9/17 “The Most Dangerous Game”

p.14 Rainsford: “Don’t talk rot . . . you’re a big game hunter, not a
philosopher. Who cares how the jaguar feels.”
“The world is made up of two classes—the hunters and the
huntees.”

Rainsford
 Purely logically—is not swayed by rumors of the evil island
 Cool headed—stops shouting and swims towards the sound
that he heard. Doesn’t panic on a “deserted” island—instead
looks for signs of life and the food that will be with the people
 Strong and comfortable—swims far, sleeps comfortably
 Observant-collects data—22 shell, but large game => gutsy
hunter, follows the footprints to the chateau
 Hopeful, doesn’t give up, keeps looking for the next way to
save himself
 Knowledgeable—great hunter => books and awesome shot
(Whitney)

9/18/08
Zaroff
 Military man => his servant salutes him
 Rich = huge chateau, richly furnished, fancy clothes from an
elite London tailor, fancy food and champagne
 Handsome
 Cossack, type of Russian (savage he claims in connection with
Ivan)
p. 17 “A simple fellow, but, I’m afraid, like all of his race, a bit of
a savage.”
“He is a Cossack,” said the general, and his smile showed red lips
and pointed teeth. “So am I.” foreshadowing what a savage he
truly is

Irony = difference (discrepancy) between appearance and reality (it

looks one way but it’s really the opposite)

“We do our best to preserve the amenities of civilization here.” But

he actually hunts men = IRONY

MORE IRONY “They can crush a ship as easily as I can crush this
nut.” He dropped a walnut on the hardwood floor and brought his
heel grinding down on it. “Oh yes, “ he said, casually, as if in
answer to a question, “I have electricity. We try to be civilized
here.” HOW CAN HE BE CIVILIZED WHEN HE’S
DESCRIBING HOW HE MURDERS INNOCENT SAILORS

RAINSFORD’S FIRST REACTION TO THE HUNT

p. 20 Rainsford “Hunting? Good God, General Zaroff, what you
speak of is murder.” APALLED,
HE CAN’T SLEEP THAT NIGHT—WORRIED

Z IS SUCH A GOOD HUNTER HE BECOMES BORED BY

THE SPORT—IT’S NO LONGER A CHALLENGE UNTIL HE
DISCOVERS “THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME”--MEN

p.21 Zaroff “Life is for the strong, to be lived by the strong, and if
need be, taken by the strong. The weak of the world were put here
to give the strong pleasure. I am strong. Why should I not use my
gift?” starts off similar to Rainsford, but in the end . . .
Zaroff is a crazy psychotic killer, and Rainsford is not, but . . .

25 “The Cossack was the cat: he was the mouse. Then it was that
Rainsford knew the full meaning of terror.”

27 “Rainsford knew now how an animal at bay feels.”

28 “I am still a beast at bay . . . Get ready General Zaroff.” On

guard

“He had never slept in a better bed, Rainsford decided.”

9/19 “The Most Dangerous Game”

Rainsford Zaroff
Friendly Seems polite, but actually hunts
men—hidden evil
Loves to hunt Loves to hunt, obsessed by it
Brave Sort of brave (he uses a gun, but
his prey only gets a knife)
Famous hunter Experienced hunter
American Russian (Cossack)
Ingenious –clever solutions Pretty smart, persistent
Daring, adventurous Same
Published author Not
Observant of everything Same
Doesn’t care how animals feel Doesn’t care how animals or
 humans feel
Practical (down to earth) Out in his own little world
Logical Smart, but insane (missing
something)
Excellent hunter Same
Strong Same
Thinks well on his feet Yeah
Moral (thinks killing men is Psychotic killer
wrong)
No qualms about hunting for No qualms about murder
sport
Black and white world: hunters Black and white world: hunters
and huntees and huntees (humans)

Ending
Rainsford escapes Zaroff by jumping off a cliff and swimming to shore. He sneaks back into Zaroff’s house and
hides in his bedroom. When Zaroff comes upstairs, he challenges him to a fight and Rainsford wins. That night
he sleeps in Zaroff’s bed.
 Never Hunts Again
He realizes that animals have feelings
“Rainsford knew now how an animal at bay feels”
(27)
Thinks hunting humans is murder
Had to kill Zaroff because he wanted revenge, because
someone had to stop this insane killer and Z might
escape if R left the island to get help
After being hunted, he begins to feel and act like an
animal. He has too much empathy now to kill them
Realizes that the fear animals experience while being
hunted is terrible
No longer feels that the world is divided into hunters
(men) and the hunted (animals) because of becoming
the hunted
Becomes like Zaroff
He sleeps in Zaroff’s bed: symbolism: master of the
island, master of the castle = one who hunts men,
following in Zaroff’s manner
He continues the game even after he won.
He follows Zaroff’s rules of sleeping in the bed, even
after Zaroff is dead. If it was necessity to kill him, he
would have left or slept in another bed after killing
Zaroff
Enjoyed the thrill of the ultimate hunt. Loves to hunt
just as much as Zaroff
Even though he is afraid while being hunted, he enjoys
thinking of ways to stop Zaroff and is so excited when
his plans work

In Richard Connell’s short story, “The Most Dangerous Game,” the hero of the story makes a drastic change by
the end. Instead of reporting the psychotic killer, Zaroff, to the authorities, he takes his place as master of the
island, as a hunter of men.
Or

In Richard Connell’s short story, “The Most Dangerous Game,” the hero of the story makes a drastic change by
the end. He gives up his lifelong love of hunting and never hunts again after experiencing the terror than
animals feel while being hunted.