The Masque of the Red Death

Edgar Allan Poe Collection

English · Gothic Fiction, Horror, Short Stories

Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death” is a Gothic tale of Prince Prospero, who shuts himself and a company of nobles inside a fortified abbey while a deadly plague devastates the country. Behind the walls, the guests seek refuge in a lavishly decorated suite of rooms and attempt to lose themselves in a masked revel.

The story builds its unease through vivid imagery and a carefully staged progression of rooms, colors, and sounds. The celebration’s extravagant atmosphere contrasts with the fear outside, while the mysterious arrival of a masked figure turns the gathering into a confrontation with what the revelers hoped to escape.

Poe’s tale blends suspense, symbolism, and dark theatricality. Its compact, dreamlike setting and mounting sense of dread make it a striking Gothic listening experience, centered on the fragile boundary between apparent safety and mortality.

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.