Psychoanalysis of “The Masque of the Red Death”
When dealing with humans, it is safe to that say there is always a motive behind one’s actions, whether consciously or unconsciously. Originally written in 1842, Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death” portrays a dark, death-filled story of a plague sweeping through a country. His tone and writing style provokes deeper thought as to the motivation for the production of such a gothic piece. In order to have a thorough understanding of literature, one must learn as much as possible about the author and his life. It is through psychoanalysis readers are able to identify Poe’s use of theme, characterization and setting manifests not only his past experiences, but his personal thoughts during the creation of the short story.
Poe suffered a substantial amount of loss during his short life, which would probably account for the story’s predominant theme being illness and the inevitability of death. Poe’s death drive is clear in his work as “it is a challenge to find a story …show more content…
“The Masque of the Red Death” takes place within Prince Prospero’s decadent palace that has been welded shut, under the selfish impression that “the external world could take care of itself” (Poe 431). The palace contains seven colored chambers representing the seven ages of human life. Beginning with vivid blue and ending with black, Poe uses color to illustrate each stage of life. . The first chamber is situated in the east and the last chamber is westernmost, just as the sun rises and sets, and humans are born and die. “Sharp turns at every twenty or thirty yards” (Poe 432) show that life is sudden and harsh at times. As the eccentric prince navigates the crowd through the various chambers, death looms in the air. With “arabesque figures with unsuited limbs” (Poe 433) and a thousand people hiding beneath masks, the story possesses an overall dreamy, unrealistic
When dealing with humans, it is safe to that say there is always a motive behind one’s actions, whether consciously or unconsciously. Originally written in 1842, Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death” portrays a dark, death-filled story of a plague sweeping through a country. His tone and writing style provokes deeper thought as to the motivation for the production of such a gothic piece. In order to have a thorough understanding of literature, one must learn as much as possible about the author and his life. It is through psychoanalysis readers are able to identify Poe’s use of theme, characterization and setting manifests not only his past experiences, but his personal thoughts during the creation of the short story.
Poe suffered a substantial amount of loss during his short life, which would probably account for the story’s predominant theme being illness and the inevitability of death. Poe’s death drive is clear in his work as “it is a challenge to find a story …show more content…
“The Masque of the Red Death” takes place within Prince Prospero’s decadent palace that has been welded shut, under the selfish impression that “the external world could take care of itself” (Poe 431). The palace contains seven colored chambers representing the seven ages of human life. Beginning with vivid blue and ending with black, Poe uses color to illustrate each stage of life. . The first chamber is situated in the east and the last chamber is westernmost, just as the sun rises and sets, and humans are born and die. “Sharp turns at every twenty or thirty yards” (Poe 432) show that life is sudden and harsh at times. As the eccentric prince navigates the crowd through the various chambers, death looms in the air. With “arabesque figures with unsuited limbs” (Poe 433) and a thousand people hiding beneath masks, the story possesses an overall dreamy, unrealistic