Introduction
The Masque of the Red Death is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe that was first published in 1842. It tells the story of Prince Prospero who holds a masquerade ball in his abbey to try and avoid a deadly plague known as the Red Death. The story contains a lot of symbolic imagery and allegory related to themes of death and morality. In this essay, we’ll explore the key symbols used in The Masque of the Red Death and what they represent.
The Red Death
The most obvious symbol in the story is the Red Death itself, which represents the plague that is devastating the country. The Red Death is described as a gruesome disease that causes sharp pains, sudden dizziness, and profuse bleeding, inevitably leading to death. It’s an inescapable force that lays waste to Prince Prospero’s kingdom. The color red is commonly associated with blood, violence, and death. The Red Death is a grim reminder of our mortality and the inevitability of death. It can be viewed as a symbol of the impartiality and inevitability of death, that comes for all regardless of wealth or status.
Prince Prospero
Prince Prospero symbolizes the wealthy, decadent nobility who try to avoid death through lavish parties and revelry. He is described as happy and dauntless, but also as callous and uncaring about the plight of his people suffering from the plague. Prince Prospero thinks he can use his wealth to fortify himself and his nobles against death, but he is mistaken. This makes him a symbol of hubris and folly. His name evokes prosperity and optimism, which serves as irony in the face of the tragic events that unfold.
The Abbey
Prince Prospero holds his revelrous masquerade ball within a secluded abbey with “strong and lofty walls”. This highlights that those inside have literally and figuratively isolated themselves from the outside world and the plight of their people. Within the walls of the abbey, the nobles indulge in entertainment, decadence and debauchery, suggesting moral decay. So while they think they have fortified themselves within the walls, they cannot escape the larger fate of mortality. The abbey symbolizes the corruption and fragility of those who think they can avoid death’s grasp.
The Masquerade Ball
The masquerade ball and its seven colored rooms symbolize the pretense the nobles are under within the abbey. The guests wear masks and costumes, indulging in decadence and revelry while pretending that doom is not imminent. Each room is decorated and illuminated in a different color of the rainbow, which evokes the major hues associated with life. The ball can be seen as Prospero and his nobles reveling in life one last time before the Red Death inevitably claims them. But it also symbolizes the frivolity, excess, and overindulgence of the nobles in contrast to the suffering outside.
The Clock
Within the ballroom hangs an ominous ebony clock that signals the end of each hour with a disturbing clang. As it rings, the revelers cease their masquerade and the orchestra stops playing momentarily. But once it stops sounding they return to their decadence. The clock serves as a memento mori, reminding the partygoers of the passage of time and the inevitability of death. While they drink and dance the hours away, the clock startles them back to the reality they are trying to ignore. The clock symbolizes death’s constant approach.
The Masked Figure
At the height of the masquerade, a mysterious figure disguised in a shroud and corpse-like mask of red appears. This masked stranger symbolizes the Red Death itself infiltrating the abbey. While the revelers are dressed in colorful, lively costumes, the figure is dressed like a corpse presaging their fate. The partygoers are shocked at the figure’s horrific costume and audacity to mock the Red Death. But this augurs their downfall, as death comes for them despite all their revelry and supposed fortifications. The Red Death mocks their pretensions, bringing about their tragic end.
Conclusion
In The Masque of the Red Death, Poe uses ominous symbols to explore the inevitability of death and the folly of thinking it can be avoided. The Red Death represents the impartial, grim nature of death that comes for all. Prince Prospero and his nobles indulge in pointless revelry and decadence within the abbey to escape their tragic fate. The masquerade ball and colored rooms presage the larger theme of death’s inevitability. And the mysterious masquerade figure symbolizes death infiltrating their lavish party, sealing their demises. These symbolic representations amplify the story’s dark, gothic themes.
Key Symbols Table
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| The Red Death | Represents the deadly plague devastating the country. Symbolizes the inevitability of death. |
| Prince Prospero | Represents the foolish nobles who try to avoid death through decadence. Symbol of hubris. |
| The Abbey | Where Prospero holds the masquerade ball. Represents isolation from suffering and moral decay. |
| The Masquerade Ball | Represents the pretense and decadence of the nobles avoiding death. Evokes the colors of life. |
| The Clock | Ominous clock that signals the hours. Symbolizes the constant approach of death. |
| Masked Figure | Figure dressed like a corpse in red. Symbolizes the Red Death infiltrating the abbey. |
Analysis of Key Symbols
Let’s take a deeper look at some of the key symbols in The Masque of the Red Death and how they help convey the story’s dark themes:
The Red Death
The Red Death is the central symbol of the story, representing the deadly plague devastating Prince Prospero’s kingdom. It is described as a gruesome disease that causes sharp pains, dizziness, bleeding, and ultimately death. The name “Red Death” and its physical effects evoke images of violence, blood, and bodily destruction. Red is commonly associated with concepts like blood, danger, violence, and death. Through this symbol, Poe establishes a sense of horror and doom from the outset of the story. The personification of the disease as the “Red Death” gives it an ominous, malevolent quality. Poe’s vivid description of the Red Death’s effects also viscerally conveys the suffering and devastation of the plague. The horrific nature of the Red Death establishes an atmosphere of dread and inevitability within the story. As the disease lays waste to the country, it can be viewed as symbolizing the impartial, merciless nature of death itself.
Prince Prospero
Prince Prospero symbolizes the folly of trying to avoid death through wealth and decadence. He is the wealthy ruler who uses his fortune to avoid the plague by hiding away with his nobles in an isolated abbey. Within the abbey walls, Prospero indulges in entertainment, food, alcohol and debauchery with his courtiers, trying to create a paradise where the external tragedy cannot touch him. This highlights Prospero’s extreme hubris and mistaken belief that he can use his status and wealth to fortify himself against the inevitability of death. His lavish masquerade ball represents the extremes he will go to in order to avoid facing his people’s suffering and his own mortality. When the Red Death infiltrates the abbey, killing Prospero and his courtiers, it underscores the message that death comes for all regardless of social class or earthly power. Prospero serves as a warning about the pitfalls of decadence, isolation and believing one can cheat death.
The Clock
Throughout the abbey is an ominous giant ebony clock that sounds each hour with a chilling, disturbing clang. With each sounding of the clock, the revelers halt their masquerade and the orchestra stops playing momentarily. But once it stops, the party resumes again in full debauched swing. This clock introduces an element of unease and mortality into the lively masquerade atmosphere. The clock’s disturbing clang is a reminder of the passage of time and that death is drawing nearer with each hour that passes. It symbolizes death’s constant approach. When the clock causes the revelers to momentarily halt their decadence, it is like they are given a moment of clarity to contemplate their mortality. But they willfully return to revelry once the clock stops. The sounding clock presages the coming doom, showing that while Prospero and his nobles drink and dance the hours away, death is drawing incrementally closer. The clock counts down their final hours of ignorant bliss before the Red Death claims them.
The Masked Figure
At the climax of the masquerade ball, a mysterious figure dressed in a corpse-like shroud and mask appears, evoking terror and dismay amongst the partygoers. This figure symbolizes the Red Death, or death itself, infiltrating the abbey in order to reap the lives of Prospero and the nobles. While the revelers are dressed in costumes and masks of beauty and vibrancy, the figure wears a white shroud and red mask that makes it look like a corpse risen from the grave. This macabre costume symbolizes their tragic fate, foreshadowing that death has come for them amidst their revelry. The figure mocks the masqueraders, who are shocked at its audacity to come costumed as a victim of the Red Death. When Prospero confronts the figure and succumbs to the Red Death, it signals the end for all who cannot escape the abbey walls. The symbolic masked figure turns the masquerade ball into a danse macabre by heralding the inevitability of death and sealing the revelers’ doom.
Use of Contrast
Poe makes powerful use of contrast within the symbols of The Masque of the Red Death. There is a visual contrast between the bright, lively appearances of the masquerade party and abbey rooms compared to the macabre costume and mask of the Red Death figure. This heightens the horror when death infiltrates the colorful revelry. There is irony in the Red Death appearing amidst specimens of visual art and beauty collected by Prospero to adorn the abbey rooms.
There is also contrast between the lavish, decadent world of the abbey and the death and suffering in the outside world being ravaged by the Red Death. This highlights the willful ignorance of the nobles as they revel in excess. It also underscores how fundamentally disconnected Prospero and his courtiers are from the true fragility of life.
The most crucial contrast is the one between youth, vibrancy and life associated with the prospering courtiers, and the concept of death. The nobles attempt to fortify themselves against mortality, oblivious to the omens of the Red Death and clock counting down their final hours. But the juxtaposition shows that death comes for all regardless of wealth, power or earthly delight.
Conclusion
In Edgar Allan Poe’s gothic tale The Masque of the Red Death, symbols play a critical role in establishing mood, conveying themes and amplifying the chilling horror of the story. The Red Death represents the merciless and inevitable nature of death itself. Prince Prospero’s decadent masquerade ball within the fortified abbey symbolizes the folly of trying to avoid mortality through worldly extravagance. Omens like the giant ebony clock and mysterious masked figure signal the coming of death amidst their revelry. These symbols contrast the vibrant prosperity of the nobles with the grim inevitability of mortality. Through its symbolic representations, vivid imagery and macabre atmosphere, The Masque of the Red Death explores solemn themes about the fragility of life and powerlessness in the face of death. The story’s symbols continue to haunt and provoke readers as testaments to our human mortality.