The red death in “The Masque of The Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe was based most likely on the Black Death or the Bubonic Plague. The red death and the Black Death have similar symptoms but not exactly the same. Both viruses ended in death just as Ebola (usually) does. When comparing the “The Masque of The Red Death” and the Ebola article,, I don’t think that he was talking about Ebola. But, he could have heard something about a slave that had Ebola. And, the red death(basing it on the Black Death) and Ebola have different percentiles and time periods till termination. The patients were also treated differently, so I don’t really think Poe was writing Ebola. And, I don’t believe Poe was writing about Ebola because to me the chance he “guessed” that Ebola would come is extremely small. …show more content…
For instance, bleeding from pores, that’s never a good sign. (if Poe was basing the red death off of the Black Death)That if someone would get the Black Death now, they probably wouldn’t die. And as to why, is because we are more sanitary now(Plus, its very rare now). So I don’t think he could have been talking about Ebola because every masquerader died, so if it was Ebola at least like one of the 1000 persons would have survived. Also “The Masque of The Red Death” wasn't as descriptive(to the symptoms about the red death) as the Ebola article was, so I think if he was more descriptive it would have similar to
The novel Fever 1793 , written by Laurie Anderson, is a narrative which describes the yellow fever epidemic in the late 1700’s. This epidemic caused the deaths of 5,000 or more people in a town of 50,000 in only 3 months. A young girl named Mattie from the town of Philadelphia has to deal with the deathly illness spreading around the world. The novel begins with the death of Mattie’s childhood friend, Polly. The citizens continued their daily lives shrugging off the death as a fluke and tried to ignore the fact that something was very wrong.
It happened in the bright, hot, dry like the desert in the summer of 1793. If you got infected by yellow fever you must of gotten bit by a tiny, fast flying, loud buzzing mosquitoes. Sadly 2,000 to 5,000 souls died because of this murderous disease. The comparison of the American doctors and French doctors you might believe do show a few similarities.
Edgar Allan Poe, writer of "The Masque of the Red Death" could very well be talking about present-day disease, Ebola. In the story, many things send readers' minds straight to the disease and for good reason. Poe could be psychic, or he may simply have a very avid imagination; nonetheless, the similarities are very, very strange. Some of those similarities are the symptoms. One symptom that stands out in my mind as a similarity is the bleeding of the pores.
The Black Death was not just one disease, it was three diseases that were all around at the same time. They were the bubonic, pneumonic and septicemic plagues. They each attacked different parts of the body and were all deadly. The bubonic is the most common one so the other two are often forgotten. Despite the religious views, the plague did not differentiate between race, culture, wealth, gender or religion.
Ebola Viruses There are many different ways to pass away, some harsher than others. In “The Hot Zone” By Richard Preston, there are a few different viruses explained to be deadly to not only humans, but other species as well. The hot zone is an area on earth that contains lethal, infectious organisms. Marburg virus, Ebola Zaire, and Sudan virus all contribute to making the hot zone so pernicious.
In Edgar Allen Poe’s, “The Masque of the Red Death”, the terror spreading throughout the guests of the party helps it seem as if the Red Death was slowly forcing itself into the masquerade. The masked figure within the story is described as “…unutterable horror” (Poe, 452). The vivid descriptions within the story produce anxiety and cause unease for the guests, adding to the underlying fear of the current red death pandemic. A quote that builds a lot of suspense is “…turned suddenly and confronted his pursuer” (Poe, 452). This chase forces the guests to freeze because a confrontation is about to happen.
“We were in the center of a dying city.” That was the thought of millions of yellow fever victims during the devastating outbreak of 1793. This disaster is the focus of the nonfiction text “An American Plague.” The text is about a young woman, Catherine LeMaige, who lost her life to yellow fever, although her doctors did all they could. After recounting the symptoms, they concluded Catherine had contracted yellow fever, and was one of the earliest victims.
Another similarity between Smallpox and the black death is that they both advanced important movements. Smallpox is credited with being the cause of the rise of the American abolition movement. White people living in the slave ports feared for their own health, which brought the notion of the movement itself. The Black Death is credited with being the cause of the Reformation. Due to people like William the One-day Priest, the church was thought to be corrupt.
There actually was a yellow fever outbreak that hit Philadelphia in 1793. It was one of the worst epidemics in US history. In almost three months it killed nearly 10% of the city’s population, which is around 5,000 people. Many had fled the city even Congressman as mentioned in the book, along with George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Since medicine wasn’t very developed at the time many doctors did drain blood from patients, trying to get rid of the “pestilence”.
The American Plague, otherwise known as Yellow Fever, struck Memphis hard in 1878. Rich or poor, mothers or children, Yellow Fever showed no discrimination. It struck like a ghost in the night, unseen and unnoticed till the symptoms arrived. The virus in Contagion was similar to Yellow Fever; it caused mass destruction and panic. Neither disease showed mercy.
Once the cell is inside, it spreads and doesn’t cease destruction until the host is dead. The way in which the Trojan horse and the Ebola virus attack are very similar: brutal, clever and inconspicuous. Preston compares the historical story of legend of the Trojan horse to the Ebola virus, hence allusion is portrayed in his
“He had come like a thief in the night. And one by one dropped the revellers in the blood-bedewed halls of their revel, and died each in the despairing posture of his fall” (Poe). Edgar Allan Poe was an American author and poet during the 1800’s (anb). He is known for his gothic style of writing, and tragic tales. Poe has written famous pieces such as The Raven (1845), The Black Cat (1843), and The Tell Tale Heart(1843).
Death can never be escaped no matter what. In “The Masque of the Red Death” Edgar Allan Poe shows the theme of death, a suspenseful mood, and an ominous tone. Through Poe’s use of literary devices, the reader can discover tone, theme, and mood. Throughout Poe’s life he experienced death with two of his mother’s and his young wife. Death is shown how inevitable it is with Poe’s writing and experiences combined together.
The Masque of the Red Death: Essay The Masque of the Red Death is a short gothic horror story. Overall is about a prince who thinks he is invincible, while having a party one night a mysterious guest appears and all the party-goers are very frightened of him. In the end this red death man kills the prince along with many other people at the party. This story became more horrific because the setting was in a castle, there was supernatural elements, and there was revenge.
Demi Pyle February 20, 2018 English 1302 Looking Closer at “The Masque of The Red Death” In the grim short story written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1842, “The Masque of the Red Death” tells the tale of a kingdom ravaged with disease and a prince’s journey to escape death. Poe hides underlying messages throughout the story, leaving the reader to interpret the true meaning of prosperity and death. Edgar Allan Poe uses symbolism and imagery in the form of an allegory to reveal to the reader that death is inescapable, no matter how wealthy you are.