The stories The Most Dangerous Game and The Gift of the Magi are both well written and vivid stories. The Most Dangerous Game is about a hunter who becomes hunted, and The Gift of the Magi is about a married couple trying to find each other gifts for christmas. Both stories have literary elements that move the story along, but in The Most Dangerous Game the elements are used more effectively. In the story, The Most Dangerous Game, two hunters, Whitney and Rainsford, sail past an island with a bad reputation among sailors. Rainsford falls out and swims to shore. A man named Zaroff takes him in for dinner. It turns out that he is a hunter like Rainsford, but his method of hunting is different. Rainsford ends up being hunted by Zaroff and he comes to a very difficult choice. He decides to risk it and jump off a cliff to swim back to shore. The story ends when Rainsford finds his way back and challenges Zaroff. This story portrays many literary elements. One of them is forshadowing. There are two ways that the author, Richard Connell, uses this technique. First off, Whitney says, “The world is made up of two classes. The hunters and the huntees. Luckily, you and I are hunters.” This foreshadows when Rainsford is going to be in the position of the huntee. Second, he foreshadows the eerie island. “The place has a reputation-a bad one.” says Whitney. Later on, the island has great importance in the story. Another element Connell uses is situational irony. He uses it when
In the story “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell and the poem “Porphyria’s Lover” by Robert Browning, the authors use characterization and imagery to convey that the desire for power can drive man to psychotic actions.
In Richard Connell’s short story “The Most Dangerous Game”, the protagonist character, Sander Rainsford is an adventurous and fearless big game hunter. Rainsford has no remorse for his prey. Over the course of the story Rainsford experiences a sudden change of heart when he finds himself where “The world is made up of two classes—the hunters and the huntees.”
To begin with, Richard Connell successfully writes a compelling short story through plot. One example of the exciting plot used in “The Most Dangerous Game” is when it states, “You'll find this game worth playing," the general said enthusiastically. " Your brain against mine. Your woodcraft against mine. Your strength and stamina against mine.
In The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell, Rainsford learns a very important lesson about assuming. Rainsford was a hunter that said that it doesn’t matter if he and Whitney hunt the jaguar because the jaguar doesn’t really know what is happening. Later in the story, Rainsford finds out what it really feels like as a huntee’s and realizes that he should not have assumed the feelings of the animal. As Connell said on page 55, “Don’t talk rot, Whitney,” said Rainsford. “You’re a big-game hunter, not a philosopher, who cares how a jaguar feels?” Some hunters believe this as well, unless they’re like Rainsford.
It had been a week since Rainsford managed to kill the nefarious General Zaroff. The challenging part was almost over or so it seemed. There was not a clear way for Rainsford to escape. As days passed, Rainsford tried to escape. He tried making a boat from driftwood that he found, he tried swimming, he even tried sending a signal by using a flashlight. Rainsford had become so desperate that he even tried some ridiculous plans like trying to pole vault across the ocean. As a result, Rainsford ended up having huge gashes in his left leg ,which got infected, and he had to amputate it. As days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, Rainsford had lost hope and became bitter.
Richard Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game" is a very exciting story of a manhunt. This story made me think about the morality of hunting: Humans are the cleverest creatures on earth, but does it give them a license to kill the other animals and even human beings weaker than themselves? I give below a short summary of the story to set the scene and then I will explore the ethics involved in hunting as a sport. "The Most Dangerous Game" presents the story of a hunter, General Zaroff, who finds hunting human beings as the most dangerous and fascinating sport.
Imagery and personification are some of the most powerful literary devices because they can bring the story to life and capture the reader's attention with just a few words. “The Most Dangerous Game” has both of these devices used effectively, and it makes the story better than most of its type. The author, Richard Connell, used imagery and personification in a way that connects with the reader very well, and makes the story a more enjoyable read, because it paints a clear picture of what is happening in the story.
What is human nature? The Bible says in Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We are all fallen, sinful and depraved, all of us are. Humans are evil. Genesis 1-3 shows us that God made us whole and good, but we have ruined his perfect plan. The greatest of men were all sinners. Moses, the leader of Israel was a murder (Exodus 2:11-15), David slept with Bathsheba and then killed her husband (2 Samuel 11-12), Paul murdered christians (Acts 9), and the list goes on and on.
Imagine turning up on an island with a psychotic man, a man who hunts humans. This is what General Zaroff does, on Ship-Trap-Island. General Zaroff is a rich hunter who hunts most animals, even the most dangerous. This is the story written by Richard Connell, called The Most Dangerous Game, It is about a psychotic man with a hunting obsession. Once Zaroff gets bored with the hunting animals he turns to something new, humans. The author thinks that hunting is normal, that people have a killer instinct. That it is our human nature to hunt, and kill. The author also thinks that it is human nature to look for new challenges and to live strong. Much like Zaroff, the author believes life, is for the willing.
In the short story, “The Most Dangerous Game,” author Richard Connell expertly exploits foreshadowing and vivid imagery to emphasize danger and suspense. Many authors attempt to do this, but only a small few succeed. Everyone who has stayed up past their bedtime reading a book will tell you, they stayed awake because the book they were reading was filled with suspense. It is suspense that separates the great stories from the good stories. And “The Most Dangerous Game” is definately a great one. By using foreshadowing and utilizing his characters five senses, Connell keeps readers at the edge of their seats, eagerly waiting to find out what comes next.
Resourcefulness is being able to overcome difficulties quickly and in a clever way. Resourcefulness can also be using one’s surroundings for his/her benefit with prior knowledge and experience. In Richard Connell’s short story “The Most Dangerous Game” the main character Rainsford shows these skills of resourcefulness as he tries to survive the hunt. Rainsford is an experienced big game hunter that is trapped on a tropical jungle covered island with another big game hunter, General Zaroff. Zaroff has gained so much experience in hunting, due to this he has lost interest in hunting animals and now enjoys the hunt of humans. Rainsford is put in the position to be torched or participate in a game of hunting. When Rainsford is challenged to this game of hunting he is forced to try and survive. Rainsford is able to survive the hunt because he uses his resources and prior knowledge to weaken Zaroff helping him win the hunt.
One of the darker actions examined in this unit takes place in "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell. In this short story, General Zaroff begins hunting a man lost on his island named Rainsford. Bored of the usual game, General Zaroff decides he wants something more exciting and chooses to prey on humans. This ill-judged decision has a domino effect on the plot, ultimately ending in the demise of Zaroff. Nonetheless, an alternate ending besides death could have very well been a possibility. Perhaps, instead of hunting humans, Zaroff decides to open a hunting camp to share his passion for the sport with others. Obviously, his boredom is caused by the island's isolation from society. So, Zaroff could have built homes and started a community or decide to leave the island altogether. Then, the course of this story would have taken a completely different path. Maybe, Zaroff finds a wife, they have children and live happily ever after. If only he was able to overcome his dark side instead of letting it consume him.
“He knew his pursuer was coming; he heard the padding sound of feet on the soft earth… (Connell 32)” The Most Dangerous Game is a story full of adventures and seems to always have the reader on edge. Richard Connell’s story is filled with the theme of ‘will.’ This book is also full of plot twists and makes one mesmerized page by page wanting to know what happens to Rainsford. It also lets the reader to question what happens at the end and it allows the reader to make connections with real life, archetypes, and other literature. The Most Dangerous Game is a compelling hunt full of violence, action, and the theme of ‘will’ in the hunt of a man by a man.
One of the greatest qualities of humanity is the ability to respond to the circumstances and surroundings one might find themselves in at any given time. Authors convey this quality into literature constantly with their novels and articles. “The Most Dangerous Game” is a realistic fiction short story written by Richard Connell. “The Most Dangerous Game” is a stunning short story on the human condition, the dangers of blood-thirsty hunters, and defining the true meaning of a civilized person. Connell’s wrote his novel during the time period wealthy individuals enjoyed hunting animals. TV shows, magazine articles, and even movies are based off Connell’s story. Another example of a novel that responds to the environment is James Hurst’s
High Noon and The Most Dangerous Game are two short but amazing stories. They tell a story dependent on isolation and a feeling of being alone to the person reading and watching them. High Noon is a movie that is the literal representation of being alone with no one on your side. The Most Dangerous Game is a story that paints a picture of instinct in your mind. Both stories allow for an adventure of thoughts and speculation of what might happen next.