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How are Rainsford and Zaroff Different?
In the short story “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell, Rainsford and Zaroff share similar mentalities about hunting, but have vastly different view on the world and the values of human life that ultimately leads Rainsford to make the choice to kill Zaroff for the greater good. One of the major differences are their morals. Rainsford values human life and thinks it is wrong to hunt a man. As Rainsford and Zaroff meet, they seem a lot alike, but as the relationship between Zaroff and Rainsford evolves, it becomes increasingly clear how different they truly are. An example of this is when Zaroff proposes that the go hunting together for humans and Rainsford replies: “what you speak of is murder!”(8).
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Zaroff sees nothing wrong with killing a man for sport.
He simply sees them as another type of prey. Another way that they were different that may have been overlooked by the reader, but is still an equally important distinction, is that Rainsford is able to make friends. Rainsford has friends as proofed by the beginning when he and his friend, Whitney were on the boat talking like old friends “I’ve seen you pick off a moose moving in the fall brush at four hundred yards...”(1). This shows that Rainsford and Whitney have hunted before and are likely close friends. Zaroff has no friends and never once in the story does it mention family members friends or even any acquaintances. The story even states that he treats Ivan more like property than like a real person and shows no emotion towards him. Zaroff probably has no friends because he has a hard time connecting with other people or because of his homicidal tendencies. Even Ivan wasn’t a friend, he was more like property “Ivan would be difficult to replace”(15), this shows us that he has no emotion towards Ivan. He probably is a psychopath because he is so lonely and has very limited interaction with other people. Rainsford and Zaroff each have both killed at least one man by the end of
the story, the difference is their motives. Zaroff kills people because it gives him pleasure. Rainsford, who would normally be against killing a man, only kills Zaroff because he feels he must. He does this so that will have to live through and get killed by Zaroff’s devilish game. Rainsford also learns to express emotion in a way that makes Zaroff look inhuman. In the end Rainsford finally knows what it feels like to be hunted. Zaroff on the other hand shows no remorse for his actions even as Rainsford hunts and kills him. Rainsford begins to value all human life. Zaroff obviously believes the strong have a right, almost a duty to hunt and exterminate the weak. In summary it is the small, yet significant differences in their personalities and beliefs that lead Rainsford to feel like he must kill Zaroff for the god of everyone.
In the short story “The Most Dangerous Game” Rainsford was justified in killing General Zaroff. Rainsford is a hunter. He was on a yacht that crashed and he was the only survivor. The island that he swam to was named “Ship Trap Island.” This where General Zaroff lived. He is also a hunter. He has hunted anything you can think of. Even… people. He has the survivors from the ship wrecks “play” his “game.” The survivors go out into the jungle and General Zaroff goes out and finds them. They have three days to survive. If they don’t get caught in those three days, they win. If they lose… they are killed. This happened to Rainsford. Rainsford, thankfully, won the “game.” He shot General Zaroff after his win.
Rainsford is an intelligent man. Early in the story, “Rainsford remembered the shots. They had come from the right, and he doggedly swam in that direction” (34). Rainsford had just fallen in the water, swam fifty feet further out, but he kept his senses in the right direction. In total darkness, Rainsford used his intelligence and intellect to reach the land. Also, I don’t think that Rainsford knew he was being sized up when Zaroff was staring at him, but when “Rainsford’s bewilderment showed in his face” (100), he quickly understood what Zaroff was leading too. Rainsford wasn’t a murderer. Sure he liked to hunt game, but he wasn’t bored as Zaroff was. Rainsford never bought into all the old tales. ‘“One superstitious sailor can taint the whole ship’s company with fear”’ (20). He never got worked up or stressed out.
In the short story, “The Most Dangerous Game”, Rainsford was justified in killing General Zaroff. Rainsford is a hunter. He was on a yacht until he fell off the boat. He swam all the way to shore because Rainsford heard three gun shots. He walked upon a gigantic mansion. This house was for a man named General Zaroff. He was an hunter just like Rainsford in a hunt , but hunted humans instead of animals. General Zaroff wanted to kill Rainsford in a hunt with the General. Also, the General threaten Rainsford if he doesn’t hunt with him; he will be sent with Ivan.
Robert Rainsford from “The Most Dangerous Game” is a very open character. He always shows what he’s thinking verbally or just with facial expressions. When he landed on Ship-Trap island and was lost in the woods, he found a pathway. “They pointed along the cliff in the direction he had been going.” Rainsford’s attitude toward the pathway is what brought him and General Zaroff together. Rainsford had the opportunity to just not follow the hunting boot tracks and walk down a different trail but then the story would never have ended the same. “‘Thank you, I’m a hunter, not a murderer.’ ‘Dear me,’ said the general, quite unruffled, ‘again that unpleasant word. But I think I can show you that your scruples are quite ill founded.’”This quote signifies the start of conflict for the two characters.
In the short story “the most dangerous game”, Rainsford was justified in killing General Zaroff.
A skilled hunter sprints desperately through the woods, realizing the futility of hiding from his greatest foe: his own kind. Richard Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” is the story of a hunter that becomes the hunted. The story explores the sense of extreme terror the protagonist feels being pursued by a psychopath living on a mysterious island. This protagonist, Rainsford, has many traits that aid him in his battle with the general. By demonstrating his cunning, sly, and remorseful traits, Rainsford shows the story’s theme of “walking a mile in someone else’s shoes”.
“You’re a big-game hunter, not a philosopher. Who cares how a jaguar feels?”. The story “The Most dangerous Game,” by Richard Connell introduces an adventurous type of thriller with two main characters named Sanger Rainsford and General Zaroff. Both of which are hunters who in the story play a “game” invented by General Zaroff out of pure fear of becoming bored of the hunt. General Zaroff is a big fan of the hunt and everything he says about the hunt is to be taken serious. Rainsford and General Zaroff are described to be excellent hunters through the traps Rainsford makes, all the big game Zaroff has hunted, but Zaroff is better at hunting through the fact that the hunt has began to bore and he needs more of a challenge hunting humans.
In “The Most Dangerous Game” the author creates two strikingly similar characters that blur the line of ethics. Rainsford, the protagonist, meets his adversary and leader of an exotic tribe, Zaroff, after falling off of a yacht and swimming to the nearest island. The short story then explores the events that transpires between the strangers – focusing on Zaroff's bloodthirsty hunt against Rainsford. Yet even with the two men on opposite sides of a loaded gun, they both share many common interests and views pertaining to their similar backgrounds, hunting methods, and desired end result.
In Richard Connell’s The Most Dangerous Game Rainsford’s motivations changed from wanting to be a great hunter to trying to stay alive. As Whitney and Rainsford are headed to Rio to hunt they are talking about the great sport itself, hunting. Rainsford agrees with Whitney and says that hunting is, “The best sport in the world” (Connell 1). This shows he enjoys hunting by saying that it’s is the best and most enjoyable sport in the world. If you are passionate about something it can motivate you to try new things and in his case, hunting new animals. After Rainsford falls off the yacht and wanders to the island he then finds a home and knocks on the door. Ivan answers and General Zaroff soon approached Rainsford and saluted him. After allowing
After recently being separated from his hunting mates with miles of sea, hungry, tired, and in need of clothes, Rainsford is lost and alone. After finding some sort of civilization, Rainsford is overjoyed. After an unpleasant welcome, the ruler of the island comes out greets Rainsford, a known hunter. Seeing him wet, tattered, and hungry, General Zaroff offers to give him aid. "Come,’ he said, ‘we shouldn't be chatting here. We can talk later. Now you want clothes, food, rest. You shall have them. This is a most-restful spot.(Connell 5)" The General is not a straightforward person, giving a false impression to Rainsford, trying to get his trust. Connell uses characterization to support the theme that people just can’t be trusted off of first impressions. This is a perfect example characterization when Zaroff gives the impression that he is a charitable person giving a wandering stranger a place to rest. Later this is shown to be the opposite, that murders lurk the island. He plans to earn his trust for future interests. His plan for hunting. Zaroff is a perfect example of people might seem apathetic, but they can always have a dark
Did you know even though nature can be beautiful it can sometimes be deadly. In The Most Dangerous Game, Rainsford begins to see the awe-instilling power of nature and how it can hurt us. The Most Dangerous Game Written by Richard Connell is a story about the dangers of nature and the ethical question of if we should kill animals. Connell uses irony to instill a question in the mind of the reader”Is killing animals moral?” In “The Most Dangerous Game,”Richard Connell uses a flip between man and animal to convey irony in the story while also using the dangerous environment of the Island to show suspense.
Rainsford never really cared how the hunted felt because he was always the hunter and knew that he could kill his game he was hunting and Zaroff changed that. Rainsford was forced to play Zaroff’s game so he could be entertained and to test Rainsfords survival and hunting skills. Rainsford had the difficult choice to either play Zaroff’s game or he gets kill on the spot and is not given a chance to survive. What Rainsford learned made it much better for him to survive Zaroff’s game while being hunted in a jungle. If Rainsford never changed during his experiences he might have not even survived and would have been killed by Zaroff if he never
In the story, Zaroff and Rainsford are both enjoy hunting, and are both excellent and skillful hunters
In the story The Most Dangerous Game a character named General Zaroff has a passion for hunting. He has been hunting since he was born. He has hunted every animal known to man, but, then he gets tried of hunting the same animal over and over. So he discovers a new animal human flesh. General Zaroff is person of bad character because he is cruel, cowardly, and untrustworthy.
In “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell, Zaroff is a hunter that lives on an island in the middle of nowhere. Zaroff demonstrates that he is rich, smart, and confident.