Symbolism In The Masque Of The Red Death

Horrific and mysterious deaths, dark and damp castles, cobweb infested chambers. These demonstrate examples of characteristics romantic writers at the time used in their writing. Romantic writers at the time used these characteristics to imply certain themes in their literature. In “The Masque of the Red Death, Prince Prospero and other nobles lock themselves away in an abbey in beliefs it will keep him safe from the plague hitting their people. The Prince and other nobles feel so comfortably safe that they throw a masquerade, but at midnight a new figure arrived wearing a bloody cape and a mask. Everyone now feels unsafe around this figure so Prince Prospero chases the masked figure around the rooms of the abbey until the Prince has died due to this mysterious figure. In “The Masque of the Red Death”, Poe uses gothic horror characteristics to prove nobody can escape death.

In “The Masque of the Red Death”, Poe employs the characteristic of the isolated setting with the description of the chamber. Poe describes the character walking down the hall speaking about the characteristics of the chamber; “To the right and left, in the middle of each wall, a tall and narrow Gothic window looked out upon a closed corridor which pursued the windings of the suite. “(Poe, pg 2) With the corridor secured shut and Prince Prospero believes his guest and himself have safely locked away from death. Although the Prince feels safe behind the shut corridor, death does reach him that dreadful night. No matter the precaution the Prince took or how safe the corridor remains, nobody can escape the grasp of death. Death does not care if you have not lived a long or fulfilled life when your time arrives, death will