In Edgar Allan Poe 's short story "The Masque of the Red Death", the plague has devastated Prince Prospero 's kingdom, leaving most of the population dead or infected. The Prince responds to this tragedy by securing himself, and one thousand of the most regal lords and ladies, in a castellated abbey; this their attempt to escape death themselves, however, they are aware that this cannot be done. The dread of this inevitable death is displayed symbolically and through the vivid language used by Poe. The abbey contains seven chambers each of which symbolizes a different stage in a person 's life. Within the most heinous room stands a grand ebony clock; this is a symbol that time moves in one direction and towards the inevitable fate of death.
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The seven extravagant rooms are each decorated differently and all painted bright, lovely and inviting colors; the seventh room, however, is painted black and blood red. These rooms all symbolize something different; each of the seven suites can be connected to The Seven Stages of Man as presented by William Shakespeare in his play As You Like It. These stages are stated to be as follows: birth, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle age, senior years, and lastly death. Each room stands as one of the six stages of being alive, whereas the seventh room is a symbol of death. The colors of the rooms also hold significance. Blue is associated with purity and birth. Purple is symbolic of royalty and prosperity. Green represents life and growth. Orange embodies happiness and radiance. White symbolizes purity and innocence. The color violet is a symbol of knowledge. Black symbolizes death, darkness and suffering. The partygoers avoid going into this last, dark room as they are trying to escape the inevitable death of which the room represents, "But to the chamber which lies most westwardly of the seven, there are now none of the maskers who venture." The partygoers know that their fate is inevitable but refused to accept it. This last room represents a darkness that none of the guests are willing to …show more content…
The masked figure is the embodiment of the plague as shown by the reactions of everybody attending the masquerade upon its arrival. The figure is even dressed in a ghostly and death-like way “...shrouded from head to foot in the habiliments of the grave. The mask which concealed the visage was so nearly to resemble the countenance of a stiffened corpse…” The comparison to a corpse is not only a symbol of the death it exemplifies but also foreshadows the death it is to bring. They are all instantly terrified and know exactly what is coming. They have known their gruesome fate the entire time, but only now realize they can no longer remain incognizant. The figure chases The Prince and his guests through the seven rooms, each of which symbolizes The Seven Stances of Man, “and, while the vast assembly, as if with one impulse, shrank from the centres of the rooms to the walls, he made his way uninterruptedly, but with the same solemn and measured step which had distinguished him from the first, through the blue
The seven extravagant rooms are each decorated differently and all painted bright, lovely and inviting colors; the seventh room, however, is painted black and blood red. These rooms all symbolize something different; each of the seven suites can be connected to The Seven Stages of Man as presented by William Shakespeare in his play As You Like It. These stages are stated to be as follows: birth, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle age, senior years, and lastly death. Each room stands as one of the six stages of being alive, whereas the seventh room is a symbol of death. The colors of the rooms also hold significance. Blue is associated with purity and birth. Purple is symbolic of royalty and prosperity. Green represents life and growth. Orange embodies happiness and radiance. White symbolizes purity and innocence. The color violet is a symbol of knowledge. Black symbolizes death, darkness and suffering. The partygoers avoid going into this last, dark room as they are trying to escape the inevitable death of which the room represents, "But to the chamber which lies most westwardly of the seven, there are now none of the maskers who venture." The partygoers know that their fate is inevitable but refused to accept it. This last room represents a darkness that none of the guests are willing to …show more content…
The masked figure is the embodiment of the plague as shown by the reactions of everybody attending the masquerade upon its arrival. The figure is even dressed in a ghostly and death-like way “...shrouded from head to foot in the habiliments of the grave. The mask which concealed the visage was so nearly to resemble the countenance of a stiffened corpse…” The comparison to a corpse is not only a symbol of the death it exemplifies but also foreshadows the death it is to bring. They are all instantly terrified and know exactly what is coming. They have known their gruesome fate the entire time, but only now realize they can no longer remain incognizant. The figure chases The Prince and his guests through the seven rooms, each of which symbolizes The Seven Stances of Man, “and, while the vast assembly, as if with one impulse, shrank from the centres of the rooms to the walls, he made his way uninterruptedly, but with the same solemn and measured step which had distinguished him from the first, through the blue