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Post by Mr. Thomas on Nov 15, 2013 12:42:17 GMT -5
"...and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all."
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Post by joeroperti on Nov 16, 2013 16:46:25 GMT -5
Joseph Roperti
Mr. Thomas
English 11
16 november 2013
a.I feel that I can and almost all teenagers can relate to Prince Prospero in some way because of him being secluded for 5 to 6 months. Not for the same reason but going crazy because they were punished for something that they have done. Then when they are finally allowed out again its like a big masquerade party meeting with everyone a again and being able to have some freedom
b.I really liked this poem, I usually don’t enjoy a dark pieces but I always have liked Poe’s poems. I love the way he makes you feel like your there with the character. I loved the way he described the Masquerade party “there were buffoons, there were improvisator, there were ballet dancers…….. without was the “Red Death”’ is what made me really get into the poem
c.I really liked how Poe portrayed Prince Prospero. They way he made him crazed, then a man of royalty with his long suit and party. The tone of the poem seemingly stayed creepy but the personality of the character changed.
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Post by eointunney on Nov 17, 2013 13:43:14 GMT -5
Eoin Tunney
Mr. Thomas
English 11
17 November 2013
D. As I was reading this story, especially the first few lines, I automatically thought that Edgar Allen Poe was using the Black Death, which was in Europe a few hundred years earlier. The first line states, “ The “Red Death” had long devastated the country.” This relates to the Black Death because the Black Death devastated Europe for many years. Also I am pretty sure that these two plagues have some of the same symptoms. Also during the Black Death the wealthy class had the higher chance of surviving through the height of the plague, which happened in this story.
A. I feel this story can relate to a lot of things. This story is about a man who throws a party after a plague and then ends up dying from it while at his party. I feel this story shows that you can’t escape death. Even though Prince Prospero stayed away from society for months he still ended up dying from the plague that he was hiding from. No matter what you do, death will always find you.
C. When Edgar Allen Poe was describing the seven rooms. I was very confused about the last room, which was the red and black room. He said in the room was a gigantic clock, which was so loud that it made people stop what they were doing. I was confused because I didn’t know what the point of the clock was.
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Post by matthewsegarra on Nov 17, 2013 16:42:13 GMT -5
Matthew Segarra
Mr. Thomas
English 11
18 November 2013
A. I think Prince Prospero is a very relatable character for our age demographic after being scheduled for five to six months. The reaction to being punished like that was very childish and resembled a reaction that a teenager would give. Also when he is released he has a big celebration and they all act wild and start trouble again; not learning from their mistakes, similar to teenagers.
B. I liked this poem a lot, it was very descriptive and the tone was very calm and dark. This description is an example of this, “There were buffoons, there were improvisator, and there were ballet dancers…….. Without was the “Red Death”’. You can really visualize this scene. I like how Poe makes it feel like you are a part of the story.
C. I liked the character of Prince Prospero. He could be sophisticated at one point, but then be crazy at another point of the story. He was a very exciting character to follow.
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Post by johnmarano on Nov 17, 2013 17:56:57 GMT -5
John Marano
Mr. Thomas
English 11
17 November 2013
C. I do have some questions for this story. I obviously know that this is a metaphor, but for what? I mean I do believe that there is no escaping death, but how is this something so important to create a story over? Also, it says, “ and the flames of the tripods expired” (p. 4). I don’t know the flames symbolize?? Is it their souls?
D. I thought this story by Edgar Allen Poe was very interesting. I liked how the “Red Death” was basically karma in a disguised form. I also like how ironic the whole story was. A significant quote, in fact the last quote of the whole story, is “And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all” (p. 4). I felt that this was so important because it reveals how ironic stories in literature can be. Prince Prospero only cared about the people in his party and didn’t take any concern or acknowledgment of the deadly plague that was ruining the town. The “Red Death” snuck into the party and killed everyone. It’s so ironic because the disease found him. He didn’t care for anyone else that was dying. He just cared for himself and he ended up falling to his end.
I. I would like to point out that Eion’s post was really interesting. I liked how he explained that there is no escaping death, and I completely agree with him. I have read so many other books where death just finds you. Prince Prospero used isolation and his wealth to try to escape death, and it still found him. I know this may not seem so educational, but I would like to compare it to an episode of Family Guy that I watched a while back. In both, death followed until it conquered. Death had dominion over all.
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Post by 1adams12 on Nov 17, 2013 20:32:18 GMT -5
11/17/13
D. While I was reading, one of the lines that I liked was "the external world could take care of itself" (page 1). The reason why I like this line so much is because a lot of people in this century, 21 Century, have this thought about the eternal world being able to take care of itself. In fact, if you have this thought, you personally feel low about yourself, simply because you are not caring about the environment that you are living in. The fact that you think the external world can take care of itself is kind of insane simple because of the fact that if you think this way, you are more likely to hurt the external world, than if you don't think this way. It is all about how you think about things.
C. I was personally confused with Prince Prospero for many reasons. For one, it seemed that one moment he was happy, and the next moment he was either angry or upset. What caused him to feel these emotions for moment to moment? Was it because of the stuff that was happening with Prince Prospero? Also, the other thing that confused me was the seven rooms. I did not understand what the point of the rooms were. I was especially confused with the last room, the one with the huge clock in it.
A. I personally can relate to the seclusion from 5 to 6 months. I feel that no matter what I try and do, since I am a teenager I get into a lot of trouble. I also find that this happens to a lot of teenagers. This has never happened to me, but I know a lot of teenagers that have been punished for a long period of time. Maybe not as long as 5 to 6 months, but as long as maybe 1 month. I personally feel that no matter what you do, teenagers are teenagers and still get into trouble for things that they try to prevent.
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Post by Sgarlato on Nov 17, 2013 21:44:34 GMT -5
Stephen Sgarlato
Mr. Thomas
English11
11/18/13
A. So basically the “red death” is used to compare the red death in Europe. It can compare to real life because even though this story is dark and ominous it incorporates a real event that occurred in history. This is cool because Edgar Allen Poe takes a real event and puts a scary twist on it. I enjoyed the story because of this comparison. Poe did not just summarize the historical event but put in his own story and made it interesting.
B. I would just like to point out the character Prince Prospero and how he is a dynamic character. This is a character who undergoes some type of inner change. He definitely starts out sane and then becomes crazy. He starts out trying to escape death and then just becomes farther and farther away from embracing it.
I. I would like to comment on John Marano's question about why writing about this was so important. I think basically just to explain that death is inescapable and that if you dont embrace it than you will go insane like the prince
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Post by bourdonm15 on Nov 17, 2013 23:12:19 GMT -5
Matthew Bourdon
Mr. Thomas
English 11
11/17/13
F. I really liked Edgar Allen Poe’s attentiveness to detail throughout the story. Whatever he writes you can just picture it in your head. “…and then profuse bleedings at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid of his fellow-men.” (Page 1) For Poe to begin the story off with lines like this is honestly amazing. He definitely wants the reader to actually depict and visualize the story he is explaining thoroughly in his or her head. This was part of Poe’s writing that made me enjoy the story.
B. I was somewhat confused as to why Prince Prospero becomes enraged over the person dressed as a corpse of the Red Death. “When the eyes of Prince Prospero fell upon this spectral image he was seen be convulsed, in the first moment with a strong shudder either of terror or distaste; but, in the next, his brow reddened with rage.” (Page 3) Did Prince Prospero feel like the person dressed as the corpse was trying to mock him or something? Either way this specific part was hard for me to understand fully.
I. I agree with the connection that Eoin made about the Black Death and the Red Death. This could have been an idea or an inspiration to Poe creating the Red Death theme. It was pretty interesting and again shows how witty and clever Edgar Allen Poe really is.
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djmat
New Member
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Post by djmat on Nov 17, 2013 23:16:59 GMT -5
Dj Mat
Mr. Thomas
English11
11/18/13
E. The poem is pretty interesting because it makes it seem like it is a regular story about a prince trying to keep himself safe from the red death but it is more than that. The prince seemed like he was doing alright because he secluded himself from the red death but it symbolizes more than trying to keep safe: "it was toward the close of the fifth or sixth month of his seclusion, and while the pestilence raged most furiously abroad, that the Prince Prospero entertained his thousand friends at a masked ball the most unusual magnificence." This may seem like he is trying to keep safe but in all actuality this represents him trying to escape death. That is why this poem is interesting because Poe paints a dark scenery and almost makes it us want to feel bad for the prince because he was trying to keep safe but in truth was trying to escape death.
I. To answer Mikes question the Prince the rooms kind of represented aspects life. I am pretty sure that last room with the clock represented death because when the clock struck the hour everything would cease, the music would stop playing and the people would stop dancing. Edgar Allan Poe was really symbolic in his writing and most of the things he includes in his poems are not just for detail but to show something bigger.
D. A quote that i really liked was "And now was acknowledged the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night." Its now the most descriptive line in the poem but i like it because he is personifying death. It kind of makes you think you do not actually know when death is coming, it could sneak up on you at any given moment.
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Post by scanley73 on Nov 17, 2013 23:38:55 GMT -5
A. When I read this the Red Death seemed to almost mirror the Black Death that plagued Europe a couple hundred years ago. People were holed up inside strongholds not leaving for a long period of time. People dropping like flies whenever the Red Death comes to an area. Poe mentioned sores appearing on the faces of the infected so that others would refuse them aid. This was also a symptom of the Black Death. They even share a name. It may have been tweaked a little but the similarity is still there. I am not trying to denounce Poe’s creativity and say that this was an unoriginal piece. Surely I doubt someone else could conjure something like this. I am simply trying to state where his inspiration most likely came from.
D. I really enjoyed all of the suspense that Poe puts into the whole story. He begins foreshadowing everyone’s doom even at the start when he describes all the rooms. He shows these six lovely rooms and then describes a horrifying third room with a clock that caused everyone to be silenced every hour when it chimed. All of this doom and gloom feeling really set the tone for what would happen later on. Then when the clock strikes midnight, always a sign of something bad, a figure appears that no one recognizes. No one knows where he came from or who he is. But he is wearing red mask with robes covered in blood. When we read this we know that Prospero and all his friends have met there end.
I. To answer Eoin’s confusion, the clock was sort of a harbinger of doom. It signaled the appearance of the Red Death and acts as a foreshadowing tool for everyone’s doom. When the clock strikes everyone is silent and at twelve Poe says the clock strikes for the last time so it is the last time that the people will grow silent again.
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Post by rodriguezj15 on Nov 17, 2013 23:57:44 GMT -5
Joel Rodriguez Mr. Thomas English 11 November 18, 2013 The Masque of the Red Death E. Despite how Poe describes him on page 3, “the Prince Prospero was happy and dauntless and sagacious,” I think it was kind of stupid for Prince Prospero to do what he did. He had all this money that could’ve possibly saved his whole kingdom, yet he wastes it all on his castle, that its main purpose was to save him, but it failed. He was stupid to think he could’ve escaped death, which I think was Edgar Allan Poe main point. A. In today’s economy the rich get richer while the poor get poorer, but despite the gap between these people’s lifestyles, according to Edgar Allan Poe death is what we all have in common. Prince Prospero had this luxurious castle to protect him, yet, “the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all (pg. 10).” As depressing as it sounds, no matter who you are death will always win. I. To answer Eoin’s question, I think the black room symbolized death itself. First it’s the last room. Death is the last thing that happens in someone’s life. Black is usually a color associated with death, like in a funeral, and red can be hinting at “the Red Death.” Finally, Poe said, “that there were few of the company bold enough to set foot within its precincts at all (pg 5.)” Most people were scared and avoided this room, just like most people are scared of death and would avoid it. Then the clock was there to prove the fact that the Prince’s time was coming. |
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Post by emmanuelluna on Nov 18, 2013 7:18:31 GMT -5
Emmanuel Luna
Mr. Thomas
English 11
11/15/13
E. The duke and his taste for peculiar designs really stood out to me in the reading. A quote that embodies how others saw him is, “He had a fine eye for colors and effects. He disregarded the decora of mere fashion. His plans were bold and fiery, and his concepts glowed with barbaric lustre. There are some who would have thought him mad” (2). This quote shows how peculiar the duke was and how those that didn’t follow him saw him as.
D. A quote that stood out to me was, “When the eyes of Prince Prospero fell upon this spectral image (which with a slow and solemn movement, as if more fully to sustain its role, stalked to and fro among the waltzers) he was seen to be convulsed,” (3) This quote stood out to me because of how descriptive it is and the descriptive images used in it. It also stood out to me because it also has darker images and generally has a darker tone.
B. Even though this reading is still considered romanticist, I saw that it was actually very different from the other readings that we have had that were written during the romantic era. This reading generally has a darker tone than those of the previous romanticist writers. Also since this reading is much darker than the other readings it generally feels very bleak and even slightly depressing. This is why I feel that despite it being written during the romantic era, it greatly differs from the rest during its time.
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Post by georgebaroudos on Nov 18, 2013 18:37:38 GMT -5
George Baroudos
Mr. Thomas
English 11
18 November 2013
A – With the description of the 7 rooms it brought back a lot of memories. It really made me think of Scooby Doo running through a hallway. In his running you usually cannot see the doors and it makes many turns. Poe gives off this scary imagery where we are able to put ourselves in the story. When I did that I certainly found the hallway and rooms scary. Poe embodies someone who pays attention to detail because his stories become so real through his description. The black room is no doubt the most frightening.
D – “Many individuals in the crowd found leisure to become aware of the presence of a masked figure which had arrested the attention of no single individual before” (3). This quote reminded me of the motto if you see something say something. Sometimes it is hard to say something. When something is suspicious many are unable to step up and say something. Once fear becomes a factor the whole reaction becomes unpredictable. Humans are shocked so easily and it is difficult to react to events that just happened. It takes time to access a situation before we react. That’s why the people at the mascaraed are unable to do anything. Quick thinking can be so essential, but it is difficult to come across.
I – Poe’s style of writing must be considered when discussing why his literature is gothic. Gothic literature expresses a negative connotation because of the circumstances they faced. Poe’s use of vivid imagery and his known style for depressing texts enhance why a reader would think it to be gothic. In many ways it is gothic based on description. But Poe’s consistent style of depressing stories is able to enrich the text but also create this question.
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Post by etiennem15 on Nov 18, 2013 22:43:50 GMT -5
Marvin Etienne
Mr. Thomas
English 11
15 November 2013
Masque of Death
A. I can compare Prince Prospero to an average rich person in America. Spoiled and narcissistic. Instead of trying to save the people of his kingdom, he secluded himself inside a bubble while everyone outside suffers. To add insult into injury, he throws a masquerade ball several months after the outbreak. I think that he is really ignorant because he has no reason to celebrate, especially after his actions toward the people outside. I liked how he was gotten rid of at the end of the story by the plague. This shows that you cannot hide from or cheat death. He tried so hard to keep this disease out of his home but ended up getting it anyway.
C. I'm curious to know why he decorated each room in such a manner. Why the specific colors for the ball? Also, why did anyone show up in the first place. Prince Prospero is not a good person. I would never go to his party, especially if he let everyone on the outside suffer while he lived comfortably in his home.
D. I really liked how discreet the disease was. It was incognito, basically in plain sight and obvious, but no one suspected much. It is kind of like a real disease. You don't know you have one until it's too late. You can let a disease into your home without even suspecting it, similar to Prince Prospero. Diseases can live in plain sight, kill, and be gone as quickly as it came.
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