Masque of the Red Death. (which disease)?

Question

Which disease do you believe is descibed in this Edgar Allen Poe short story.
a. tuberculosis
b. cholera
c. plague
d. other

Answer 1

A
It is likely that the disease was inspired by tuberculosis (or consumption, as it was known then), because Poe's wife Virginia was suffering from the disease at the time the story was written. Poe's mother Eliza had also died of tuberculosis, as well as another loved woman in his life who raised him after his mother died. His life was haunted by the disease.

Answer 2

When his dominions were half depopulated...

That sounds like the plague. Plus, the people retreating like that-- that happened during the plague.

Still, it does seem like Poe used many influences.

The blood aspect rules out cholera; that's diarrhea/ dehydration. However, people usually die of it quickly, as Poe's story describes.
Tuberculosis takes longer to kill, but its victims do cough up blood, and Poe knew this illness first-hand.
Plague matches most of the description. The blotches on people's bodies often bled. Still, the plague took longer to kill than described-- days to a week.

Wikipedia, under "Black Death," claims this:
Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Masque of the Red Death" (1842) is set in an unnamed country during a fictional plague that bears strong resemblance to the Black Death. This possibility is furthered by the climax of the story taking place in a black room.[71]

However, there was a cholera pandemic just a decade before the story was written.

I always assumed this story was based mostly on the plague, but it does seem like Poe had many influences. Your teacher probably wants c., but tell him/her that there needs to be an "all of the above" option.

Answer 3

The actual disease referred to in the story is probably the Plague, but the name of the disease may well have been inspired by the fact that Poe lost his mother, step-mother, and wife to Tuberculosis, a disease marked by coughing blood.

Answer 4

It doesn't exactly match any known disease, but from the fact that it is spread through the air it is most likely a type of pneumonic plague/other. TB is too slow and cholera is an intestinal disease.

Answer 5

As noted above, it is probably a combination of several prevelant diseases including tuberculosis and cholera. I would add in small pox and scarlet fever as having some features in common with the "Red Death."

Answer 6

None of the above. The disease symptoms don't match any known ailment. It was a fictional disease made up to fit the story.

Answer 7

The type of disease doesn't matter...what's more important is the people wrongly thinking they can escape death. But probalbly something like tuberculosis

Answer 8

It is simply an unknown version of plague.


----
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Pax - C

Answer 9

the plague

Answer 10

b.