Comparing Masque of the Red Death and Hop Frog Essay

Edgar Allan Poe uses an assortment of writing elements that reflect an overall eerie and twisted side of hin from his life growing up. In one of his short stories, “Hop-Frog,” the main character, a disabled dwarf named Hop-Frog, introduced as a jester who seeks revenge on his king. Likewise, in the story, “The Masque of the Red Death”, a prince banishes disease from his courts, yet death seems to find its way back inside the castle to seek revenge. Poe portrays the message of tragedy and revenge throughout his stories, using allegories, foreshadowing, and repetitive symbols all contributing to his stories.

Most times, anything abnormal or odd tend to be pushed under the rug. Edgar Allan Poe subtly brings attention to topics the are typically ignored. E. A. Poe had far from a perfect childhood. His father left when he was young and his mother died when he was three. Poe also seemed to have a lonely childhood after his parents were gone. He was separated from his relatives and didn’t appear to have many friends. He attended the army and after went into West Point. His academics there were well but he was eventually kicked out because of poor handlings of his duties. Before Poe died, he struggled with depression and a drinking problem. Some believe Poe’s tragic lifetime was the inspiration for some of his stories. Such as, “The Fall of the House of Usher”. A possible theory about this story is that Roderick and the Narrator were one in the same. This essay will discuss the possibility of them being the same through plot, characterization, and personification.

Throughout Poe’s stories, he shows a development of characters through his development of imagery and syntax. As the antagonists’ characters develop, they become more malicious. This development advances the story and allows it to successfully showcase Poe’s idiosyncratic writing style, a suspenseful mood. Overall, his one-of-a-kind style has inspired many authors to write similar types of sober stories and poems. His influence has made a huge impact on schools around the country. Poe’s stories are taught to students to show off his specific type of style. Poe’s use of imagery and syntax influenced the massive industry of dramatic, thrilling, and suspenseful

The life of Edgar Allan Poe is not a tale of ease. Poe’s life was full of personal and fiscal disaster. These disasters help to mold some of the most ominous and intellectually challenging poetry ever written. For the short duration of Poe’s life, he was seen as a literary critic rather than an author. To the modern generation his unbeknown status seems bafflingly inconceivable, considering his now acclaimed publications. Edgar Allan Poe’s writing was very much dictated by his life. The mournful tone of Edgar Allan Poe’s life created his literature; death and all his friends narrated Poe’s life. Edgar Allan Poe shows his life’s constant despair through his poetry and short story writings.

Edgar Allan Poe is an American author whose writing style, full of mysteries and macabre, has fascinated generations. However, his works are more than just thrillers and morbidities. The writings of this author often contain other themes such as companionship, family bonds, longing passion, and perhaps the strongest of these is revenge. “The Cask of Amontillado” and “Hop-Frog; or, The Eight Chained Ourang-Outangs” are two short stories that certainly demonstrate a recurring theme of revenge. Poe not only presents his signature pattern of cold fate in both works but also displays the struggle of a lower social class against the higher social class to the extent that it almost hints at a call for revolution.

Poe’s exploration of the darker side of human nature in The Black Cat, Hop-Forg and Fall of the House of Usher

“Hop-Frog,” composed by Edgar Allen Poe, begins as a classic fairy tale that many are familiar with, but “Hop-Frog” takes a dark and brutal turn as the jokes and humiliation reach a certain extent. Poe introduces Hop Frog and Trippetta first as victims of the king and his seven cabinet council men; due to their physical features and status as the king’s slaves for entertainment and humor. As the reader proceeds to read the great detail given by Poe, the reader begins to understand the abnormality in Hop Frog’s thinking and actions when he becomes fed up. Hop-Frog has no intention in causing any harm or brutality, but there needs to be an end to the torture and embarrassment caused to Hop-Frog and Trippetta. Hop-Frog’s act of revenge is the act of a sane man, but this is due to the abuse of power and authority by the king and his seven council men which lead to the devastating end.

When it comes to reading literature the most challenging yet important task is to understand the purpose of the author's writing. In Romantic era literature understanding the emotions and thoughts that are created in the reader's mind are essential to gaining a clear message that the writer is trying to send. In Edgar Allen Poe’s short story “The Masque of the Red Death” the narrator immediately introduces the “Red Death”; a disease that has been spreading throughout Prince Prospero’s country; killing his people within half an hour of contracting the disease. Throughout the story the author continuously uses diction and syntax to create suspense and evoke a grim tone to the reader. In the “Masque of The Red Death” Poe produces fearful imagery in the reader's mind through creating a supernatural presence in the setting.

Poe's prideful nature also played into“The Cask of Amontillado.” Interestingly, his pride played itself out in both helpful and hurtful ways. On the one hand, “Poe was nothing if not

Purpose Statement: To write a 900 word analytical essay over Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories, “The Pit and the Pendulum” and “The Masque of the Red Death”

the Red Death shows the futile attempts by a prince and his guests of a party,

This essay will discuss the themes in Poe’s writing that mirror his personal life and, in addition, the fear and supernatural motivators for his characters. First, I will discuss Poe’s background and explore how he became best known as a poet for his tales of mystery and macabre.

Have you ever read a story where fantasy is the reality and things do not quite make sense? This is true for “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe. In it is a version of the black plague, which is called the “Red Death”. Prince Prospero secludes a thousand friends and himself from the death around them, but finds that he cannot avoid the inevitable. The author uses many literary devices to create an interesting and meaningful story. One of the devices used is imagery, which evokes the events of the story clearly in the reader’s mind. Another is allegory, which is used by Poe to create another story within his, as it is filled with double meanings. Lastly, Poe utilizes symbolism to give the story meaning. Edgar Allan Poe uses

The enigma of Poe's survival clearly is explained by his universality … I published a review ¬essay that emphasized both Poe's hysterical badness and his inescapability… Letters poured in, many questioning my motives, and at least two radio programs accommodated outraged lovers of Poe, some of them quite passionate at denouncing me. Poe can write as badly as anyone in the language, but it makes little difference. Legions of many regions (not just the South) charge fiercely in his favor, with quasi-religious zeal. The cultural effect and influence of Poe transcend his aesthetic inadequacies. (Bloom 9-10).

As I read about different types of literary criticism, I felt compelled to apply the Marxist school of literary criticism to Poe’s short story “The Cask of Amontillado.” The Fortunato character appears to have a rising distinguished social status, a nobleness forming an equality, and or possibly surpassing the Montresor character. This changing social status acts as a symbol of the status the Montresor family name and crest used to have but it’s in decline. The success of the Fortunato creates the thousand injuries that aggravate the Montresor to plot and commit murder for revenge of the Fortunato’s success.