The Masque of the Red Death: Use of Setting and Color - Essay Example

“The Masque of the Red Death Use of Setting and Color. “The Masque of the Red Death” is a short story which unarguablydemonstrates Edgar Allen Poe’s mastery over the genre of terror, and justifies his reputation as one of the foremost writers of horror stories. It is an allegory, and is almost like a fairytale in its shades of fantasy. It is totally cut off from the real world. Prince Prospero, the protagonist of the story, flees from a dreadful plague, called the ‘Red Death,’ which engulfs and devastates his kingdom. Along with a retinue of thousand courtiers, the Prince goes into self-imposed quarantine in a sealed, isolated abbey. At the end of six months, Prospero throws a masquerade ball. One of the masqueraders is seen in the costume of the ‘Red Death.’ The enraged Prospero confronts the figure only to fall down dead suddenly. The other revelers discover that the masked figure is not human: it is death itself which has come to claim them all as its victim. “The Masque of the Red Death” is a classic example of Poe’s tremendous imagination and his ability to paint vivid images with words. Poe skillfully uses setting and color to build up suspense and highlight the readers’ awareness of the inevitability of death. Poe creates a setting which gives the narration an ambience of horror. This heightens the readers’ sense of suspense and terror. The story begins in a “long devastated---country” (Poe, 1) in which a virulent pestilence is rampant. This immediately signals that the tale deals with death and catastrophe. Prospero attempts to flee the plague. However, the setting of the scene of his seclusion is no less sinister than the depopulated dominion he leaves behind. The Prince moves to the “deep seclusion of one of his castellated abbeys” (Poe, 2). The setting of an abbey conveys an impression of isolation. However, this isolation does not connote security. In spite of the Prince barricading himself and his entourage behind a “strong and lofty wall, (and) gates of iron” (Poe, 2), and determining that there is “means neither of ingress or egress” (Poe, 2) to his refuge, the reader is not lulled into security. On the contrary, this setting and the delirious attempts of the group to insulate themselves from the outside world, only reinforce the reader’s perception of the “sudden impulses of despair or of frenzy” (Poe, 2) which motivate Prospero and his entourage. The same baleful impression of panic is conveyed by the setting inside the secluded abbey. The “voluptuous scene (of) that masquerade” (Poe, 4) with its bizarre furnishings, heightens the dread of the horror which is surely to come. The setting also emphasizes the inevitability of death. According to Bell, the seven rooms are “the allegorical representation of Prince Prospero’s lifespan” (101). Each one of the seven rooms corresponds to a decade in the life of man. This progression suggests birth, youth, adulthood, middle age, maturity, old age and death. This argument is supported by Bell’s reference to Poe’s setting of the first room in the east and the last in the west. Bell holds that “These directions are time honored terms which have been used to refer to the beginning and end of things” (101). It is significant that Prospero has designed the suite in such a way that the revelers can only proceed in a straight line through these rooms, each of which can be accessed only from the preceding chamber. It is in effect, a ‘one-way street.” Poe effectively demonstrates that with birth comes the inevitability of death. There is no turning back. Prospero rushes behind Death as it makes its progress successively through the rooms of the masque and meets his unavoidable end. Another aspect of the setting is the fact that the rooms are not arranged in a long and straight vista” but can be seen “little more than one at a time” (Poe, 4). This conveys that life is full of suspense and one cannot know what lies behind the next bend. Poe’s use of color is particularly meaningful and heightens the horror of the tale. In fact, Poe’s assertion that his protagonist “had a fine eye for color and effects” (6), could equally describe the author himself. In order to make his mastery of color even more effective, “It frequently happens---that Poe’s tales of horror are set in darkest night” (Clough, 599). Prospero’s rooms are completely insulated from natural light and the artificial illumination gives the story a disquieting sense of lurking danger. The device of illuminating the rooms only through the “light of fires sifted through stained glass windows” (Bell, 103) adds to the baleful effect and the dream-like ambience. Poe uses phrases such as “blood-colored panes,” “blackness of the sable drapery appalls,” “the sable carpet” and the “clock of ebony” (Poe, 7) to increase dread. Clough emphasizes that “Blacks, reds, grays and pallid whites come at once to mind in his (Poe’s) tales of the weird and terrifying” (599). There is a preponderance of the color black. The seventh apartment, which is the scene of the story’s climax, is shrouded in black tapestries and carpets. Its “black hangings,” and “blood-tinted panes” (Poe, 4) are evocative of a horror that is waiting to happen. Bell argues that “the color in any given room may be related to Prospero’s physical and mental condition in that decade of his life” (103). From this perspective, Prospero goes from blue (the beginning of life), through purple (achievement), green (vigor and prime), orange (autumn of life), white (old age), violet (gravity of extreme old age) and ultimately to black – death. Poe’s use of color conveys the inevitable approach of death. He also incorporates the depiction of objects which subtly suggest various hues. Clough asserts that “objects are often included in the setting of a tale for their color effect” (600). The “heavy folds” (Poe, 4) of the drapes suggest darkness. The “pale courtiers” (Poe, 13) suggest corpses. Above all, the best example of these color suggestions is Poe’s depiction of “a gigantic clock of ebony” (5). This black object serves in drastically intensifying the horror of the situation. It is “the voice of the clock” (Poe, 7) which becomes the dominant note in the narrative. In fact, so important is its sound that all action freezes when the black clock strikes the hour. The clock’s obvious monitoring of the passage of time quickens the dread of the reader and heightens the suspense, as it approaches “the sounding of midnight” (Poe, 7). As it marks the inexorable march of time, the reader is aware that life in the abbey is fleeting and is moving towards inevitable death. Again, the scarlet panes of the last room suggest blood, horror and sudden death. The mysterious reveler has a countenance “dabbled in blood,” with a “broad brow, with all the features of his face, besprinkled with the scarlet horror” (Poe, 9). In an appropriate match with the Red Death, Poe describes Prospero’s reaction to the intruder with the words, “his brow reddened with rage” (10). This is a presentiment that Prospero is soon to encounter the Red Death whose symptoms include a blood spattered brow. “The Masque of the Red Death” is a narrative which grips the reader with dread and the conviction that there is something malignant lying in wait round the corner. There is a palpable feeling of being hurried towards some waiting catastrophe. Poe weaves his tale of terror and suspense with the effective use of setting. The plague-devastated kingdom, the secluded abbey and the arrangement of the rooms for the ball constitute a setting which connotes foreboding and emphasize the transient nature of life. The author weaves color into every aspect of the narrative. Artificial lighting, blacks, reds and whites paint the tale with the color of fantasy, blood, death and corpses. Additionally, objects such as the clock and the furnishings add to the ambience of dread. The author conclusively demonstrates that death has no particular guise and can arrive in any form. “The Masque of the Red Death” ends with Poe’s successful communication of the message that death ultimately triumphs over all. Works Cited. Bell, H.H. “The Masque of the Red Death”: An Interpretation. South Atlantic Bulletin, Vol. 38, No. 4 (Nov. 1973), pp. 101-105. Web. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3197091 Clough, Wilson O. “The Use of Color Words by Edgar Allen Poe.” PMLA, Vol. 45, No. 2 (Jun., 1930), pp. 598-613. Web. http://www.jstor.org/stable/457812 Poe, Edgar Allen. “The Masque of the Red Death.” (1850). PoeStories.com. 2013. Web. http://poestories.com/read/masque “The Masque of the Red Death”: Annotated Bibliography. Bell, H.H. “The Masque of the Red Death”: An Interpretation. South Atlantic Bulletin, Vol. 38, No. 4 (Nov. 1973), pp. 101-105. Web. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3197091 Bell analyzes the symbolism in the setting of the rooms in the tale. He postulates that the arrangement of the rooms is allegorical of Prospero’s lifespan, with each room corresponding to a decade of his life. The progression of rooms indicates Prospero’s progress from birth to death. The author also explores the symbolism of the various colors used by Poe, and interprets each color in turn for the emotion or mood it represents. I will use this source to support my argument that Poe effectively uses setting and color to build up an atmosphere of horror and suspense in his story. Clough, Wilson O. “The Use of Color Words by Edgar Allen Poe.” PMLA, Vol. 45, No. 2 (Jun., 1930), pp. 598-613. Web. http://www.jstor.org/stable/457812 Clough explores Poe’s use of color as a symbolic representation of various moods and emotions in his stories. The author argues that colors are not just words but are also associated with certain objects. Clough asserts that Poe “sets the stage” for his stories using “color words” - words associated with color. The color effect of objects is deliberately used to add horror. Particular objects convey certain color impressions. I will incorporate this source to support my argument that Poe uses color to intensify the horror of a situation. Poe deliberately chooses colors to serve his purpose in writing the story. Read More