Edgar Allan Poe and Military Academy
Edgar Allen Poe The characteristics of the Red Death that make it horrible are the sharp pains, dizziness, and bleeding from the pores. Prospero's plan for escaping the the epidemic was to escape to a deep part of the castle and seal himself and one thousand other people in that region until the epidemic was over. He provided everything needed to survive and everything needed to enjoy their stay. The clock and its chimes add to the plot by showing that each hour and day, we all get closer to the day we die. It is something inevitable, and there is no way to avoid when your time comes. What symbolic evidence can you find in Poe's use of the following: a. the number seven: I believe that the number seven represents the sins. Each room consist of a different sin; wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony. b. the use of colors: The colors start out as light colors, such as blue and white, however, as the rooms continue, the colors become darker. I believe this symbolizes that as time presses on, we become more and more corrupt and closer to our inevitable death. c. the movement from east to west: I believe the movement is important to the story because it like the beginning and end of the day. The sun rises in the east, where the rooms start, and end in the west, where the sun sets. This movement goes hand in hand with the use of colors, because as the days go by, we become closer to our own end. This allusion adds a layer of meaning to the story because it everyone is dying from this epidemic. As in the last day of the world, Judgment Day, only those that prove worthy live, and the rest die. This may be why the plague started. Poe made this statement because he never had the love of his parents. He did not know his real mother, and his father always disapproved of him. It seemed to Poe that he could never please his father. Having the love of his family was something he disparately desired,