Final answer:
The dream-like costumes in "The Masque of the Red Death" symbolize the inevitability of death and the fear of mortality.
Step-by-step explanation:
The dream-like costumes of the revelers in "The Masque of the Red Death" symbolize the inevitability of death and the fear of mortality. In the story, the revelers are depicted as wearing elaborate and fantastical costumes, which serve as a metaphor for the illusion of security and escapism from the reality of death.
The costumes also represent the characters' attempts to deny and ignore the presence of death, only to be confronted by it in the end.