Dichotomy of Colors in The Masque of the Red DeathIn "The Masque of the Red Death", Poe uses sound, visual and kinetic images to create the effect. of fear in a joyful mask. Poe begins with a description of the “Red Death.” It goes into gory detail about how blood seals a person's fate. It speaks of pain, horror and bleeding. Additionally, the plague kills quickly and alienates the sick. This is the image of Poe's death. He only bothers to talk about his symptoms. It does not address the fear present in the lives of people with the disease. He describes the scene of redness and blood flowing from the pores of the face. His description of the pain of the afflicted also adds to the graphically explicit exposition of the disease of the Red Death. The image of the Red Death is morbid and has a modern equivalent that helps Poe create a wonderfully gruesome scene. Many of the symptoms mentioned in Poe's Red Death correspond to modern-day Ebola. Both diseases are of unknown origin and attack quickly, causing massive hemorrhages. Just as Ebola upended African society, Red Death encourages a desperate Prospero to erect iron gates to protect himself. This disease is supposed to arouse fear among the population. Referring to Red Death, Poe makes comparisons to an Avatar, an image sent by God. This implies a god given invincibility to the Red Death and condemns the victim to alienation from society and a painful death. Just looking at the description – imagining the scene – creates this fear and horror. Unlike the morbid images associated with the Red Death, Poe describes a group of happy masqueraders. The central figure among these merry people is Prince Prospero who, as his name suggests, is prosperous and provides tons of entertainment. He's not worried because his wh...... middle of paper...... go ahead. This fear, manifested by the Red Death, "stood still in the shadow of the ebony clock..." and all fall into death with its presence. Even the clock “went out with that of the last of the gays”. Poe paints a dichotomy of bright, varied and interesting colors contrasting with dark black. These colors mix, even if one can fight and try to protect itself from the other. Using audio and visual imagery, Poe introduces the reader to the clock, a symbol of time, which lurks like an enemy waiting to unleash inevitable horror on the masses. With this inevitable and explosive mixture, Poe paints a picture of happiness, cheerfulness and liveliness, which decomposes in a dark abyss of the last black apartment. Works Cited Poe, Edgar Allen. “The Mask of the Red Death.” The works of Edgar Allen Poe. Ann Arbor, Mich.: State Street Press. 482-487.