Edgar Allen Poe: Significance of the Imperial Suite

1338 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Role of religion in english literature

Edgar Allen Poe: Significance of the Imperial Suite Allegory can be defined as a symbolic representation of fictional characters or characteristics which express factual generalizations of human existence (Miriam Webster Online, 2007). When considering this story from an allegoric perspective, one can conceive that the seven rooms are representational of one's life, with blue being birth, purple being dawn, green, orange, and white symbolize life, growth, and light. Violet can symbolize dusk, ending with black and red, being death. The red in the black room being symbolic of blood. Prince Prospero begins his pursuit in the blue room, ending in the black room where he then dies. But at times, a different perspective may be necessary, to fully understand the reading. In “Masque of the Red Death,” Edgar Allen Poe uses the main setting of the story, a seven-roomed and multi-colored suite, to symbolically represent the seven Deadly Sins associated with religion today. Within this short but meaningful story, Poe describes in such gory detail how the Red Death seals one fate with blood. He tells of pain, horror and bleeding. Furthermore, the Red Death, described as a pestilence in the short story kills quickly and alienates the sick. Describing the scene of redness and blood streaming from the pores, a strong visual is created immediately in the reader’s mind. His description of the afflicted’s pain also adds to the graphically explicit exposé of the red death disease. The red death image is morbid and aids Poe in creating a wonderfully horrific scene. At first thought, the reader may believe that the predominant color red would best represent the room covered by black velvet tapestries, but when thought of at a different perspectiv... ... middle of paper ... ... . The abbey was amply provisioned . . . With such precautions the courtiers might bid defiance to contagion . . . The external world could take care of itself.” After reading this portion of the story, the reader notices immediately how Prince Prospero and his courtiers share the similar belief that they can escape the Red Death, and have intense desires to. Works Cited Poe, Edgar Allen. "The Masque of the Red Death." Responding to Literature Orange Level. By Margaret Grauff Forst and Julie West Johnson. N.p.: Littell McDougal, 1992. 185-90. Print. "What Are the Seven Deadly Sins?" All about God. N.p., n.d. what-are-the-seven-deadly-sins-faq.htm>. Rpt. in Seven Deadly Sins. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. All about God. Web. 20 Dec. 2009. what-are-the-seven-deadly-sins-faq.htm>.

Show More
Related

  • Comparing Allegory in Masque (Mask) of the Red Death and Dr Heidegger's Experiment

    587 Words  | 2 Pages

    Edgar Allan Poe's writing style is based on the supernatural and the unknown. In The Masque of the Red Death, Prince Prospero invites the revelers to come to the castle to party until the danger of pestilence is gone. The party was interrupted by an intruder who was dressed in all black (like the Grim Reaper) and was associated with the plague of the "red death." The reaper killed everyone one by one in the end. The Masque of the Red Death is an allegory. An allegory is symbols that are presented in the story that have two levels of meaning. An example can be the clock in the story. The clock told time and represented the time they had left before they died. There were seven chambers that were different colors, and the last chamber was black, which was the last chamber that represented death. I think the seven rooms symbolized the days until you die and the clock symbolized the time until you died.

    Read More

  • Juxtaposing the Most Similar Contradiction in Edgar Allan Poe's Work

    2073 Words  | 5 Pages

    Within Edgar A. Poe’s stories, there is often a duality of emotions or sentiments, often in direct conflict with each other. Such is the case with two of his short stories focused at the motif of life versus death. “Masque of the Red Death” and “Hop-Frog” are two stories that exemplify the contrast between the two themes vividly.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Masque Of The Red Death And The Raven

    815 Words  | 2 Pages

    Authors use various styles to tell their stories in order to appeal to the masses exceptionally well and pass the message across. These messages can be communicated through short stories, novels, poems, songs and other forms of literature. Through The Masque of the Red Death and The Raven, it is incredibly easy to get an understanding of Edgar Allen Poe as an author. Both works describe events that are melodramatic, evil and strange. It is also pertinent to appreciate the fact that strange plots and eerie atmospheres are considerably evident in the author’s writings. This paper compares and contrasts The Masque of the Red Death and The Raven and proves that the fear of uncertainty and death informs Edgar Allen Poe’s writings in the two works

    Read More

  • Imagery In The Masque Of The Red Death

    489 Words  | 1 Pages

    In “The Masque of the Red Death,” Edgar Allan Poe uses imagery, sensory detail and symbolism not only to build suspense, but also to convey the idea that an individual can not hide or run away from death which becomes closer as time passes on. Throughout the story Poe uses imagery details to create suspense in the story. For example when the author is describing the disease that has taken many lives he describes the unfortunate event as, “ Blood was its Avator and its seal- the redness and the horror of blood. One can understand that in the story the tragic death of someone might occur as tragically as the disease is described. Accordingly, as the story progresses the deep shade of the color red is evident in many areas to represent symbolism.

    Read More

  • The Masque of the Red Death: Symbolism

    1428 Words  | 3 Pages

    The author, Edgar Allan Poe, using illusion or misdirection keeps the reader is suspense throughout this story called "The Masque of the Red Death". Symbolism such as the colored rooms, the impressive clock, the feeling of celebration being at a party all makes this story feel like a fairytale. Poe used this fairytale style and converts it into a nightmare in disguise.

    Read More

  • Symbolism in The Masque of the Red Death

    1690 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...Plessis, Eric H. du. “Deliberate Chaos: Poe’s Use of Colors in ‘The Masque of the Red Death’.” Poe Studies/Dark Romanticism 34.1-2 (June-December 2001): p40-42. Literature Resource Center. Web. 8 April 2012.

    Read More

  • What Does The Dark Room Symbolize In The Masque Of The Red Death

    817 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the short story “ The Masque of the Red Death,” Edgar Allen Poe uses symbolism to express ideas to develop his theme and characters. “ The Masque of the Red Death” tells a story of prince Prospero who locks his friends and himself in a castle to escape the Red Death, a deadly disease. Much to Prospero’s dismay, in the end, the deadly disease causes them to perish. Poe uses the dark room to reveal Prospero’s unusual character and reveal that death is always there and cannot be avoided.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Imagery In The Masque Of The Red Death

    775 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...th the impression that Prospero represents Poe’s image of the artist who insists on creating an ideal artwork, but whom is permanently imprisoned by the time-bound nature of life. Poe emphasizes that the artistic effort to transform temporality into spatiality is condemned to failure. Even the seven rooms, which suggest a orderly pattern of static placing, become misshapen into an image of the time span of life when Prospero follows the Red Death through a time-based development from birth to youth to maturity to old age and finally to death. It is when Prospero must confront the reality of the temporality of life that he inevitably must confront the death that life always insists on. “The Masque of the Red Death” should not be relinquished as a simple gothic horror story, but rather should be understood in terms of the aesthetic concept that dominated Poe’s work.

    Read More

  • Setting and Organization in Poe's The Masque (Mask) of the Red Death

    975 Words  | 2 Pages

    "The prince had provided all the appliances of pleasure. There were buffoons, there were improvisatori, there were ballet-dancers, there were musicians, there was Beauty, there was wine. All these and security were within. Without was the 'Red Death,'" (209). As Edgar Allen Poe set the scene for his story, he also created an ominous mood and a sense of suspense supported by the setting. He details the fun and amusement inside the prince's abbey, in contrast to the horror and doom outside, and the reader's curiosity is piqued, because such bliss cannot be maintained for long. Throughout the story Poe explicates and changes elaborate environments to build the suspenseful energy and create a strong structure. In "The Masque of the Red Death," setting is employed to organize motives and action, and to focus the reader on the climax. Poe targets the culminating point of his story using rich descriptions of the abbey, the masquerade, and the clock.

    Read More

  • The Masque Of The Red Death Figurative Language

    496 Words  | 1 Pages

    The level that the conflict is on plays a big role, bringing together two characters emotions to. Inner and outer conflicts within the Prince, and the Red Death assist in analyzing the theme of death and madness. Prince Prospero’s main conflict is with death itself. The madness of never knowing when death will come for him. The point of view in the story helps the reader to know what a specific character is thinking. Gale states, “Poe carefully chooses his words to paint a picture of unrelieved fear, suspense, and dread.” Poe’s as a special way of writing and using techniques correctly is why this story a is the reason why thousands of people still read it

    Read More

  • Allegory In The Masque Of The Red Death

    1063 Words  | 3 Pages

    The symbols and similarities are blatant to the reader. While examining the symbolism in “The Masque of the Red Death”, Poe uses seven different rooms as symbols for Prince Prospero’s party while hiding from the Red Death. Each room is a different color, representing a different stage of life. The first room, furthest to the east, is the blue room, representing birth, or the unknown alternate universe before a human enters the world. The next room is a combination of blue, and red, the hue equating life.

    Read More

  • Language and Symbolism in The Masque of the Red Death

    417 Words  | 1 Pages

    Edgar Allen Poe's The Masque of the Red Death is an elaborate allegory that combines

    Read More

  • The Fear Of Death In The Pardoner's Tale

    832 Words  | 2 Pages

    The fear of death is one of the themes for Edgar Allan Poe’s story “ The Masque of the Red Death”. Though disease of death is striking his entire country, Prince Prospero believes that he can escape from it. Prospero, as well as

    Read More

  • Poe's "The Masque of the Red Death and "The Telltale Heart"

    672 Words  | 2 Pages

    Edgar Allan Poe's short stories, "The Telltale Heart" and "The Masque of the Red Death" are two very different stories. One is about a simple man, perhaps a servant, who narrates the tale of how he kills his wealthy benefactor, and the other is about a prince who turns his back on his country while a plague known as The Red Death ravages his lands. Yet, there are some similarities in both. Time, for instance, and the stroke of midnight, seem to always herald the approach of impending death. Both are killers, one by his own hand, the other by neglecting his country. One seeks peace, the other seeks pleasure, but both are motivated by the selfish need to rid themselves of that which haunts them, even at the expense of another's life. However, the point of this critique will show that their meticulous plans to beat that which torments them are undone by a single flaw in their character - overconfidence.

    Read More

  • Criticism In The Masque Of The Red Death

    1859 Words  | 4 Pages

    Edgar Allan Poe is known for his masterful writing on all aspects of mortality, but his famous short story “The Masque of the Red Death” proves to be more than a simple story about death. While it is about death, Poe’s short story can be read and applied as a cautionary tale whose purpose is to illustrate a worthy way to live and die by portraying the opposite of both. This interpretation comes about when the story is viewed through the lens of New Criticism. This viewpoint shows how the story uses its formal elements converge to create one complex theme. Poe’s short story develops its theme through the use of paradox, tension, irony and ambiguity, all of which come together to identify

    Read More

More about Edgar Allen Poe: Significance of the Imperial Suite

Open Document