The Masque of the Red Death Group

Question:


xmissxkittyx
Student
High School - 12th Grade

In "The Masque of the Red Death," whom does Prince Prospero invite to his abbey?

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Posted by xmissxkittyx on Sunday October 25, 2009 at 7:39 PM and tagged with abbey, invite, prospero.

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  1. egraham17 Teacher

    eNotes Editor

    In this story, Prince Prospero devises an idea to remain safe from the plague that "had long devastated the country". He decides to enclose himself in his castle, and seal it up so nothing can come in, and nothing can get out. He hires men to bolt the doors and weld them shut, creating what he thinks will be a safe haven from the disease.

    However, he doesn't want to spend the rest of his days alone, so he invites "a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court" to join him. I imagine most of us don't even know a thousand people, let alone a thousand we could call our friends. Yet these characters willingly accept what they think is a respite from the illness, and so they gladly party and dance while the disease rages outside. Of course, this backfires when the Red Death makes its presence known amongst the revellers.

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    Posted by egraham17 on Sunday October 25, 2009 at 11:01 PM