"The Masque of the Red Death" av Edgar Allan Poe

Plot Diagram

Se Aktivitet

Symboler, Temaer og Motiver

Se Aktivitet

Allegori

Se Aktivitet

Ordforråd

Se Aktivitet

Film Plakat

Se Aktivitet

A Quick Synopsis of “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe

In the kingdom of Prince Prospero, a disease, the Red Death, viciously and gruesomely kills all who contract it. As it runs its course throughout his kingdom, Prospero decides to escape its grasp by inviting all the nobles to his castle and welding the doors shut, so they can all wait out the plague in his lavishly decorated castle.

One night, Prospero holds a masquerade ball. He decorates seven rooms, each with a different color: blue, purple, green, orange, white, violet, and black. All the rooms are magnificently ostentatious with stained glass windows of the coordinating color, except for the final black room which has red stained glass windows. This room is so disturbing that no one enters the room. Even more mysterious is a large ebony clock which chimes every hour, halting the exaltation of revelers with its foreboding strike.

As the party goes on and the clock is about to strike midnight, an enigmatic guest appears dressed as a plague victim. Deeply disturbed by a guest's poor judgment, Prospero engages with the visitor, finally pursuing him with a dagger through the seven colored rooms. As he reaches the figure in the final room, Prospero falls dead. The other guests subdue the intruder and forcibly remove his mask, finding, to their horror, there is no one beneath the costume. They also die. The Red Death infiltrated the castle, despite Prospero’s efforts to escape it.

Essential Questions for “The Masque of the Red Death”

1. How can an author can build suspense?
2. How do effective writers create mood in their short stories?
3. How does Poe's use of setting, symbolism, personification, and simile impact the story overall?

Other Activity Ideas for "The Masque of the Red Death"

1. Have students create a storyboard that shows the events of the story from different points of view; peasantry, nobles, or Prospero.
2. Ask students to create a modern adaptation of the story, connecting with the themes they studied!
3. Have students demonstrate how Poe builds suspense by creating a storyboard that focuses only on the rising action.
4. Add a presentation to any storyboard project.

Ofte stilte spørsmål om

Hva er hovedtemaet i "The Masque of the Red Death"?

Det sentrale temaet i “The Masque of the Red Death” er dødelighetens uunngåelighet. Edgar Allan Poe bruker Prins Prosperos' håpløse forsøk på å flykte fra den Røde Død for å vise at ingen kan rømme døden, uansett rikdom eller status.

Hvordan kan jeg undervise i symbolikk i "The Masque of the Red Death" for elever i mellom- eller videregående skole?

For å undervise i symbolikk, la elevene identifisere nøkkelsymboler: de fargede rommene, den ebene klokken og den Røde Død selv. Bruk storyboards eller grafiske organiseringsverktøy slik at elevene kan visuelt representere hvert symbol og diskutere dets betydning i historien.

Hva er noen raske leksjonsideer for "The Masque of the Red Death"?

Prøv aktiviteter som å lage et storyboard fra ulike karakterers perspektiv, moderne tilpasninger av historien, et spenningsfokusert storyboard eller en kort forfatterstudie av Edgar Allan Poe. Disse aktivitetene er engasjerende og enkle å sette opp.

Hvorfor er settingen viktig i "The Masque of the Red Death"?

Settingen — Prosperos slott og de syv fargede rommene — skaper stemning og spenning. Den fungerer også som en metafor for livets stadier og fremhever historiens temaer om isolasjon, frykt og tidens gang.

Hvilke aktiviteter etter lesing passer for "The Masque of the Red Death"?

Aktiviteter etter lesing inkluderer å lage et skuespill av historien, designe et brettspill, lage arbeidsark eller plakater, og lage sosiale mediesider for karakterene. Disse alternativene hjelper elevene med å analysere og kreativt engasjere seg i Poes historie.