A Short History of the color RED

Ancient Folklore says that the first color perceived by man was RED; maybe that’s why it has remained through history as one of the most powerful colors, with the most stories, meanings and symbolism behind it. Even in modern times a person suffering from a brain injury that becomes temporarily color-blinded states that the first color they begin to discern is red. Also studies done in present times have been conducted in regards to color association. On average the color red is associated with two words – power and hunger.

Neolithic hunters, Anglo-Saxons, Norse all of these people believed that the color red held magic powers and often times would bury their dead with red ochre. Red was said to protect from evil spirits in these cultures. The warriors and hunters would paint their weapons red which they believed endowed magic. In Australia the aborigines still hold this belief even in modern times. Roman gladiators drank the blood of their enemies so that they could absorb their strength. In the Middle Ages red sheets were used as protection against “red illnesses” like fever, rashes and miscarriages. Ruby gems, red garlands and red scarfs were signs of protection as well and often worn in weddings during the 18^th century in some cultures.

A red rose became the symbol of love and fidelity in many cultures. In Greek and Roman mythology the red rose sprang alive from the blood of Adonis who was killed by a wild boar on a hunting excursion. The red rose thus became the symbol also for the cycle of growth and decay. In Christian beliefs it is associated with the Cross and the bloodshed of Jesus of Nazareth.

Red also held more negative meanings as well. Israelites would paint red animal blood over their doorframes to ward off vindictive spirits. In Egypt the red sands of the desert represent the destructive god Seth. Egyptian writers used red ink to dictate nasty words; contrast that with Christianity in which many Bibles use the color red to indicate God/Jesus speaking.

In regards to We the Living, the book tells the very real story of the rising red tide of communism in Soviet Russia, even though the novel is fiction. The cover of the book only depicts one image – a red piece of barbed wire. The color red, appropriately then, is state time and time again in its pages. It is interesting and understandable that with all the varying symbolisms behind red that it became the rallying red flag in which the communists assembled behind.