"The Masque of The Red Death", a fictional story by Edgar Allen Poe is about an epidemic, The Red Death, which plagues an entire country. Throughout this unnamed land, The Red Death infects citizens left and right. The ruler of this unnamed land, Prince Prospero, possesses no sympathy for his people, yet wishes to make sure he doesn't receive the terrible disease. Therefore he confines himself within the gates of his castle, keeping the virus out of his walls. After months of seclusion, he decides to host a masked ball. At the ball, a masked man dressed as a victim of The Red Death parades through the castle, angering Prince Prospero. Prince Prospero and many others follow the masked man into the seventh room and upon entering they fall dead.
Throughout the story the author, Edgar Allen Poe shows the story to be a high quality fiction. He uses good story style and variation.
Illustration for Edgar Allan Poe's "The Masque of ...
Illustration by Aubrey Beardsley, 1894–1895
Prince Prospero flees the Red Death. The Masque of...He efficiently utilizes many elements of fiction. He describes these elements in great detail. Two of the elements of fiction that are greatly utilized throughout "The Masque of the Red Death" are setting and symbol.
Setting is an essential component of fiction. The setting of a story can easily change the perspective of a reader and how they think of the characters. Setting also sets the atmosphere of a story for a reader and makes the reader determine whether the story is realistic or not. Depending on the story it is sometimes unnecessary to have a detailed setting. This gives the story irony and makes the reader wonder what will happen next. Therefore, setting - the period in time or the place, in which the events of a story take place, is needed in a good fiction story.
In "The Masque of the...