Lester Small
LITR 220
24 February 2013
The Masque of the Red Death vs. The Cask of Amontillado
“The Masque of the Red Death” and “The Cask of Amontillado” written by Edgar Allan Poe are somewhat different. The major themes of these stories differ significantly, as does the emphasis placed on each character which dealt more to The Cask of Amontillado” than to “The Masque of the Red Death” Regardless of this, the stories are similar in many ways. For instance, both belong to the literacy of the gothic genre, it shared a small theme, and the characters shared a lot of the same characteristics. Poe known as a great writer how was his overall literary style determined for these two short stories? The similarities of both tales belong to…show more content… No matter how secured the castle was, the lavish clothing worn, or how rich the food was, the guest nor Prince Prospero could escaped death. The story was also shown as a punishment to Prince Prospero because of his arrogant belief that he could have used his wealth to fend off the natural, tragic progress of death. Prospero’s arrogance combined with a grievous insensitivity to the troubles of his less fortunate countrymen. Although Prospero assisted those in need, his wealth was turned into a mode of self defense and self-indulgence. Let’s move to the most important part of symbolism in “The Masque of the Red Death”, the color of the chambers in the palace, in order (Poe 320). These allegories represent the stages of life. Poe made it a point to arrange the rooms running from East to West. This is symbolically significant because it represented the life cycle of day, which the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, with night signifying death. What transformed these sets of symbols into an allegory was the realm of human beings. The sequence of events from East to West performed by Prince Prospero and Red Death symbolized the human travel from birth to death. The black room, created by Poe, was the ominous final point. The room feared by the guests, who also feared death. The clock located in the room reminded the guests of death final judgment. In “The Cask of Amontillado”, Poe’s use of color imagery was central to his
