Symbolism In The Masque Of The Red Death

Everyone fears their own death, thus why some people will do anything to escape it. In Edgar Allan Poe's short story, “The Masque of the Red Death”, this fear is experienced by all. In the story, a prince named Prospero and his people try to elude the Red Death through seclusion and isolation in the prince's abbey. However, no walls can stop death since it is unavoidable and inescapable. Throughout the story, Poe uses symbols such as the rooms, the masked figure, and the clock to convey the theme that no one can escape death.

Starting off for the first symbol is “The Red Death” is symbolizing the plague and disease that is taking place in the Kingdom. In the story “ The Red Death” shows up the masquerade ball grabbing everybody’s attention. Poe tells us “ and now was acknowledged the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night.”(394). No one would expect the Red Death to come in especially the prince. Who thought that he would be safe in his big castle. The prince sends his guards to run after the stranger, but the stranger gets away. The Prince gets away and the stranger leads him to the seventh room which is the next symbol. The prince follows the stranger into this room and the reason it symbolizes death because this is where he dies. Poe describes this room as “The seventh apartment was closely shrouded in black velvet tapestries that hung all over the ceiling and down the walls, falling in heavy folds upon a carpet of the same material and hue. But in this chamber only, the color of the windows failed to correspond with the decorations. The panes here were scarlet --a deep blood color.” (393). So even though the prince was all-powerful he still couldn’t keep himself safe from the

Benjamin Franklin once said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” This quote is proven true in many pieces of American Literature from past to present. In Edgar Allan Poe’s, “The Masque of the Red Death,” the ebony clock, the last chamber, and the masked figure are used as symbols to represent the uncontrollable outcome of human life and exemplify the words of Benjamin Franklin.

“The Masque of the Red Death,” a short story by Edgar Allan Poe, tells the story of Prince Prospero and his futile attempts to prevent death. During his masquerade party, the prince notices an unusual figure, dressed as the Red Death, and, enraged at the sight of it, Prospero tries to kill it. Poe uses the seventh room, the ebony clock, and the Red Death itself as symbols of death throughout his story.

Liz Brent states, ‘Edgar Allan Poe’s short story ‘The Masque of the Red Death’ may be interpreted variously as a parable for man’s fear of death.’ This specific quote gives great description on the feelings of the main character in this story. The conflicts overall play a major part in the story. As Kenneth Graham says, “If time is the destroyer of all things material, so, too, is the pendulum the destroyer in the pit, and the ebony lock in.” The critic is explaining the overall conflict of this story, and displays how the ebony clock is the symbol for death. In all, conflict is important to the story, as it ties back to the themes and describes the problems occurred.

Like when Poe explains, “ This wall had gates of iron, The courtiers, having entered, brought furnaces and massy hammers and welded the bolts, They resolved to leave means neither of ingress or egress to the sudden impulses of despair or of frenzy from within”. (Poe 456). What is being said is, that they basically locked up the whole premises to prevent anyone or anything to leave or come in so he thought he was safe. Symbolizes that he is willing to do anything which meaning to lock down his whole castle from catching the disease and end up underground. But not just that, the red death still came to them and eliminated what it can and thought to be so. Towards the end, “ And one by one dropped the revellers in the blood-bedewed halls of their revel, and died each in the despairing posture of his fall”. (Poe 461). Due to the castle being locked down and no one being able to get out, at some point they were all killed by the red death. But, even with everything being close and shut from something, it will somehow or some way find its way to

Symbolism is a type of figurative language that many authors use to portray their theme and keep the reader engaged throughout the story. Edgar Allen Poe is known for often putting hidden meanings in his works and he does not disappoint with his short story, “The Masque of the Red Death” with his use of figurative language. Poe uses his writing to get his point across to the audience, all the while entertaining them with an amazing story. In “The Masque of the Red Death” Edgar Allen Poe uses the symbolism of different colors, seven rooms, and the location of the rooms to convey that death is inevitable.

In “Masque of the Red Death,” by Edgar Allan Poe, many symbols are used in the story to function in the work and to reveal the characters and themes of the story. Symbols serve many purposes in this story. Poe uses symbols all throughout the story to represent death. Poe’s use of the seven rooms, the clock, and the stranger helps to teach the reader that nothing can escape death. By using these symbols, Poe portray the idea that death can’t be escaped.

Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death” deals with the theme of death, and does deal with this topic in a literal form in the presence of the Red Death within the country in which this story takes place at the time. However, the theme of death is most heavily portrayed in the form of symbolism to represent this idea throughout the story.

Poe uses ample amounts of symbolism, to relate The Masque of The Red Death back to people's lives and choices. Poe starts off the story with examples that allude to the theme that death is inevitable. Poe states, “But the Prince Prospero was happy and dauntless and sagacious” (Poe 446). That quote gives us the characteristics of the Prince, and some symbolism. His name is supposed to sound like the word “prosper.” His name fits him well, because Prince Prospero thrives at the expense of the people in his kingdom suffering. Prince Prospero chooses to hide himself in his abbey, while his subjects get wiped out by the red death. After five to six months the Prince decides to host a masked ball to entertain his guests, since all of them feel they are superior to death. The rooms in which the masquerade is held are very peculiar. Poe illustrates to us, “These windows were of stained glass whose color varied in accordance with the prevailing hue of the decorations of

Edgar Allen Poe's "The Masque of the Red Death" takes place in seven connected but carefully separated rooms. The significance of the number seven is apparent throughout our society. The bible chronicles the creation of the world in seven days, there are seven wonders of the world, colleges and universities divide learning into seven subjects and an individuals life is thought to have seven stages. Seven also symbolizes fear and doom as in the seven signs of the apocalypse. Therefore, the seven rooms represent a person's life from pure beginning to its impending death.

The Masque Of The Red Death written by Edgar Allan Poe is a story that incorporates many symbols that is trying to convey a message to the readers. There are humans that are avoiding death because they don’t want to lose their families and friends because of a tragic disease. In the story, there is a terrible disease called “Red Death” which kills millions of people in a masquerade ball that was thrown by Prince Prospero. The symptoms of the “Red Death” are sharp pains, sudden dizziness, profuse bleeding at the pores, and blood stains upon the body and the face of the victims. This lethal disease spread quickly because it happens in just a matter of seconds. People would spot other people with a stain and automatically assumes they have the

Poe uses different symbols in “The Masque of the Red Death”, a clock that shows that life is passing by,different rooms that show the stages of life. Its eerie chiming on the hour is a regular reminder to the people that their lives are drifting away with the time, and that death is approaching. Symbolism is when the author uses something to show

The Masque Of The Red Death is an allegory that explains that people are sometimes greedy and selfish. The first symbol is the seven rooms. I think that is a symbol because each room has a different color and has very different decor. The rooms start out as blue, purple, green, violet, white, and the last is blood red. I think that the rooms symbolize the different stages in which you go through when you die. In the story nobody wants to enter the last room because it reminds them of the Red Death. The second symbol I chose was the Masquerade held by the Prince and everyone he brought to the castle was invited. Everyone was having a good time and most of the costumes were very creepy and scary. After a while people started to notice that there

the exterior is crinkling and washing away , with blood of the last calling your name.