Why did I read the story? It's not on
my to-read list, and I'm not a fan of Poe's prose works. To be
honest, Phantom brought me there. I heard that the story inspires
Phantom's masquerade costume, so I read the story. But i have nothing
to regret. It's a good story, and I'd like to share my thoughts about
it.
In Bahasa:
Alkisah ada sebuah wabah bernama “Red
Death”, yang telah menelan begitu banyak korban. Wabah ini tidak
pandang bulu, dan dengan mudah merebak, membunuh siapapun yang
terjangkit. Seorang bangsawan, bernama Prospero, tidak ingin terkena
wabah mematikan ini. Ia dan beberapa temannya akhirnya mengungsi ke
sebuah rumah yang mewah, lengkap dengan segala sarana yang nyaman,
demi menghindari wabah tersebut.
Suatu hari, ia mengadakan pesta topeng,
dan ke pesta itu datanglah seorang tamu tidak dikenal, mengenakan
kostum yang sangat mirip dengan korban “Red Death”. Prospero
marah besar, dan memerintahkan agar tamu bertopeng tersebut
ditangkap. Namun akhirnya..
Kisah ini sebenarnya menandaskan bahwa
tidak seorang pun di dunia ini dapat mencurangi kematian, atau
bersembunyi darinya. Prospero seolah mencoba cara terakhir untuk
menyembunyikan diri dari maut, namun ke situ pulalah maut menjemput.
Penyajian cerita yang gelap dan kelam khas Poe juga menambah
ketegangan ketika membaca kisah ini. Jelaslah, kisah ini bukan kisah
pengantar tidur (pengantar begadang, mungkin?). Silakan dicoba.
In English:
Prospero was a rich nobleman who tried
to escape the “Red Death” - a plague that impartially and
effectively killed people in the area. This plague was terrible,
marked with pain and blood. Terrified by the possibility of
contracted by the disease, he and some of his friends retired to a
house far from the plague. He entertained his guest in every means
possible, and even held parties for them.
Once he held a masquerade, in 7
different rooms with 7 different colours. In that party, an uninvited
guest came. He wore a mask resembling a victim of the Red Death, thus
scaring Prospero so much that he ordered the guest to be immediately
captured – with no success.
The story tells us how impossible it is
to cheat death or run away or hide form it. No matter how you try, it
will come and catch you one day. Poe's dark and gloomy writing style
adds more thrill to the story, gives it gothic elements in it, which
is fun, but not that fun for a bedtime story.
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