging epidemic outside. This epidemic, called the Red Death, causes sudden dizziness, intense pain, and profuse bleeding. The disease can kill its victims in half an hour. One night while Prince Prospero is throwing a masquerade party in a seven room suite, a masked but terrifying individual arrives and terrifies the Prince and his guests.

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1290 Words | 6 Pages

In “The Masque of the Red Death,” Poe describes the nasty symptoms of Ebola. Poe says, “There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men.” The description of the pain and fatality of this disease makes the reader wince by just imagining the agony of the afflicted. Moreover, Poe pens the violent acts people inflict on each other.

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In addition, using the word ‘blood’ ties to the overall theme of the story: death. His storytelling is very visual; the imagery that he provides through diction alone is very detailed and in depth. Poe’s intricate choice of words not only vividly describes the setting, but creates indirect characterization. Poe’s choice of complex words are not often used in everyday language, which fits the context of the story. Right from the beginning, Poe shows the drastic divide in class and the disconnection between Prince Prospero and his people as the narrator states, “When his dominions were half depopulated, he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusion of one of his castellated abbeys” (Poe, 1).

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THE "Red Death" had long devastated the country. No pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous. Blood was its Avatar and its seal --the redness and the horror of blood. There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men.

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Poe sets a dark tone in the beginning of “The Man of the Crowd” when he talks about people and their secrets. “There are some secrets which do not permit themselves to be told. Men die nightly in their beds, wringing the hands of ghostly confessors and looking the piteously in the eyes—die with despair of heart and convulsion of the throat, on account of the hideousness of mysteries which will not suffer themselves to be revealed.” This is similar to the uneasy, dark mood in “The Masque of the Red Death.” Poe describes a normal night in Prince Prospero’s castle, he shows this dark feeling though the way the guests act.

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Edgar Allan Poe The Masque of the Red Death Prospero knows of the death in his village, he uses his wealth to lock himself away from it, he uses it as a self-defense against the illness that is spreading and stays in his castle. When Prospero thinks it is safe he throws a party, so show off, to be arrogant that he has not gotten sick, and to show everyone that is beneath him. As the night goes on he has an uninvited guest appear, the guest goes from room to room and finally Prospero catches him in the black and red room and confronts him and when he does, he dies. When everyone else confronts him, they realize there is no one under the mask, and they die.

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Poe wrote in the “Masque of the Red Death,” “The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men,” (Poe 1). It goes to show to what length people will go to survive. In “The Cask of Amontillado”, Montresor's cellar represented the embodiment of death

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Do you think that Edgar Allan Poe was talking about Ebola in “The Masque of the Red Death?” Poe was not talking about Ebola. I am going to argue about the blood and symptoms, place and time, and the reaction to the diseases. First, is the Blood and symptoms. Secondly, is the place and time and lastly the reaction to the diseases.

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The authors’ use of strong imagery invokes strong emotions that give the audience a personal connection to the characters and events. In the “The Masque of the Red Death”, the theme is mortality. Poe shows how people are vulnerable to death, even after taking every possible precaution. Poe writes, “The mask ... was made so nearly to resemble the countenance of a stiffened corpse ... gone so far as to assume the type of the Red Death. His vesture was dabbled in blood - and his broad brow, with all the features of the face, was besprinkled with the scarlet horror” (6).

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647 Words | 3 Pages

With all we know about Poe and his many works, we 're hit with suspense and anticipation by the first part of the story. Later in the tale, the narrator slows down and reveals his preparations that lead to the murder in such a deliberately enticing and suspenseful way, that even though you knew what was going to happen, it was still intense and suspenseful to read. These moods were further carried on by the way the narrator

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During the black plague death was everywhere, and not even the rich could escape it. In The Masque of the Red Death, a short story by Edger Allen Poe the red death is an allegory for the black plague. While this plague-like disease is running rampant, Prince Prospero invites many of his friends to hide away in his castle. During one of his extravagant parties, Prince Prospero along with his guests are led to death. To enhance his allegory of The black plague in “The Masque of the Red Death,” Poe expresses that death can be postponed but not prevented through his portrayal of the clock, masquerade, and the corridor.

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1720 Words | 7 Pages

But one of Poe’s stories, The Masque of the Red Death (1842), relies heavily on themes of death, pestilence, human nature, and religion. Through these themes and symbolism, Poe explores the darker side of humanity and the meaning behind life. “The Masque of the Red Death” is a story about Prince Prospero and his kingdom that

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