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Edgar Allan Poe writing style and techniques
Literary devices in masque of the red death
Edgar Allan Poe literary technique
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Edgar Allen Poe’s writing is often characterized by his innate ability to elicit a sense of foreboding within the reader. Due to how the deaths of his mother and wife and facing abandonment from his father, Poe became infatuated with death and the limits of human sanity. These themes are common characteristics of many of his short stories. However, The Masque of the Red Death, published in 1842, in particular utilizes many literary devices which contribute to the haunting overall tone and mood in the story.
The title itself The Masque of the Red Death, suggests that death will take an uncommon form in the story. This prepares the reader to interpret the text and expect a less shock oriented horror story. In the exposition Poe describes the slow, yet grotesque nature of death using descriptive imagery. “Blood was its Avatar and its seal—the redness and the horror of
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blood. There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution.”(Poe) He then quickly parallels the horrors of the subjects to the opulent life of Prince Prospero. He does this by using the word “but” as a contrast, just as he finishes describing the horrors. Additionally, this parallel gives the reader a sense of what type of person Prospero is and how he is used to represent the willful ignorance that plagues mankind. Moreover, Another unique feature of The Masque of the Red Death is the grandiose gothic imagery.
Poe's use of imagery to depict death is not all at once startling, but instead promotes a sense of uneasness and eventual danger in the reader. In the phrase “The figure was tall and gaunt, and shrouded from head to foot in the habiliments of the grave. The mask which concealed the visage was made so nearly to resemble the countenance of a stiffened corpse that the closest scrutiny must have had difficulty in detecting the cheat.”(Poe) Poe suggests that the corpse-like mask was more bearable than that which was being concealed. This builds both suspense, and adds to the mystery of what is to come. Additionally, allusions are made throughout the text, these help to add a deeper layer of understanding and relevance for the reader. Poe states that the ghastly figure encroaching on the masquerade “out heroded Herod”(Poe). This alludes to the infamous biblical figure King Herod, who ordered the murder of countless Jewish and Hebrew children, thus, it was used to emphasize the maleficence of the shrouded
creature. Additionally, the diction used in the text helps to create a whimsical mood, and as the story progresses, an increasingly eerie one. When describing the masquerade Poe states “It was a voluptuous scene.”(Poe) He uses the world voluptuous, instead of, perhaps “lively” to denote the splendor of the courtiers and prince. Also, when describing the chambers and their coinciding colors he says “the panes were scarlet, a deep blood color.”(Poe) as explained in the quote, he uses “scarlet” instead of red to signify blood, and enhance the reader’s visuals. Furthermore, the seven chambers also serve as allusion to another biblical theme. These rooms could perhaps be alluding to the different layers of torment in hell. Poe’s works remain timeless even after a century due to its resonance with readers and his exploration of the human capacity for grief, vengeance, and the limits of human sanity when in fear. Themes themes continue to be intriguing to many readers, capturing the imaginations of jaded literary critics and new readers alike.
Suspense is the feeling of uncertainty or excitement, in waiting for an outcome or decision. Edgar Allan Poe uses suspense in his story “Masque of the Red Death” by using objects and great descriptive detail. Poe’s story is about a prince that tries to escape from the inevitable. He tries to lock himself away from the ‘red death’ and has a masquerade ball that doesn’t end happily. Prince and all of his guests die inside or around the seventh apartment room. The seventh room is preceded by six colored rooms which are meant to symbolize either the stages of life, or the seven sins. Inside the last room there are black velvet tapestries that hang all over the ceiling and down the walls. The window panes are a deep blood red color which gives the room an unwelcoming atmosphere. On the western wall, there is a gigantic clock of a deep black wood. Inside it has a pendulum that swings back and forth with a dull monotonous clang. When the minute hand marks a new hour, there is a clear, loud, deep sound, which can be heard from far away. Although it can give off an eerie feeling, the great eb...
The Masque of the Red Death was very serious from the beginning to end. The story never pulled away from the sense of a looming threat. Poe did not waste anytime, he cut straight to the point and set the tone right away. The tone relates to people language and the specific words that he uses to create illusion and imagery. Poe uses different times of words to define his language which is called Old English today. Poe sentences are also short and they are practically identical in the simple structure. Poe is a very different writer than most writers today, he has a unique way about his language.
Edgar Allan Poe uses symbolism to show the transition leading to death by using each of the seven rooms in the castle to represent a stage of life. The first room was all blue with vividly painted blue tapestries, which symbolized birth and beginning of life. The next room was all purple with matching panes of purple. With the passing of each room went the passing of time. The last room is all black with matching tapestries. The only thing that did not match were the window panes which were scarlet a d...
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
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.
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 of the revulsion of this disease, Poe uses words such as "devastated," "fatal," "horror of blood," and "sharp pains and profuse bleeding." In summary, the story relates the prince, trying to be safe and away from the horrible death, invites a thousand friends to be in seclusion in his abbey away from the disease. During a celebration , a masked ball at the abbey - with incredible described rooms and moods - a surprise masked intruder causes death to all.
Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Masque of the Red Death” Literature An Introduction to Reading and Writing. ED. Edgar V Roberts and Robert Zweig. Boston, Longman: 2012. 516-519.
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.
As in many of Edgar Allan Poe’s stories, the point of view and narration cause the reader turmoil and a sense of being perturbed. The point of view and narration go hand in hand in many of Poe’s stories. Several of Poe’s tales, including “The Masque of the Red Death,” cause turmoil for many readers who attempt to situate the narration and point of view within the story. This in turn causes a sense of disorientation for the reader. In general, Poe’s narration and point of view are one in the same; for the most part they are of an omniscient presence or unreliable character. Yet, in “The Masque of the Red Death” point of view and narration are both. Through the tale, the point of view is of a presence that knows and sees everything; while the
Poe also used his words kill as a magician to build the bloody imageries to make the audience feel reliable to his purpose. First he describe the terrible of Red Death, "There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the sympathy of his fellow men’’(Poe 43). It was a bloody scene , Poe portrayed the death scene horrorly to make the death in this story became more scary. Then Poe described Prince turn to died ‘’The figure was tall and gaunt, and shrouded from head to foot in the habilments of the grave...His vesture was dabed in blood and his broad brow, with all the features of the face was besprinkled with the scarlet horror’’( Poe 46). He performed the death of Prince is more horrible than everybody to get a strong conforment. Although The prince do everything to avoid the death but he still died. Not only sight, He was using hearing imagery too ”it's a pendulum swung and fro with a heavy monotonous clang; it came from the brazen lungs of the sound which was clear and loud
"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.
Madeline Kincer Mr. Thompson 1302-4200 March 12, 2015 The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allen Poe There is an exuberating, whimsical expression that comes throughout reading “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe. The gothic imagery is personified and leaves an eerie chill down the readers’ spine. ” The Masque of the Red Death” is a short thriller about a plague terrorizing the country. The “Red Death” began by only killing the poor and weak members of society, the high class people were becoming concerned, so they attempted to hide from the Red Death.
Poe's description of the setting presents the reader with such a realistic image of the scene that the reader cannot help but believe the story when first it is first read. The reader is manipulated by the author into believing that the story could actually be true. Poe accomplishes this manipulation by describing the setting in great detail. Seemingly half of the story is setting, rather than actual action. Poe begins with description of the 'Red Death,' proceeds to describe the
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.
For example Poe states “While none followed him on account of a deadly terror that had seized upon all” (Poe). The masked figure represents the red death and how the people that thought they were safe were not safe. They figured if they stayed inside they would not be exposed to the red death. The supernatural figure represented the red death. The prince got killed in the black room showing death in that room.