Summary of "The Masque of the Red Death"
A deadly and horrific plague is sweeping the land as the 1842 story "The Masque of the Red Death" opens. Once struck, the Red Death’s hapless victims begin to writhe in pain and sweat profusely—with blood instead of sweat coursing from their pores—until all is over within minutes. Prince Prospero is desperate to escape this horrendous fate. He invites one thousand of his fellow noblemen to seek refuge at his home. Shrugging off the horrors faced by their less fortunate countrymen, the nobles gather at Prospero’s abbey to wait out the danger. As a special treat for his guests, Prospero decides to throw a masquerade ball for everyone. On the night of the ball, the abbey is decorated in extravagant fashion and the party-goers all don their costumes. As Prospero surveys the crowd, however, he notices an extra guest—a mysterious shrouded figure. When Prospero demands to know who this shameless trespasser is, he does not realize that he is in for the kind of ghoulish surprise that only Edgar Allen Poe could have dreamed up.
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Literary elements
"The Masque of the Red Death" is a story of fate. No matter what fate is always going to catch with you. The literary elements the author includes in the story are setting, dialog and imagery to portray such a brilliant story. The setting of the story is described in such depth because the author chooses to include the colors, decorations and rooms. The narrator describes the suites to form a long and straight visa, while he also says that the folding doors slide back near to the wall. So the narrator the narrator describes every aspect of his surroundings and setting. This gives the readers information about what the place looks like. The author uses imagery in the story to make the events come alive. The narrator describes the music to be wild and says that it was echoing throughout the place. Right there the reader can indicate that the music was really loud for everyone to hear it throughout the house.
Student's Review
"The Masque of the Red Death" is a beautifully written horror story, done by the master, Edgar Allen Poe. The story is placed in an area somewhere in Europe, based on the castle, during a time of great plague. The "Red Death" is a disease that makes the victim sweat blood. Prince Prospero gathers his favorite nobles and knights and invites them to his castle. He has the doors welded shut, to keep anything or anyone from entering. The Prince decides to hold a ball for the people in his castle. The party is festive, and upbeat, until the Prince spots someone who shouldn't have been there and confronts the hooded, uninvited guest. He chases the man into the black room, and finally catches him. The hooded man turns around, and it surprises everyone at the ball. The hooded figure is the Red Death its self, incarnated in the form of a man. The Prince drops down, dead from the disease, bleeding from every pore on his body.
"The Masque of the Red Death"
Connected to the Real World
This poem is connected to "The Masque of the Red Death," because the disease called the "RED DEATH" killed a huge amount of the kingdom's people and in the poem it states "Millions and billions of ceremonies". In the story the prince and his friends were killed at the masquerade ball and the poem states "Death in clubs and parties," and a ball is like a huge party. Prince Prospero was the first one to die at the ball and the poem states "Death in king," and a king and prince are both rulers.
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Also, "The Masque of the Red Death" is connected to the Raven Movie Trailers, because a group of filthy rich people at a masquerade ball are all brutally murder by someone in the movie. The actor John Cusack plays Edgar Allan Poe in the Raven and Poe is the author of this story and many others.
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The song the Red Death Ball is connected to "The Masque of the Red Death" in many ways. One way is there is a huge ball for everyone in the song and Prince Prospero has a big masquerade ball for everyone one of his friends. Both parties are meant to have lots of drinks, to dance, and have fun and the doors are both locked in the story and the song. No one survived at any of the two parties because you can't run away from death.
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Persuasive Reasoning
"The Masque of the Red Death" should be added to the ninth grade English literature textbook because it is a great tale of how an a arrogant prince met a fate of death. As a child, most teenagers were told stories of how a princess was in distress and the prince would fly in the story as a hero, saving the princess. It's a very different approach to the aspect of the royal personalities. The irony will leave the reader wanting more. The story takes place in a time of despair, but the prince hold a party, trying to entertain himself and his guests. "And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all."
As mentioned before, this story is completely opposite of what some people believe. Some of us are taught to have ambition and good will overcome all in the end, but "The Masque of Red Death" gives people a sense of hopelessness. The idea of the seven colored rooms is really enthralling. This story will intrigue the minds of teenagers, it will leave them wondering and asking questions.
As mentioned before, this story is completely opposite of what some people believe. Some of us are taught to have ambition and good will overcome all in the end, but "The Masque of Red Death" gives people a sense of hopelessness. The idea of the seven colored rooms is really enthralling. This story will intrigue the minds of teenagers, it will leave them wondering and asking questions.