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Irony In The Masque Of Red Death

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Has fear ever caused you to commit an act you knew was morally wrong? Fear can get a hold of someone and completely change their morals, concerns, or how they feel about certain people. It can cloud your mind and make you think irrationally in certain situations. Fear is a feeling that can harm someone emotionally and physically. In stories such as: “The Tell-Tale Heart”, ”The Pit and the Pendulum”, and “The Masque of Red Death”, Edgar Allan Poe displays the use of symbolism, irony, and imagery to paint a picture in the reader’s mind. A recurring theme in his stories is that the main character acts irrationally or uncharacteristically because he is driven by fear. Symbolism in the “Tell-Tale Heart” represents a certain extent of fear. In …show more content…

The major contribution to irony in the text was Prince Prospero’s acts: “...he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusion of one of his castellated abbeys”(57). While the rest of his kingdom dies he locks himself and the rest of his friends in his castle. That shows terrible leadership and faith towards his kingdom, which only adds more irony to his name Prospero. His acts intentions were to avoid the Red Death and live longer. However, death is inevitable. He figures his selfish act was “heroism” but trying to save the few people he wants to only secures their death as the Red Death took each of their lives one by one that …show more content…

He is very good at painting a picture with is words. In “The Pit and Pendulum”, the readers visualize the scenes before them and understands the fears and trauma the narrator goes through. The imagery in this story was mostly about fear and the anticipation of what’s to come next. “...stepping with all the careful distrust with which certain antique narratives had inspired me.”(65). Unlike how most people would panic and start wandering, which would probably lead to them falling in the pit. The narrator handles the situation logically and hopefully because of his fear of the unknown and what could be in the room. His careful acts served him right because they led to him overcoming the tortures and punishments. You see the use of symbolism in “The Tell-Tale Heart” used to show the representation of death in the eye. Irony in “The Masque of Red Death” showing Prince Prospero’s failure. And imagery showing how hope and logic leading to success in “The Pit and the Pendulum”. In the end Poe’s writing represents fear and how it can distort your thoughts and make you take a turn for the worst. Or in some cases, usually more rarely, the better, as in “The Pit and the

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