Edgar Allen Poe

            Names are given for many different reasons. For example, Oedipus is named for his swollen foot. Contrary to Sophocles, Poe uses names that contradict or describe his characters to the extreme opposite of what they exactly are; this makes the stories very ironic. Similarly, In Edgar Allan Poe's, Great Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, the characters have names which strongly represent their characters, strongly contradict them, or somewhat describe them but not to their entirety.
             In "The Masque of the Red Death," there are few examples of names that are given to suit the character or object. For example, although Prince Prospero (meaning prosperous) is a wealthy man, his fortunes do not perceive him well seeing that they didn't last long. "There was a sharp cry- and the dagger dropped gleaming upon the sable carpet, upon which, instantly afterward, fell prostate in death the Prince Prospero"(79). Here the Prince is dying early on in his life, wiping his fortunes away. Even though he is trying to isolate himself from the black plague, it's not helping him. Another object in the story is titled, "the Red Death." "But the mummer had gone so far as to assume the type of the Red Death (78)." This is telling the reader that an actual person is coming to the palace to pass the Red Death. It looks like the Red Death itself, exactly what it is. .
             In the "Cask of Amontillado," both Fortunato and Montresor have names that "somewhat" describe their characters. Fortunato's name signifies the word "fortunate" but his character utterly contradicts this concept. "I thrust a torch through the remaining opportune and let it fall within" (14). Montresor explicitly describes his actions upon the completion of building his "death trap." With this character, the theory of the "fortunate" receiving well-suited consequences is fully disregarded. On the other hand, Montresor's (meaning "monster") name is completely compatible with his character.