The Masque Of The Red Death Figurative Language

As Helen Keller states in her book Faith Fears Not, “Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold,”. “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe tells an eerie story about a man by the name of Prince Prospero, and the lengths he has gone to escape the inevitable end to us all, death. A horrid disease referred to as ‘The Red Death’ has begun spreading wildly, taking the lives of nearly half of the town and killing everyone who comes into contact with it. Instead of helping those falling victim to the disease, Prince Prospero takes himself as well as a thousand of his close friends to an abbey, which he then welds shut in further attempt to avoid the red death. One night …show more content…
For example, when Poe describes the chambers of the abbey, he states that in the last chamber “the color of the windows failed to correspond with the decorations. The panes were scarlet, - a deep blood color.” (Page 448). Instead of using words like red, or burgundy, to describe the window, Edgar Allen Poe describes it in comparison to blood. This helps the reader visualize the glass panes, as well as puts the story in a spooky atmosphere. Once again, unique choice of words and detailed descriptions help to form an eerie picture in the readers mind. In describing the characterization of the red death, Poe states that “His vesture was dabbled in blood, - and his broad brow, with all the features of his face, was besprinkled with the scarlet horror.” (Page 451). He once again uses words to creep out the reader, such as referring to blood as a ‘scarlet horror’. As well as mentioning the man’s face is covered in it, further adding to the scary aspects of the story. Edgar Allen Poe uses multiple forms of imagery to not only create an image inside of the readers head, but also to evoke emotions within the reader, giving it an overall horrific …show more content…
For example, Poe describes the feelings of the partygoers as the clock chimes as “the same disconcert and tremulousness and meditation as before.” (Page 450). Everyone is forced to stand and stare as the clock ticks down, taking another hour of their lives with it. There is nothing they can do to stop it so instead they watch in silence as the next bit of their life drifts by. At the end of the story, the clock seizes, further embracing the use of the clock as a deeper meaning for the lives of us all. As the last of the attendees die or get closer to death, the author states that “the life of the ebony clock went out with that of the last of the gay.” (Page 452). In conclusion of the story, the clock goes out hand in hand with everyone’s life, supporting the underlying message of the story. The use of the clock as an allegory for the passage of life itself assists in bringing out the dark theme of the