第1章

THERAVEN Onceuponamidnightdreary，whileIpondered，weakandweary，Overmanyaquaintandcuriousvolumeofforgottenlore—— WhileInodded，nearlynapping，suddenlytherecameatapping，Asofsomeonegentlyrapping，rappingatmychamberdoor。 \"’Tissomevisiter，\"Imuttered，\"tappingatmychamberdoor—— Onlythisandnothingmore。\" Ah，distinctlyIrememberitwasinthebleakDecember，Andeachseparatedyingemberwroughtitsghostuponthefloor。 EagerlyIwishedthemorrow;——vainlyIhadsoughttoborrowFrommybookssurceaseofsorrow——sorrowforthelostLenore—— FortherareandradiantmaidenwhomtheangelsnameLenore—— Namelesshereforevermore。 AndthesilkensaduncertainrustlingofeachpurplecurtainThrilledme——filledmewithfantasticterrorsneverfeltbefore; Sothatnow，tostillthebeatingofmyheart，Istoodrepeating\"’Tissomevisiterentreatingentranceatmychamberdoor—— Somelatevisiterentreatingentranceatmychamberdoor; Thisitisandnothingmore。\" Presentlymysoulgrewstronger;hesitatingthennolonger，\"Sir，\"saidI，\"orMadam，trulyyourforgivenessIimplore; ButthefactisIwasnapping，andsogentlyyoucamerapping，Andsofaintlyyoucametapping，tappingatmychamberdoor，ThatIscarcewassureIheardyou\"——hereIopenedwidethedoor—— Darknessthereandnothingmore。 Deepintothatdarknesspeering，longIstoodtherewondering，fearing，Doubting，dreamingdreamsnomortalseverdaredtodreambefore; Butthesilencewasunbroken，andthestillnessgavenotoken，Andtheonlywordtherespokenwasthewhisperedword，\"Lenore？\" ThisIwhispered，andanechomurmuredbacktheword，\"Lenore！\"—— Merelythisandnothingmore。 Backintothechamberturning，allmysourwithinmeburning，SoonagainIheardatappingsomethinglouderthanbefore。 \"Surely，\"saidI，\"surelythatissomethingatmywindowlattice; Letmesee，then，whatthereatisandthismysteryexplore—— Letmyheartbestillamomentandthismysteryexplore;—— ’Tisthewindandnothingmore。 OpenhereIflungtheshutter，when，withmanyaflirtandflutter，IntheresteppedastatelyRavenofthesaintlydaysofyore。 Nottheleastobeisancemadehe;notaminutestoppedorstayedhe，But，withmienoflordorlady，perchedabovemychamberdoor—— PercheduponabustofPallasjustabovemychamberdoor—— Perched，andsat，andnothingmore。 Thentheebonybirdbeguilingmysadfancyintosmiling，Bythegraveandsterndecorumofthecountenanceitwore，\"Thoughthycrestbeshornandshaven，thou，\"Isaid，\"artsurenocraven，GhastlygrimandancientRavenwanderingfromtheNightlyshore—— TellmewhatthylordlynameisontheNight’sPlutonianshore！\" QuoththeRaven，\"Nevermore。\" MuchImarvelledthisungainlyfowltoheardiscoursesoplainly，Thoughitsanswerlittlemeaning——littlerelevancybore; ForwecannothelpagreeingthatnolivinghumanbeingEveryetwasblessedwithseeingbirdabovehischamberdoor—— Birdorbeastuponthesculpturedbustabovehischamberdoor，Withsuchnameas\"Nevermore。\" ButtheRaven，sittinglonelyonthatplacidbust，spokeonlyThatoneword，asifitssoulinthatonewordhedidoutpourNothingfartherthenheuttered;notafeatherthenhefluttered—— TillIscarcelymorethanmuttered:\"Otherfriendshaveflownbefore—— Onthemorrowhewillleaveme，asmyHopeshaveflownbefore。\" Thenthebirdsaid\"Nevermore。\" Startledatthestillnessbrokenbyreplysoaptlyspoken，\"Doubtless，\"saidI，\"whatituttersisitsonlystockandstore，CaughtfromsomeunhappymasterwhomunmercifulDisasterFollowedfastandfollowedfastertillhissongsoneburdenbore—— TillthedirgesofhisHopethatmelancholyburdenboreOf’Never——nevermore。’\" ButtheRavenstillbeguilingallmysadsoulintosmiling，StraightIwheeledacushionedseatinfrontofbirdandbustanddoor; Then，uponthevelvetsinking，IbetookmyselftolinkingFancyuntofancy，thinkingwhatthisominousbirdofyore—— Whatthisgrim，ungainly，ghastly，gaunt，andominousbirdofyoreMeantincroaking\"Nevermore。\" ThisIsatengagedinguessing，butnosyllableexpressingTothefowlwhosefieryeyesnowburnedintomybosom’score; ThisandmoreIsatdivining，withmyheadateaserecliningOnthecushion’svelvetliningthatthelamp—lightgloatedo’er，Butwhosevelvetvioletliningwiththelamp—lightgloatingo’erSheshallpress，ah，nevermore！ Then，methought，theairgrewdenser，perfumedfromanunseencenserSwungbySeraphimwhosefoot—fallstinkledonthetuftedfloor。 \"Wretch，\"Icried，\"thyGodhathlentthee——bytheseangelshehathsenttheeRespite——respiteandnepenthefromthymemoriesofLenore！ Quaff，ohquaffthiskindnepentheandforgetthislostLenore！\" QuoththeRaven，\"Nevermore。\" \"Prophet！\"saidI，\"thingofevil！——prophetstill，ifbirdordevil！—— WhetherTemptersent，orwhethertempesttossedtheehereashore，Desolate，yetallundaunted，onthisdesertlandenchanted—— OnthishomebyHorrorhaunted——tellmetruly，Iimplore—— Isthere——istherebalminGilead？——tellme——tellme，Iimplore！\" QuoththeRaven，\"Nevermore。\" \"Prophet！\"saidI，\"thingofevil！——prophetstill，ifbirdordevil！ BythatHeaventhatbendsaboveus——bythatGodwebothadore—— Tellthissoulwithsorrowladenif，withinthedistantAidenn，ItshallclaspasaintedmaidenwhomtheangelsnameLenore—— ClasparareandradiantmaidenwhomtheangelsnameLenore。\" QuoththeRaven，\"Nevermore。\" \"Bethatoursignofparting，birdorfiend！\"Ishrieked，upstarting—— \"GettheebackintothetempestandtheNight’sPlutonianshore！ Leavenoblackplumeasatokenofthatliethysoulhasspoken！ Leavemylonelinessunbroken！——quitthebustabovemydoor！ Takethybeakfromoutmyheart，andtakethyformfromoffmydoor！\" QuoththeRaven，\"Nevermore。\" AndtheRaven，neverflitting，stillissitting，stillissittingOnthepallidbustofPallasjustabovemychamberdoor; Andhiseyeshavealltheseemingofademon’sthatisdreamingAndthelamp—lighto’erhimstreamingthrowshisshadowsonthefloor; AndmysoulfromoutthatshadowthatliesfloatingonthefloorShallbelifted——nevermore！ TheMasqueoftheRedDeathbyEdgarAllanPoeOctober，1997[Etext#1064]* TheMasqueoftheRedDeathThe\"RedDeath\"hadlongdevastatedthecountry。Nopestilencehadeverbeensofatal，orsohideous。BloodwasitsAvataranditsseal——therednessandthehorrorofblood。Thereweresharppains，andsuddendizziness，andthenprofusebleedingatthepores，withdissolution。Thescarletstainsuponthebodyandespeciallyuponthefaceofthevictim，werethepestbanwhichshuthimoutfromtheaidandfromthesympathyofhisfellow—men。 Andthewholeseizure，progressandterminationofthedisease，weretheincidentsofhalfanhour。 ButthePrinceProsperowashappyanddauntlessandsagacious。 Whenhisdominionswerehalfdepopulated，hesummonedtohispresenceathousandhaleandlight—heartedfriendsfromamongtheknightsanddamesofhiscourt，andwiththeseretiredtothedeepseclusionofoneofhiscastellatedabbeys。Thiswasanextensiveandmagnificentstructure，thecreationoftheprince’sowneccentricyetaugusttaste。Astrongandloftywallgirdleditin。 Thiswallhadgatesofiron。Thecourtiers，havingentered，broughtfurnacesandmassyhammersandweldedthebolts。Theyresolvedtoleavemeansneitherofingressnoregresstothesuddenimpulsesofdespairoroffrenzyfromwithin。Theabbeywasamplyprovisioned。Withsuchprecautionsthecourtiersmightbiddefiancetocontagion。Theexternalworldcouldtakecareofitself。Inthemeantimeitwasfollytogrieve，ortothink。Theprincehadprovidedalltheappliancesofpleasure。Therewerebuffoons，therewereimprovisatori，therewereballet—dancers，thereweremusicians，therewasBeauty，therewaswine。Alltheseandsecuritywerewithin。Withoutwasthe\"RedDeath\"。 Itwastowardsthecloseofthefifthorsixthmonthofhisseclusion，andwhilethepestilenceragedmostfuriouslyabroad，thatthePrinceProsperoentertainedhisthousandfriendsatamaskedballofthemostunusualmagnificence。 Itwasavoluptuousscene，thatmasquerade。Butfirstletmetelloftheroomsinwhichitwasheld。Thesewereseven——animperialsuite。Inmanypalaces，however，suchsuitesformalongandstraightvista，whilethefoldingdoorsslidebacknearlytothewallsoneitherhand，sothattheviewofthewholeextentisscarcelyimpeded。Herethecasewasverydifferent，asmighthavebeenexpectedfromtheduke’sloveofthebizarre。Theapartmentsweresoirregularlydisposedthatthevisionembracedbutlittlemorethanoneatatime。Therewasasharpturnateverytwentyorthirtyyards，andateachturnanoveleffect。Totherightandleft，inthemiddleofeachwall，atallandnarrowGothicwindowlookedoutuponaclosedcorridorwhichpursuedthewindingsofthesuite。Thesewindowswereofstainedglasswhosecolourvariedinaccordancewiththeprevailinghueofthedecorationsofthechamberintowhichitopened。Thatattheeasternextremitywashung，forexampleinblue——andvividlybluewereitswindows。Thesecondchamberwaspurpleinitsornamentsandtapestries，andherethepaneswerepurple。Thethirdwasgreenthroughout，andsowerethecasements。Thefourthwasfurnishedandlightedwithorange——thefifthwithwhite——thesixthwithviolet。Theseventhapartmentwascloselyshroudedinblackvelvettapestriesthathungallovertheceilinganddownthewalls，fallinginheavyfoldsuponacarpetofthesamematerialandhue。Butinthischamberonly，thecolourofthewindowsfailedtocorrespondwiththedecorations。Thepanesherewerescarlet——adeepbloodcolour。Nowinnooneofthesevenapartmentswasthereanylamporcandelabrum，amidtheprofusionofgoldenornamentsthatlayscatteredtoandfroordependedfromtheroof。Therewasnolightofanykindemanatingfromlamporcandlewithinthesuiteofchambers。Butinthecorridorsthatfollowedthesuite，therestood，oppositetoeachwindow，aheavytripod，bearingabrazieroffire，thatprojecteditsraysthroughthetintedglassandsoglaringlyilluminedtheroom。Andthuswereproducedamultitudeofgaudyandfantasticappearances。Butinthewesternorblackchambertheeffectofthefire—lightthatstreameduponthedarkhangingsthroughtheblood—tintedpanes，wasghastlyintheextreme，andproducedsowildalookuponthecountenancesofthosewhoentered，thattherewerefewofthecompanyboldenoughtosetfootwithinitsprecinctsatall。 Itwasinthisapartment，also，thattherestoodagainstthewesternwall，agiganticclockofebony。Itspendulumswungtoandfrowithadull，heavy，monotonousclang;andwhentheminute—handmadethecircuitoftheface，andthehourwastobestricken，therecamefromthebrazenlungsoftheclockasoundwhichwasclearandloudanddeepandexceedinglymusical，butofsopeculiaranoteandemphasisthat，ateachlapseofanhour，themusiciansoftheorchestrawereconstrainedtopause，momentarily，intheirperformance，toharkentothesound;andthusthewaltzersperforceceasedtheirevolutions;andtherewasabriefdisconcertofthewholegaycompany;and，whilethechimesoftheclockyetrang，itwasobservedthatthegiddiestgrewpale，andthemoreagedandsedatepassedtheirhandsovertheirbrowsasifinconfusedreveryormeditation。Butwhentheechoeshadfullyceased，alightlaughteratoncepervadedtheassembly;themusicianslookedateachotherandsmiledasifattheirownnervousnessandfolly，andmadewhisperingvows，eachtotheother，thatthenextchimingoftheclockshouldproduceinthemnosimilaremotion;andthen，afterthelapseofsixtyminutes，（whichembracethreethousandandsixhundredsecondsoftheTimethatflies，）therecameyetanotherchimingoftheclock，andthenwerethesamedisconcertandtremulousnessandmeditationasbefore。 But，inspiteofthesethings，itwasagayandmagnificentrevel。Thetastesofthedukewerepeculiar。Hehadafineeyeforcoloursandeffects。Hedisregardedthedecoraofmerefashion。Hisplanswereboldandfiery，andhisconceptionsglowedwithbarbariclustre。Therearesomewhowouldhavethoughthimmad。Hisfollowersfeltthathewasnot。Itwasnecessarytohearandseeandtouchhimtobesurethathewasnot。 Hehaddirected，ingreatpart，themovableembellishmentsofthesevenchambers，uponoccasionofthisgreatfete;anditwashisownguidingtastewhichhadgivencharactertothemasqueraders。Besuretheyweregrotesque。Thereweremuchglareandglitterandpiquancyandphantasm——muchofwhathasbeensinceseenin\"Hernani\"。Therewerearabesquefigureswithunsuitedlimbsandappointments。Thereweredeliriousfanciessuchasthemadmanfashions。Thereweremuchofthebeautiful，muchofthewanton，muchofthebizarre，somethingoftheterrible，andnotalittleofthatwhichmighthaveexciteddisgust。Toandfrointhesevenchamberstherestalked，infact，amultitudeofdreams。Andthese——thedreams——writhedinandabouttakinghuefromtherooms，andcausingthewildmusicoftheorchestratoseemastheechooftheirsteps。And，anon，therestrikestheebonyclockwhichstandsinthehallofthevelvet。Andthen，foramoment，allisstill，andallissilentsavethevoiceoftheclock。Thedreamsarestiff—frozenastheystand。Buttheechoesofthechimedieaway——theyhaveenduredbutaninstant——andalight，half—subduedlaughterfloatsafterthemastheydepart。Andnowagainthemusicswells，andthedreamslive，andwrithetoandfromoremerrilythanever，takinghuefromthemanytintedwindowsthroughwhichstreamtheraysfromthetripods。Buttothechamberwhichliesmostwestwardlyoftheseven，therearenownoneofthemaskerswhoventure;forthenightiswaningaway;andthereflowsaruddierlightthroughtheblood—colouredpanes;andtheblacknessofthesabledraperyappals;andtohimwhosefootfallsuponthesablecarpet，therecomesfromthenearclockofebonyamuffledpealmoresolemnlyemphaticthananywhichreachestheirearswhoindulgedinthemoreremotegaietiesoftheotherapartments。 Buttheseotherapartmentsweredenselycrowded，andinthembeatfeverishlytheheartoflife。Andtherevelwentwhirlinglyon，untilatlengththerecommencedthesoundingofmidnightupontheclock。Andthenthemusicceased，asIhavetold;andtheevolutionsofthewaltzerswerequieted;andtherewasanuneasycessationofallthingsasbefore。Butnowthereweretwelvestrokestobesoundedbythebelloftheclock;andthusithappened，perhaps，thatmoreofthoughtcrept，withmoreoftime，intothemeditationsofthethoughtfulamongthosewhorevelled。 Andthustoo，ithappened，perhaps，thatbeforethelastechoesofthelastchimehadutterlysunkintosilence，thereweremanyindividualsinthecrowdwhohadfoundleisuretobecomeawareofthepresenceofamaskedfigurewhichhadarrestedtheattentionofnosingleindividualbefore。Andtherumourofthisnewpresencehavingspreaditselfwhisperinglyaround，therearoseatlengthfromthewholecompanyabuzz，ormurmur，expressiveofdisapprobationandsurprise——then，finally，ofterror，ofhorror，andofdisgust。 InanassemblyofphantasmssuchasIhavepainted，itmaywellbesupposedthatnoordinaryappearancecouldhaveexcitedsuchsensation。Intruththemasqueradelicenceofthenightwasnearlyunlimited;butthefigureinquestionhadout—HerodedHerod，andgonebeyondtheboundsofeventheprince’sindefinitedecorum。 Therearechordsintheheartsofthemostrecklesswhichcannotbetouchedwithoutemotion。Evenwiththeutterlylost，towhomlifeanddeathareequallyjests，therearemattersofwhichnojestcanbemade。Thewholecompany，indeed，seemednowdeeplytofeelthatinthecostumeandbearingofthestrangerneitherwitnorproprietyexisted。Thefigurewastallandgaunt，andshroudedfromheadtofootinthehabilimentsofthegrave。Themaskwhichconcealedthevisagewasmadesonearlytoresemblethecountenanceofastiffenedcorpsethattheclosestscrutinymusthavehaddifficultyindetectingthecheat。Andyetallthismighthavebeenendured，ifnotapproved，bythemadrevellersaround。ButthemummerhadgonesofarastoassumethetypeoftheRedDeath。 Hisvesturewasdabbledinblood——andhisbroadbrow，withallthefeaturesoftheface，wasbesprinkledwiththescarlethorror。 WhentheeyesofthePrinceProsperofelluponthisspectralimage（which，withaslowandsolemnmovement，asifmorefullytosustainitsrole，stalkedtoandfroamongthewaltzers）hewasseentobeconvulsed，inthefirstmomentwithastrongshuddereitherofterrorordistaste;but，inthenext，hisbrowreddenedwithrage。 \"Whodares，\"——hedemandedhoarselyofthecourtierswhostoodnearhim——\"whodaresinsultuswiththisblasphemousmockery？ Seizehimandunmaskhim——thatwemayknowwhomwehavetohang，atsunrise，fromthebattlements！\" ItwasintheeasternorbluechamberinwhichstoodthePrinceProsperoasheutteredthesewords。Theyrangthroughoutthesevenroomsloudlyandclearly，fortheprincewasaboldandrobustman，andthemusichadbecomehushedatthewavingofhishand。 Itwasintheblueroomwherestoodtheprince，withagroupofpalecourtiersbyhisside。Atfirst，ashespoke，therewasaslightrushingmovementofthisgroupinthedirectionoftheintruder，whoatthemomentwasalsonearathand，andnow，withdeliberateandstatelystep，madecloserapproachtothespeaker。Butfromacertainnamelessawewithwhichthemadassumptionsofthemummerhadinspiredthewholeparty，therewerefoundnonewhoputforthhandtoseizehim;sothat，unimpeded，hepassedwithinayardoftheprince’sperson;and，whilethevastassembly，asifwithoneimpulse，shrankfromthecentresoftheroomstothewalls，hemadehiswayuninterruptedly，butwiththesamesolemnandmeasuredstepwhichhaddistinguishedhimfromthefirst，throughthebluechambertothepurple——throughthepurpletothegreen——throughthegreentotheorange——throughthisagaintothewhite——andeventhencetotheviolet，ereadecidedmovementhadbeenmadetoarresthim。Itwasthen，however，thatthePrinceProspero，maddeningwithrageandtheshameofhisownmomentarycowardice，rushedhurriedlythroughthesixchambers，whilenonefollowedhimonaccountofadeadlyterrorthathadseizeduponall。Heborealoftadrawndagger，andhadapproached，inrapidimpetuosity，towithinthreeorfourfeetoftheretreatingfigure，whenthelatter，havingattainedtheextremityofthevelvetapartment，turnedsuddenlyandconfrontedhispursuer。Therewasasharpcry——andthedaggerdroppedgleaminguponthesablecarpet，uponwhich，instantlyafterwards，fellprostrateindeaththePrinceProspero。Then，summoningthewildcourageofdespair，athrongoftherevellersatoncethrewthemselvesintotheblackapartment，and，seizingthemummer，whosetallfigurestooderectandmotionlesswithintheshadowoftheebonyclock，gaspedinunutterablehorroratfindingthegravecerementsandcorpse—likemask，whichtheyhandledwithsoviolentarudeness，untenantedbyanytangibleform。 AndnowwasacknowledgedthepresenceoftheRedDeath。Hehadcomelikeathiefinthenight。Andonebyonedroppedtherevellersintheblood—bedewedhallsoftheirrevel，anddiedeachinthedespairingpostureofhisfall。Andthelifeoftheebonyclockwentoutwiththatofthelastofthegay。Andtheflamesofthetripodsexpired。AndDarknessandDecayandtheRedDeathheldillimitabledominionoverall。