Edgar Allen Poe 3.07 Questions the Red Death
1. According to the first paragraph, what characteristics of the "Red Death" make it such a horrible disease?
- According to the first paragraph, some of the characteristics that make the “Red Death” such a horrible disease are the sharp pains, sudden dizziness, and profuse bleeding at the pores that one experiences when they contract the disease.
2. Describe in detail Prospero's plan for escaping the epidemic.
- Prospero’s Plan for escaping the epidemic was to lock himself along with a thousand of his friends inside one of his castled abbeys. By doing this he hoped to prevent the infection from entering his domain. He intended to wait until the spread of the disease had completely subsided, and then return to the outside world.
3. What do the ebony clock and its arresting chimes add to the plot? Can you think of any symbolic value the clock might have?
- The ebony clocks and its arresting chimes add suspense to the story, as well as foreshadow. I think that the clock symbolizes the hands of time. Poe is trying to show that everyone’s time is limited, and that there is no escaping death.
4. What symbolic evidence can you find in Poe's use of the following:
a. the number seven
- I think that the number seven symbolizes the seven days of creation.
b. the use of colors, especially the black and scarlet in the seventh room
- The use of colors symbolizes the stages in a person’s life. The first room, which is blue, represents birth. The last room, the black room, symbolizes death.
c. the movement from east to west in the sequence of the rooms and throughout the story
- The movement from east to west represents a person’s lifespan in regards to the sun. The sun rises in the east, providing light, but eventually will set in the west, with its light no longer present.
5. In the last paragraph, Poe alludes to a prophecy from the Bible: "For yourselves know perfectly that the Day of the Lord so cometh like a thief in the night." (1 Thessalonians 5:2)
- According to the first paragraph, some of the characteristics that make the “Red Death” such a horrible disease are the sharp pains, sudden dizziness, and profuse bleeding at the pores that one experiences when they contract the disease.
2. Describe in detail Prospero's plan for escaping the epidemic.
- Prospero’s Plan for escaping the epidemic was to lock himself along with a thousand of his friends inside one of his castled abbeys. By doing this he hoped to prevent the infection from entering his domain. He intended to wait until the spread of the disease had completely subsided, and then return to the outside world.
3. What do the ebony clock and its arresting chimes add to the plot? Can you think of any symbolic value the clock might have?
- The ebony clocks and its arresting chimes add suspense to the story, as well as foreshadow. I think that the clock symbolizes the hands of time. Poe is trying to show that everyone’s time is limited, and that there is no escaping death.
4. What symbolic evidence can you find in Poe's use of the following:
a. the number seven
- I think that the number seven symbolizes the seven days of creation.
b. the use of colors, especially the black and scarlet in the seventh room
- The use of colors symbolizes the stages in a person’s life. The first room, which is blue, represents birth. The last room, the black room, symbolizes death.
c. the movement from east to west in the sequence of the rooms and throughout the story
- The movement from east to west represents a person’s lifespan in regards to the sun. The sun rises in the east, providing light, but eventually will set in the west, with its light no longer present.
5. In the last paragraph, Poe alludes to a prophecy from the Bible: "For yourselves know perfectly that the Day of the Lord so cometh like a thief in the night." (1 Thessalonians 5:2)