Horror in “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe

Horror in “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe

Introduction

“The Masque of the Red Death” is Poe's famous short story that was first published in 1842. The story has a lot to offer to the readers in terms of horror and gothic elements which are prevailing in the story. These elements are brought by the author at various instances through the use of word images, symbolism and creating a dark, eerie mood in the story which make it fall in the category of Horror Genre.

Discussion

The story is about a Prince Prospero who governs a land that is plagued by a disease named as Red Death which kills a person within half an hour of the revealing of its symptoms. The Prince is though not concerned about the horrors of this terrible disease but is safe and happy in his abbey and invites a great number of friends for a masked ball with the thought that they would be safe inside the sturdy walls and the iron gate of the castle. But all his perceptions go wrong when a masked intruder enters the ball creating an easy feeling among the people, ultimately revealing its true identity as Red Death and killing all that were present.

For a story to be categorized in the horror genre it is essential that there is an emotion of fear, the story contains supernatural elements, or events that are disturbing, unusual, shocking or unique. The environment or setting of a story in this genre also commonly is of the kind where people are most vulnerable such as dark places or at night times. In short, a story in the genre of horror will essentially focus on evoking emotions of dread, fear and tension ...