The Cask Of Amontillado And The Masque Of The Red Death Analysis

In the "Masque of the Red Death," the first sentence, "The Red Death had long devastated the country," sets the tone for the whole story. Poe describes the horrors of the disease, stressing the redness of the blood and the scarlet stains. The disease kills so quickly that one can die within thirty minutes of being infected with the disease. To create a frightening effect

In the short story, “Masque of the Red Death”, Edgar Allen Poe uses characterization to illustrate the psychological destruction of the Prince. Throughout the story, Prince Prospero struggles with

In the short story, Poe uses the literary element of allusion. Poe alludes to 1 Thessalonians 5:2 from the bible when he compares the characterization of the Red Death as “coming like a thief in the night.” This illustrates how the plague is devious and comes without warning.

If this is so then Mr. Poe has based the seven different rooms as an allegation to William Shakespeare’s “Seven Ages of Men”. In this poem Mr. Shakespeare states, the seven ages of man are “the infant, the whining school-boy, the lover, the soldier, the justice, the lean and slipper’d pantaloons, and lastly second childishness and mere oblivion.” (Harcourt) This

In “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe the allegory of this story is death, symbolically and literally. The literal portion is about the Red Death and how no one can escape it.

about conveying these feelings to his readers and why it is so effective. Poe uses an

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.

The intricately placed details and glimpses of death in “The Cask of Amontillado” can establish a dark and thought-provokingly immersive environment for the reader to explore. Being able to make a connection with a story and digging in is a wonderful experience and is something every reader should be able to do. That is why “The Cask of Amontillado” is such an important story. Poe left out any extra details that were not needed and boiled the story down to the core essentials. This allows the reader to look straight into the heart of the story and immerse themselves in it

The overall conflict of the story “The Masque of the Red Death,” has to do with how death

Edgar Allen Poe's “The Masque of the Red Death” is an extravagant allegory of the futility of trying to escape death. In the story, a prince named Prospero tries to avoid the Red Death through isolation and seclusion. He hides behind the impenetrable walls of his castle and turns his back on the rest of the world. But no walls can stop death because it is unavoidable and inevitable. Through the use of character, setting, point of view, and symbol, Poe reveals the theme that no one, regardless of status, wealth or power can stay the passing of time and the inevitable conclusion of life itself, death.

Cask of amontillado is on of Edgar Allan Poe’s best works it tells of deception and murder. In the cask of amontillado Edgar Allan Poe uses gothic literature to describe murder. Poe’s use of an unreliable narrator in his short story successfully creates a eerie effect for his reader.

By using word choice, Poe created extravagant amounts of suspense. “The Cask of Amontillado” is a great example of how Poe uses literary elements, using them to depict a story of revenge and create a suspenseful mood. This is shown in lines 149 to 152 when the book states the following: “We passed through a range of low arches, descended, passed on and descending again, arrived at a deep crypt, in which the foulness of the air caused our flambeaux rather to glow than flame.” This quote uses imagery to describe the setting and uses sensory details to help create the suspenseful mood. This helps set the tone of the story which contributes to the overall feel of the story which can make or break a piece of literature. This is how Poe expertly uses literary terms in “The Cask of Amontillado” to help produce the suspenseful mood that improves on his pieces of literature.

Also, Fortunato of “The Cask of Amontillado was a wealthy aristocrat, who indulged excessively in alcohol, was murdered by Montresor, because of insults. This confirmed Poe’s dislike of both aristocracy and anyone, who overindulged and highlighted another likeness between the two stories. Regardless of the shared minor themes, the major themes of the stories are different. In “The Cask of Amontillado” narrating how Montresor took his revenge on Fortunato, therefore being primarily a tale of revenge, whereas, the horrific end of Prince Prospero and his house guest who sought a safe place of protection in his palace indicated the main idea of “The Masque of the Red Death” to be death and how no one could have escaped it and how it came unexpectedly, “like a thief in the night” (Poe 323).

    Edgar Allan Poe once said, “With me, poetry has not been a purpose, but a passion.” When stressed, writing was his coping mechanism, and through observation, many grasp how much death encompassed Poe. Although not appreciated during his era, he revolutionized mystery with mesmerizing story plots that yield suspense, but also makes readers question his stability. Most importantly, unlike those famous during his lifetime who are now forgotten, Poe’s legacy will live on forever. Moreover, throughout life, Poe experienced catastrophe, and because of this, writing became his creative outlet.

As a gothic writer, Edgar Allan Poe created horror using gloom as his weapon. Hidden within the suspenseful story of “The Masque of Red Death” is an allegorical tale of how individuals deal with the fear of death as time passes. Frantic activities and pleasures (as represented by Prince Prospero and his guests) seek to wall out the threat of death. However, the story reminds the reader that death comes “like a thief in the night”(Poe 3), and even those who seek peace and safety shall not escape. Poe uses symbolism to illustrate that man cannot hide from his own mortality.