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Symbolism In The Masque Of The Red Death

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Puzzles are unique and complex with the level of complexity based on their pieces. Hence, when the pieces of a puzzle are arranged correctly a picture is devised. Analogous to a puzzle are allegorical elements. Allegorical elements convey symbols that are contrived into thematic statements. Thus, if they are pieced together precisely, they create the overall picture that the author wishes to illustrate within their story. In the gothic short story “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe, Prince Prospero, the protagonist, does not want to do much other than drink, laugh, and have fun while his country suffers from the Red Death. About six months into his palace lifestyle, Prince Prospero plans s a gargantuan masquerade ball where the guests will wear masks and costumes. …show more content…

Within the castle, the ball takes place in seven different colored rooms, each with a different mood. The last room, where nobody dares to enter, consists of an Ebony clock with a boisterous chime and an atmosphere which breeds the feeling of death. Prince Prospero throws this extravagant masquerade ball in lieu of the plague dying out, but as the Ebony clock strikes twelfth o’clock the Red Death escalates throughout the whole castle slowly but surely killing all the guests, as well as Prospero. The seven colored rooms, especially the last room, the Ebony clock, and the Red Death are all allegorical elements in the gothic novel “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe which presents the theme of how death is inevitable, abrupt, and can lead to fear. Within the dark and dingy palace of Prince Prospero allegorical elements are presented to create abstruse thematic

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