Everyone fears their own death, which is why some people will do anything to escape it. In Edgar Allan Poe's short story, “The Masque of the Red Death,” this fear is experienced by everyone. In the story, a prince named Prospero and his people attempt to escape the Red Death by retreating and isolating themselves in the prince's abbey. However, no wall can stop death since it is inevitable and unavoidable. Throughout the story, Poe uses symbols such as the coins, the masked figure, and the clock to convey the theme that no one can escape death. The image of the coins used in the story has a main contribution to the theme conveyed. Prince Prospero's Abbey is made up of seven different and symbolic rooms. The fact that there are seven rooms is symbolic in itself because there are seven stages in life. Poe uses the number of coins according to the stages of life so that the first coin symbolizes birth and the seventh symbolizes death. Additionally, the rooms are arranged from east to west, similar to how time is measured. The sun rises in the east, where the first coin is located, and symbolizes birth while the last coin is located in the west, where the sun sets, and symbolizes death. The colors of the rooms also have great importance in the way they are arranged. The easternmost piece was blue, signifying youth and life, while the westernmost piece was black, signifying death. The importance of the seven rooms lies in the seventh and, therefore, the most lively room, because it is the last room and symbolizes the end: "The seventh apartment was tightly wrapped in black velvet tapestries which hung everywhere from the ceiling and down. the walls, falling in heavy folds on a carpet of the same material and...... middle of paper ......k to do it. In Prospero's Abbey there were seven rooms, symbolizing the seven stages of life. The easternmost piece is blue, which symbolizes life and the westernmost piece is black, symbolizing death, just as the sun rises in the east, symbolizing light and life, and lies in the west, symbolizing darkness and death. This room is abandoned and unoccupied by the guest because it simply reminds him of his death. Furthermore, the masked figure symbolizes death in such a way that it finds all the guests who try to escape from it. Therefore, the masked figure symbolizes the Red Death or the plague. Finally, the story clock is used to remind people of death. When the clock strikes each hour, everyone turns pale and remembers that their time is approaching. In conclusion, Poe uses symbols effectively to convey his theme that no matter how smart he is, no one can escape death..