"The Most DAngerous Game"
By: Richard connell
Published: January 19th, 1924
Plot summary
The story begins with our protagonist, Sanger Rainsford, on a yacht in the middle of the Caribbean with another man, Whitney. The boat is on a course set for Rio de Janiero, Brazil, so that Rainsford and Whitney can hunt jaguars. While Whitney goes below deck, Rainsford stays up top to smoke his pipe. While smoking he hears the crack of a gun being fired and looks around to inspect his surroundings to see if he can find the source of the noise. While leaning over the end accidently knocks his pipe from his mouth and in an attempt to catch it falls in the water. Since everyone is below deck no one can save him. Desperate, Rainsford swims to the shore of the nearby island. While swimming Rainsford hears the cry of an animal being hunted, but he cannot tell what kind of animal. This is odd because Rainsford is a world famous hunter and has hunted all sorts of game. When he reaches the beach, he decides to sleep there for the night and look for help in the morning. When Rainsford wakes up the next morning he finds a huge house in the forest. When he reaches the home he is greated by Ivan, a giant who’s the servant of the antagonist, General Zaroff, who is a hunter himself. Zaroff is a money of taste and treats Rainsford as a guest in his home. Later they begin to talk about hunting and Zaroff informs Rainsford that he has hunted so many types of animals, none of which have put up a fight, that he has begun hunting the most dangerous game, humans. Zaroff believes that Rainsford will be the best hunt he will ever have and informs Rainsford that he will release him into the jungle for 3 days and hunt him. If he survives then he will let him go. Rainsford sets traps for Zaroff, one of which injures him and he must go back he heal himself. On the last day Zaroff, Ivan, and the hounds corner Rainsford on a cliff. Ivan and the hounds are killed by one of Rainsford’s traps and then it’s only Zaroff and Rainsford left. Rainsford, not wanting to get shot, jumps off the cliff and into the water below. Thinking Rainsford is dead, Zaroff returns to his mansion only to find Rainsford there waiting for him. Rainsford exacts his revenge on Zaroff by killing him and sleeps in his bed.
Theme analysis
Violence is a theme that is constant throughout "The Most Dangerous Game". Hunting is a common theme as well, which is violent by nature. There aren't very many ways to hunt and kill something, or someone, in a nonviolent manner. General Zaroff is the most violent person in the story. His only motivation in life is to kill whatever he can. He is a skilled hunter and spends most of his time, much like Rainsford, hunting large game. The biggest difference between Rainsford and General Zaroff is that Rainsford doesn't hunt humans, but General Zaroff hasn't always hunted humans.
"When I was only five years old he gave me a little gun, specially made in Moscow for me, to shoot sparrows with." (1.88)
This quote explains General Zaroff's humble beginnings when he was just a little boy. He was exposed to violence at a young age and has been desensitized to violence because of it. Because he's been desensitized, he is very danger. He may act out in violence and not even think about what he's doing. He obviously doesn't value a humans life, much less an animal’s life, and enjoys killing for fun.
"Hurled me against a tree," said the general. "Fractured my skull. But I got the brute." (1.74)
This quote shows General Zaroff's persistence for violence. Even after a Cape buffalo nearly killed him he still managed to kill it. The Cape buffalo is one of the most dangerous game in the world and the General is crazy enough to have them imported in and placed all over the island. That's how much General Zaroff loves hunting, he wants to be able to walk out his front door and shoot one of the biggest, baddest, and most dangerous animals in the animal kingdom, but it isn't dangerous enough.
"I hunt the scum of the earth sailors from tramp ships—Lascars, blacks, Chinese, whites, mongrels—a thoroughbred horse or hound is worth more than a score of them.'' (1. 94)
This quote completely shows General Zaroff's lack of compassion for human life. To him, a human isn't a human unless they have high class. He tries to say that he hunts scum that no one would care to see dead, but then he tries to hunt Rainsford, a somewhat idol of his. He tries to justify killing men in cold blood which, in almost any case, is never justifiable.
“Not many men know how to make a Malay mancatcher. Luckily for me I, too, have hunted in Malacca. You are proving interesting, Mr. Rainsford. I am going now to have my wound dressed; it's only a slight one. But I shall be back. I shall be back." (2.15)
This quote again reinforces the fact that General Zaroff is a psycho. Rainsford has devised a trap for General Zaroff to fall vicim to in his pursuit of him. When the General gets caught it the trap he explains to Rainsford that he has used this very same trap before, not to catch a hunter, but to catch prey, human prey.
"When I was only five years old he gave me a little gun, specially made in Moscow for me, to shoot sparrows with." (1.88)
This quote explains General Zaroff's humble beginnings when he was just a little boy. He was exposed to violence at a young age and has been desensitized to violence because of it. Because he's been desensitized, he is very danger. He may act out in violence and not even think about what he's doing. He obviously doesn't value a humans life, much less an animal’s life, and enjoys killing for fun.
"Hurled me against a tree," said the general. "Fractured my skull. But I got the brute." (1.74)
This quote shows General Zaroff's persistence for violence. Even after a Cape buffalo nearly killed him he still managed to kill it. The Cape buffalo is one of the most dangerous game in the world and the General is crazy enough to have them imported in and placed all over the island. That's how much General Zaroff loves hunting, he wants to be able to walk out his front door and shoot one of the biggest, baddest, and most dangerous animals in the animal kingdom, but it isn't dangerous enough.
"I hunt the scum of the earth sailors from tramp ships—Lascars, blacks, Chinese, whites, mongrels—a thoroughbred horse or hound is worth more than a score of them.'' (1. 94)
This quote completely shows General Zaroff's lack of compassion for human life. To him, a human isn't a human unless they have high class. He tries to say that he hunts scum that no one would care to see dead, but then he tries to hunt Rainsford, a somewhat idol of his. He tries to justify killing men in cold blood which, in almost any case, is never justifiable.
“Not many men know how to make a Malay mancatcher. Luckily for me I, too, have hunted in Malacca. You are proving interesting, Mr. Rainsford. I am going now to have my wound dressed; it's only a slight one. But I shall be back. I shall be back." (2.15)
This quote again reinforces the fact that General Zaroff is a psycho. Rainsford has devised a trap for General Zaroff to fall vicim to in his pursuit of him. When the General gets caught it the trap he explains to Rainsford that he has used this very same trap before, not to catch a hunter, but to catch prey, human prey.
Historical context; World War I
The story the most dangerous game takes place after World War I. Many people, including the author of the story, Richard Collenn, fought for the United States of America. After the war, many young men came back to a world that they weren’t used to. Many of them say good friends of theirs die right next to them in the trenches. Many mothers and wives were left without sons and husbands. The soldiers that did return home were shell shocked. Some of them suffered disease of toxic gases that were used during the fighting. Others were left deformed and without limbs. People had become desensitized from the war. Some were used to killing and could not return to everyday life without trouble. In The Most Dangerous Game, General Zaroff talks about the war to Rainsford. He tries to justify his killing by saying that people fought and killed people in war, so why is it so bad now? He didn’t see the difference between killing people in a war and killing people in cold blood. Even if he did see the difference, he chose to ignore it because he enjoyed killing people too much. Since General Zaroff is a General, I’d think that he fought it many battles during World War I. He quite possibly could have gotten so used to killing people that he just couldn’t stop. He had become desensitized and crazy from the war. The author, himself, fought in World War I. He could have been inspired by all the death and fighting that was going on around him. He could have been one of those people who wanted to keep killing after all the fighting was over, but instead of actually doing it he just wrote about it.