What other story is like 'The Masque of Red Death', in terms of literary techniques, symbolism or theme? Thanx alot!! (my teacher just couldn't settle with a plot summary >:(

-- Anonymous, December 29, 2001

Answers

Actually that story is fairly unique. Only Hop Frog and Metzengerstein seem to have that old Europe gothic fable character and are also told in the thrid person. Hop Frog has no supernatural element key to its resolution and in fact is an anti-story retrospective with personal issues related to amny other Poe works. So I guess it the fated, disreputable Metzengerstein and the final appearance of the cursed horse to carry him to his doom that is a lesser type of the Masque. Note how the author exerts some apology for the strangeness of the Metzengerstein legend but plays the Red Death straightforward- though less realistically in setting. Masque is much richer and more universal in symbolism while the other tale is another story of a decadent house and personal revenge(as is Hop Frog, not surprisingly).

-- Anonymous, January 04, 2002