Symbols In The Masque Of The Red Death

730 Words2 Pages

“The Masque of the Red Death” Symbolization In the short story, “The Masque of the Red Death”, by Edgar Allan Poe, Poe always has some sort of symbolism for each main element. He is never straight to the point and typically extends one short sentence into a whole paragraph. Almost everything in this story has a significant meaning such as the title itself, Prince Prospero,the rooms, and the mysterious figure. Not only does this story include all these elements, but it also has a lesson at the end of this which is that it does not matter what type of person one is; one can never escape death. Poe creates seven rooms with each having their own unique color. According to the text, “...the room in which it was held...were seven-an imperial suite” (Poe 4). Poe chooses seven rooms because it symbolizes the seven deadly sins: gluttony, …show more content…

The “Masque” can be a symbol for two things: hidden and elegance. The uninvited figure wore a bloody mask that concealed his or her identity and once the party guests attacked the figure, they found nothing behind the mask. Somehow, the figure was mysteriously hidden. The “Masque” can also be a symbol of elegance because the party were only for the wealthy and powerful. Also, prior to Prince Prospero charged towards the figure, the figure was walking gracefully and was in no rush through each room all the way to the seventh room. Furthermore, “Red Death” is a symbol for suffering and death. For example, “...profuse bleeding at its pores, with dissolution” (Poe 3). This shows that the victim suffers tremendously by constant bleeding with an addition of the body falling apart. Following that chaos, is a slow, horror-filled, and inescapable death as shown in the text, “And the whole seizure, progress, and termination of the disease, were the incidents of half an hour” (Poe 3). All in all, the title has a great impact on the

Open Document